Case Says $387,743 Federal Grant to MCC will Support Distance Learning for Native Hawaiian Students

Case says $387,743 federal grant to MCC will support distance learning for Native Hawaiian students

Honolulu, Hawaii - Congressman Ed Case today said Maui Community College (MCC) is receiving one of 79 federal grants that the U.S. Department of Agriculture Rural Development is awarding to distance learning and telemedicine programs across the country this year.

"This grant to MCC will be used to engage Native Hawaiian students and their families in distance learning by placing the necessary technology in students' homes," said Case. The grant, totaling $387,743, will support MCC's distance-learning capabilities and expand educational opportunities for Native Hawaiian students on Maui, Lanai, and Molokai. These types of federal grants are essential for MCC, in particular, because distance learning enables students throughout Maui County to take classes via the Internet and cable television and even earn an Associate of Arts degree in Liberal Arts."

USDA Rural Development is awarding 79 Distance Learning and Telemedicine grants totaling more than $29.4 million which will provide improved educational and medical services to rural residents of 36 states. Of the 79 projects selected, 35 provide funding for medical service improvements and 44 promote educational opportunities.

The Distance Learning and Telemedicine Program is designed to enhance educational and health care services in rural areas of the country. This year 227 grant applications were received and 162 were found to meet program eligibility requirements. The 79 successful applicants were selected from that list.

Another program receiving a grant is run by the Choctaw Nation of Oklahoma which will use its $304,542 grant to provide distance learning services to children enrolled in a Head Start program at 23 sites spread across 15,000 square miles of southeastern Oklahoma. In northwest New Mexico, $486,100 in grant funds will be used to provide distance learning equipment and multi-media computer labs to 15 schools, including four high schools. The project will serve over 5,000 students in a three county area.

"Colleges like MCC across the country deserve these grants in order to bridge great distances between students and college classrooms. In Maui County, the ocean adds to that distance which is why this grant is absolutely critical."

http://wwwc.house.gov/case/press_releases/2005/2005-70-MCC-USDA%20grant.html