Camille Wood, who has been technology director for the Idaho Falls School District for the past 13 years, said her district contracted with Syringa Networks for broadband service after the Idaho Education Network went dark. “We are better off than we were during the IEN contract with ENA,” Wood said. “The cost is, for our district, much lower than it was prior. … It’s better quality at a lower cost.”

When the IEN was still up and running, it provided only about half the large district’s broadband needs, she said. The district contracted for a second connection for elementary schools and support services; the federal e-rate program picked up 74 percent of the cost of that.

Now, it still has a two-provider set-up, with Syringa and CenturyLink, she said, and the two connections provide the added protection that if there a major disruption to one of the services, like a car hitting a utility pole, the other, physically separate service would continue to function.

Said Wood, “Our broadband needs … are constantly growing.” She urged the state to be guided by the Idaho Education Technology Association and the state Department of Education on how best to serve all students in the future. Wood also said she hopes her district will keep the option of securing its own service, rather than just a statewide contract.