Idaho in line for $16.8 million education project

The Idaho Department of Education has signed a $16.8 million letter of agreement with PLATO Learning Inc. to provide software and support for a new student information management system.

http://www.idahostatesman.com/News/story.asp?ID=57878

The agreement, funded partly with a grant from the J.A. and Kathryn Albertson Foundation, is subject to state funding, company officials said Tuesday.

PLATO Learning´s software will be used for the Idaho Student Information Management System — a system designed in part to help teachers create lesson plans and review students´ disciplinary history, attendance records and grades.

Eventually, the network will connect all the schools to provide data for parents, teachers, students, administrators, lawmakers and the public. It will be one of the first statewide systems in the nation, officials said.

A pilot project will start next month, and all Idaho public schools will have the software by the 2006-07 school year, the company said.