For Immediate Release

CONTACT
Tracy S. Weeks, Ph.D.
Executive Director
SETDA
202-715-6636 x700
[email protected]

SETDA Honors Senator Ed Markey 2018 Federal Policy Maker of the Year Award

November 13, 2018 (Washington, D.C.) SETDA, the principal membership association of U.S. state and territorial educational technology leaders announced today Senator Ed Markey (MA) as the recipient of the SETDA Federal Policy Maker of the Year Award. Senator Markey was honored by SETDA at the 2018 Leadership Summit – Championing Education Leaders in the Digital Age in Arlington, Virginia, for his leadership and advocacy for access to broadband and educational technology as well his efforts to reinstate Net Neutrality guidelines.

“The fight for net neutrality is a fight for the future of education,” noted the Senator. “In 2018, American children use the internet to do their homework and access educational resources. Teachers go online to develop curricula and communicate with their students. Since the FCC repealed the rules that keep the internet open and free last year, I have been proud to join the chorus of educators and students across the country who have raised their voices in defense of the internet as we know it. I thank SETDA for this wonderful award and look forward to continuing this fight.”

“In the Digital Age, all students need access to high quality broadband in and out of school. Access to instructional content cannot be restricted if we want to truly leverage technology for learning,” noted Tracy Weeks, Executive Director of SETDA.

Senator Ed Markey (D-MA) served in the House of Representatives for 37 years before being elected to the Senate in 2013m, where he serves on the Commerce, Science and Transportation Committee. Markey has been a reliable champion for education, including fighting to ensure that students have access to broadband and education technology. As a House member, Markey was one of the chief architects of the E-rate program, through passage of the Telecommunications Act of 1996, and he has fought to strengthen and expand the program since its inception. While in the House, Congressman Markey introduced the Internet Freedom Preservation Act, the first net neutrality bill introduced in Congress, to ensure that as the Internet continues to evolve, it remains a level playing field guided by the principles of openness, competition and innovation. He continued his Net Neutrality work in the Senate earlier this year by introducing a Congressional Review Act resolution designed to restore the Federal Communications Commission’s Net Neutrality regulations. The resolution was narrowly approved by the Senate and is currently pending before the House. Markey has also been an advocate for balanced data privacy protections, including by contributing to the creation of the Children’s Online Privacy Protection Act and by proposing improvements to the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act.

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About SETDA
Founded in 2001, the State Educational Technology Directors Association (SETDA) is the principal non-profit membership association representing U.S. state and territorial educational technology leaders. Our mission is to build and increase the capacity of state and national leaders to improve education through technology policy and practice. For more information, please visit https://www.setda.org

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