Federal Policy and Law

This EDUCAUSE resource library page underscores the connections among national, state, and campus levels and how Congress, federal agencies, and the courts all play a role in shaping IT law, as well as why this matters to higher education. EDUCAUSE Policy is the program that directly works in this area.

Below are some links to additional helpful resources outside of EDUCAUSE.

United States Congress
Independent Federal Agencies
The White House & Executive Agencies
National Associations and Alliances
Institutes/Programs/Think Tanks

United States Congress

Links to Senate and House committees on telecommunications and Internet-related issues as well as other congressional resources.

Senate

United States Senate
This page links to the Senate schedule and provides access to Committee and individual Senator websites. The following Senate Committees deal with telecommunications and Internet-related issues:

House of Representatives

U.S. House of Representatives
This page links to the House of Representatives schedule and provides access to Committee and individual Representative websites. The following House of Representative Committees deal with telecommunications and Internet–related issues:

Other Resources

Advisory Committee to the Congressional Internet Caucus
This organization provides non–partisan information to Congress on Internet–related issues.
CSPAN
Live webcasts of House and Senate floor activities, press conferences and committee hearings.
Library of Congress Thomas Legislative Information database
Provides access to past and pending congressional legislation and committee reports, among other useful information on how Congress makes laws.

Independent Federal Agencies

Federal Communications Commission
The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) is an independent United States government agency, directly responsible to Congress. The FCC was established by the Communications Act of 1934 and is charged with regulating interstate and international communications by radio, television, wire, satellite and cable. The FCC's jurisdiction covers the 50 states, the District of Columbia, and U.S. possessions.

FCC bureaus and offices of special interest to the higher education community:

Federal Communications Commission, Wireless Telecommunications Bureau

National Science Foundation
The National Science Foundation (NSF) is an independent agency of the United States federal government whose mission is to promote the progress of science; to advance the national health, prosperity, and welfare; and to secure the national defense.

NSF directorates/resources of special interest to the higher education and networking communities:

National Science Board
The National Science Board is the governing board of the National Science Foundation, composed of 24 part–time members, appointed by the President and confirmed by the Senate. They are selected on the basis of their eminence in basic medical, or social sciences, engineering, agriculture, education, research management or public affairs.

The White House & Executive Agencies

White House Resources

The White House
White House offices of special interest to the higher education and networking communities:

Office of Science and Technology Policy
National Coordination Office for Information Technology Research and Development
The National Coordination Office (NCO) for Information Technology Research and Development (IT R&D) coordinates planning, budget, and assessment activities for the Federal Networking and IT R&D Program. This 12–agency collaborative effort pioneers fundamental advances in the critical technologies of the Nation's information infrastructure, including high performance computing, large–scale networking, and high assurance software and systems design.

NTIA Resources

U.S. Department of Commerce, National Telecommunications and Information Administration
The National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA), an agency of the U.S. Department of Commerce, is the White House's principal voice on domestic and international telecommunications and information technology issues.

NTIA offices of special interest to the higher education and networking communities:

Office of Policy Analysis and Development

Department of Education Resources

U.S. Department of Education
The U S. Department of Education is the agency of the federal government that establishes policy for, administers, and coordinates most federal assistance to education. It assists the president in executing his education policies for the nation and in implementing laws enacted by Congress.

Department of Education offices and resources of special interest to the higher education and networking communities:

Department of Justice Resources

National Associations and Alliances

Institutes/Programs/Think Tanks

Benton Foundation Communications Policy Program
The Benton Foundation's mission is to articulate a public interest vision for the digital age and to demonstrate the value of communications for solving social problems. The foundation's projects cover a wide–range of domestic and international social issues involving information technology and the Internet.

Center for Democracy and Technology (CDT)
CDT works to promote democratic values and constitutional liberties in the digital age, focusing on free expression and privacy in global communications technologies.

Cornell University Computer Policy and Law Program (UCPL)
Provides leadership and discussion forum for higher education institutions developing information technology policies.

The Institute for Computer Policy and Law
Provides leadership to colleges and universities in developing technology policies.

The Markle Foundation
The mission of the Markle Foundation is to accelerate the use of information and communications technology to address critical public needs. One of their three main categories of research is “Policy for a Networked Society.” A full list of research –related publications are available on their website.

The New America Foundation
An independent, non–partisan, non–profit public policy institute that has as one of its many focal points, federal information policy, in particular spectrum policy.

Washington Internet Project/Cybertelecom
Excellent, up–to–date, resource on wide–range of federal Internet and telecommunications policy issues.

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Library Items on this Topic

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EDUCAUSE Library Items for Federal Policy and Law

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2012 CDS Executive Summary Report: January 24, 2013

This report summarizes results from the EDUCAUSE Core Data Service (CDS) survey. Using a matched set of 616 CDS 2011 and CDS 2012 participating institutions, this year’s report is a detaile…
Building Organizational Capacity for Analytics: February 25, 2013

Optimizing student success is the “killer app” for analytics in higher education . Intelligent investments in optimizing student success garner wide support and have a strong, justifia…
EDUCAUSE 2011 Annual Conference: Executive Summaries of Selected Sessions: October 30, 2012

Highlights from selected general and featured sessions at the 2011 EDUCAUSE Annual Conference. Highlights from selected general and featured sessions a…
What Campus Leaders Need to Know About MOOCs: December 20, 2012

MOOCs (massive open online courses) are courses delivered over the web to potentially thousands of students at a time. In a MOOC, lectures are typically “canned,” quizzes and testing ar…
Analytics 3-Day Sprint - Summary: August 20, 2012

This brief summarizes the main themes from the EDUCAUSE Analytics Sprint, held July 24–26, 2012. Presenters and participants exchanged ideas and information via webinars, online conversations, …
Understanding and Managing the Risks of Analytics in Higher Education: A Guide: June 29, 2012

This guide provides an introduction to the major risk categories faced by a higher education institution considering investments in time, energy, and money in analytics work . Under the ri…
Findings of the Expert Panel on Analytics: May 2, 2012

Analytics is of increasing relevance to higher education because of the role it can play in accountability, efficiency, and continuous improvement as well as its potential impact on ever…
Case Study 21: Shaping the Path to Digital: The Indiana University eTexts Initiative: May 2, 2012

A case study from Game Changers Brad Wheeler and Nik Osborne This chapter is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 Unported License Introduction The risi…
Case Study 20: Transforming Education with Research that Makes a Difference: May 2, 2012

A case study from Game Changers J. D. Walker, Charles D. Dziuban, and Patsy D. Moskal Positive change in education happens when faculty gain insight into the relationship between st…
Case Study 19: CS50 at Harvard: "The Most Rewarding Class I Have Taken...Ever!": May 2, 2012

A case study from Game Changers Katie Vale A trail of colorful balloons leads from Oxford Street to the Northwest Labs building. As I head downstairs, I exchange greetings with our …