About the Schools and Libraries Program:

• Overview of the Program
• Overview of the Process
• Outreach and Training
• Site Visits
• Filing Appeals
• Understanding Audits

Schools and Libraries Tools:

• Apply Online
• Commitments
• Submit a Question
• Latest News
• Calendar/Reminders
• Required Forms
• Reference Area
• Search Tools
• Changes and Corrections
• Suspensions and Debarments
• Program Compliance - Whistleblower Hotline
• Submitting A Complaint

Step 1: Eligibility Requirements

Schools and libraries must meet statutory definitions to be eligible for Schools and Libraries support.

Schools
For purposes of Universal Service Fund support, schools must meet the statutory definition of elementary and secondary schools found in the No Child Left Behind Act of 2001 (20 U.S.C. § 7801(18) and (38)):

• An elementary school is a non-profit institutional day or residential school, including a public elementary charter school, that provides elementary education, as determined under state law.
• A secondary school is a non-profit institutional day or residential school, including a public secondary charter school, that provides secondary education, as determined under state law, except that such term does not include any education beyond grade 12.
• Schools operating as for-profit businesses or that have endowments exceeding $50 million are not eligible.

Libraries
Libraries must meet the statutory definition of library or library consortium found in the 1996 Library Services and Technology Act (Pub. L. No. 104-208) (LSTA) and must be eligible for assistance from a state library administrative agency under that Act.

A library includes:

• A public library
• A public elementary school or secondary school library
• An academic library
• A research library, which for the purposes of this definition means a library that:
• makes publicly available library services and material suitable for scholarly research and not otherwise available to the public; and
• is not an integral part of an institution of higher education
• A private library, but only if the state in which such private library is located determines that the library should be considered a library for purposes of this definition

A library's eligibility for support also depends on its funding as an independent entity. Only libraries whose budgets are completely separate from any schools (including, but not limited to, elementary and secondary schools, colleges and universities) shall be eligible to receive discounted services.

For example, an elementary school library is only eligible to receive discounted services if its budget is completely separate from the elementary school. If its budget is not completely separate from the elementary school, the elementary school library is not eligible for support independent from the school with which it is associated.

A library consortium is "any local, statewide, regional, or interstate cooperative association of libraries that provides for the systematic and effective coordination of the resources of school, public, academic, and special libraries and information centers, for improving services to the clientele of such libraries."

Libraries operating as for-profit businesses are not eligible for discounts.