More than 46,000 K-12 schools, community colleges, libraries, and museums in 35 U.S. states are now connected to the Internet2 backbone network according to the results of a bi-annual survey, released today. The survey highlights the success of the nationwide Internet2 K20 Initiative in bringing together Internet2 member institutions and innovators from primary and secondary schools, colleges and universities, libraries, and museums to extend new technologies, applications, and advanced content to all educational sectors across the country. Among the results, the survey found that 37% of all U.S. K-12 schools, 54% of all US community colleges in the US, 57% of all US four year colleges, and 20% of all US libraries are now connected to Internet2's nationwide network. The vast majority of these connected institutions have also adopted the use of leading-edge video conferencing and streaming media technology like H.323, DVTS, or MPEG, the survey showed. Through this technology, K20 students have access to world-class learning experiences like master music classes taught by world-renowned musicians using DVD-quality videoconferencing or science experiments with advanced electron microscopes found at research labs using remote imaging instruments. Students also participate in programs, like Megaconference Junior, a project that brings together thousands of students in elementary and secondary schools from around the world using advanced multi-point video-conferencing. And this year, students and teachers across the country will join in the National Lewis and Clark Bicentennial Commemoration through virtual field trips and other web-based educational experiences. "In just under five years since the K20 Initiative's inception, Internet2 and its members have successfully created a diverse community of educators and students at all skill levels, who through the use of the network, have discovered rich, new ways to learn and collaborate to enhance their curriculum beyond traditional boundaries," said Dr. Louis Fox, director, Internet2 K20 Initiative and vice provost, University of Washington. "In doing so, we have extended resources to so many areas of the country that may not otherwise have access to these valuable learning materials and diverse experiences -- helping to revitalize student and teacher interest in important areas such as music, art and science." As more and more of the K20 community continue to connect to Internet2's backbone network, many state education networks are beginning to aggressively invest in upgrading their own capabilities. The survey found that since 2004, the number of K20 organizations which connect at speeds above 10 megabits per second (Mbps) has nearly tripled from 2178 in 2004 to 6068 in 2006 and the vast majority of Performing Arts Centers, Science Centers, and Planetariums now also connect to the network at rates above 10 Mbps. Fox added, "While many school districts and state education networks have made considerable progress in upgrading their local networks, the majority of K-12 schools still report connections of less than 10 Mbps. Without high-capacity connections to the network, the benefits of advanced learning applications may be unrealized. Investing in high capacity connections will enable students to fully participate in this expanding global fabric which has become so vital to the progress of our educational missions." Complete survey results can be found at: its web site Selected 2006 SEGP Connectivity Key Survey Findings: State Network Overview* * 35 networks are connected to the high performance Internet2 backbone network. * The average State Education Network connects to Internet2 at 756 Mbps. * This is up from 467 Mbps in 2004 and 138 Mbps in 2002. * 69% of the state education networks connected to the Internet2 backbone network are multicast enabled. * 60% of the state education networks that access the Internet2 backbone network provide other video services (MPEG, Access Grid Node, etc.) Four Year Colleges & Universities * 1002 out of 2026 or 49% of the 4 Year Colleges & Universities in the United States are connected to Internet2 via the SEGP Program. * 69 out of 1002, or 57%, of 4 Year Colleges & Universities connect to the Internet2 backbone network at >= 10 Mbps. Community Colleges * 677 out of 1252 or 54% of the Community Colleges in the United States are connected to Internet2 via the SEGP Program. * 328 out of 677, or 48%, of Community Colleges connect to the Internet2 backbone network at >= 10 Mbps. * 17% of state education networks report between 50 - 100% of the Community Colleges they connect are multi-cast enabled. K12 Schools * 35971 out of 98335 or 37% of the K12 Schools in the United States are connected to Internet2 via the SEGP Program. * 4350 out of 35971, or 12%, of K12 Schools connect to the Internet2 backbone network at >= 10 Mbps. * 17% of state education networks report between 50 - 100% of the K12 Schools they connect are multi-cast enabled. * State education networks report, on average, that 44% of the K12 Schools they connnect have H.323, DVTS, MPEG, or other video conferencing codecs available. Public Libraries * 3325 out of 16991 or 20% of the Public Libraries in the United States are connected to Internet2 via the SEGP Program. * 229 out of 3325, or 7%, of Public Libraries connect to the Internet2 backbone network at >= 10 Mbps. Museums, Historical, & Cultural Centers ** * 28 out of 80, or 35%, of Museums, Historical, & Cultural Centers connect to the Internet2 backbone network at >= 10 Mbps. Performing Arts Centers ** * 19 out of 24, or 79%, of Performing Arts Centers connect to the * Internet2 backbone network at >= 10 Mbps. Science Centers, Planetariums, & Observatories ** * 36 out of 228 or 16% of the Science Centers, Planetariums, & Observatories in the United States are connected to Internet2 via the SEGP Program. * 25 out of 36, or 68%, of Science Centers, Planetariums, & Observatories connect to the Internet2 backbone network at >= 10 Mbps. Zoos & Aquariums * 12 out of 203 or 6% of the Zoos & Aquariums in the United States are connected to Internet2 via the SEGP Program. * 2 out of 12, or 17%, of Zoos & Aquariums connect to the Internet2 backbone network at >= 10 Mbps. survey methodology list of the organizations connected