<meta charset="utf-8"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: arial, sans-serif; font-size: 13px; border-collapse: collapse; ">FOSSED is a major open source for educators conference in Maine that both teachers and developers attend. This year we will be working to bring together developers with interested in Sugar are invited to come and work with the developers are already working with schools in Maine.</span><div>
<span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: arial, sans-serif; font-size: 13px; border-collapse: collapse; "><div><br></div><div>Here is some background: </div><div><br></div><div>Many of you may know that Maine has lead the way in the US with 1 on 1 Apple laptops for middle schoolers, paid for out of the state budget for the last several years. </div>
<div><br></div><div>What you may not have heard is when the state expanded the program a bit over a year ago the state wanted many districts to pay $250 per year to lease apple laptops with software for middle and high school students.</div>
<div><br></div><div>Many of Maine's towns and rural areas thought that was too much! So they came together and formed a coalition. They created their own open source distro packed with educational software: <a href="http://open1to1.org" target="_blank" style="color: rgb(7, 77, 143); ">open1to1.org</a>. They negotiated a deal to buy netbooks for $289 (buy not lease!)</div>
<div><br></div><div>About 3000 students are using open source in Maine today! The project url is: <a href="http://open1to1.org">http://open1to1.org</a></div><div><br></div><div>Now they want to add Sugar to Open 1 to 1!! :)</div>
<div><br></div><div>Please come help us kick off this effort in Maine July 7th to 9th!!! </div><div><br></div><div>The conference url is <a href="http://www.fossed.com/">http://www.fossed.com/</a>. Developers will receive a VERY significant discount (probably about half price, details are being worked out now) and still get lodging, all you can eat great food and access to sessions.</div>
</span><br><br>-- <br>Caroline Meeks<br>Solution Grove<br>Caroline@SolutionGrove.com<br><br>617-500-3488 - Office<br>505-213-3268 - Fax<br>
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