The Department of Education released a proposal this week that would overhaul and consolidate the 37-year old Educational Resources Information Center (ERIC) to make it more efficient and cost-effective. The current system is comprised of 16 clearinghouses devoted to specific subject areas, which, under the Department's new plan, would be consolidated and run by a single contractor. According to Russ Whitehurst, director of the Department of Education's Institute of Education Sciences, the aim of the overhaul is to make the system more uniform and to reduce the amount of time it takes to update information online. Veterans of ERIC wonder whether this ancient program can ever be reformed-and whether putting all of the government's ERIC eggs in a single basket will constitute an improvement. The draft statement of work is posted online at http://www.eps.gov/EPSData/ED/Synopses/3286/Reference-Number-ERIC2003/ERICDraftSOW.doc, and is open for public comment until May 9.
"Education Department proposes overhaul of ERIC system, consolidating databases and cutting services," by Will Potter, The Chronicle of Higher Education, April 23, 2003 (subscription required)
"Ed. Dept. floats plan for overhaul of ERIC clearinghouses," by Kathleen Kennedy Manzo, Education Week, April 30, 2003