Local, state and national officials clicked on their computer screens and posted their congratulatory remarks via the Internet, in a "virtual ribbon cutting" at the April 12 grand opening of the Educational Technology Center in Galesburg. The center is collaborative project of Knox College, Carl Sandburg College and Galesburg School District 205.

The Educational Technology Center "is an example to the rest of the nation for the direction that our country has to take," said U.S. Senator Carol Moseley-Braun at the opening ceremony. "In a global economy and an information age that is technology driven, it will be of vital importance that Americans can access education and information. That will be the cutting edge for our future economic prosperity."

Following spoken remarks, Moseley-Braun and nearly two-dozen other dignitaries entered remarks in the Educational Technology Center's World Wide Web site. Using the "guestbook" function, their remarks were immediately posted to the ETC Web page. Electronic photographs taken at the ceremony with a digital camera were also posted on the ETC Web page as the event was in progress.

"As far as we can tell, this is a first in the country--a joint venture between a private liberal arts college, a community college and a local school district, funded by donations from local businesses," said Bob Maus, executive director of the Galesburg-Area Chamber of Commerce, who emceed the grand opening.

The center houses several computer labs offering Internet access--free to students and available to the general public for a monthly fee--as well as satellite-based distance learning and teleconferencing.

The ETC is used for classes in computer-related subjects offered through Carl Sandburg College's Center for Agriculture, Business and Industry.

Also at the ETC opening ceremony, Richard Wagner, executive director of the Illinois Board of Higher Education, announced that IBHE had awarded Knox $50,000 for work-study grants to Knox students who will work as lab assistants at the Center.

Founded in 1837, Knox is an independent, four-year, liberal arts college, located in Galesburg, Illinois, with 1,100 students from 42 states and 33 nations. Knox's "Old Main," a National Historic Landmark, is the only building remaining from the 1858 Lincoln-Douglas debates.

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