Did your company submit a Technology or Ethyl Grant application? Please note that the applications for both programs have been reviewed and the recipients of the grants will be announced in early November. Details on each grant follows:

Technology Grants: FRED received 55 applications this year. Nominated schools will receive a letter the second week of November notifying them whether or not their application was selected.

Ethyl Grants: FRED's Ethyl grant applications were also reviewed in late October. Recipients of the grant will be notified the first week of November.

Each year, the FRED awards scholarships to rural America's most gifted students. Scholarships range from $1,000 to $5,000 and are funded by FRED's Scholarship and Program Endowment funds.

Telephone Companies were mailed a hard copy of the application in October. Associate members are asked to use the electronic copy this year. Interested students may also find a copy online (see link below). Any questions about the program or application process should be directed to FRED's Program Coordinator, Haley Smit at
202-659- 5990 or at hes@opastco.org.

FRED's semi-annual newsletter is now available. In this edition, you can find information about FRED and OPASTCO's move, FRED's 2010 programs, the 2009 Telergee and Small Telco Compensation and Benefits surveys. A summary of the latest programs and events is also provided, along with a note from FRED's President, Karen Kohne and FRED's Director, Melissa Korzuch.

Hard copies of the publications were mailed to all OPASTCO members in September. A copy is also available on FRED's website and by clicking below.

In April 2010, FRED will provide an opportunity for students from rural communities to travel to Washington, DC. For a week, the students will learn about the government, civic affairs and telecommunications regulations. Students will have the chance to tour historic landmarks, attend seminars, and meet members of Congress, staffers, journalists and other Capitol Hill professionals. The program is open to high school juniors and seniors who live, or attend a high school, in an area that is served by an OPASTCO telephone company member. The 2010 program will take place from April 11 - 16. Applications can now be completed online, or by downloading a 2010 Leadership Through Learning brochure.

FRED is looking for companies who would like to support the Leadership Through Learning program in 2010. If you are an Associate Member interested in being a co-sponsor, please contact Melissa Korzuch.

After December 31, 2009, the FRED and OPASTCO offices will have a new address. Please be sure to mail all program applications, donations and correspondences to the new address starting
January 1, 2010.

FRED's new address will be:
2020 K Street, NW
7th Floor
Washington, DC 20006

If your company plans to submit any applications for a FRED program in early 2010, please remember that while mail will be forwarded, sending applications to our old address could delay arrival dates. Additionally, companies who plan to send applications overnight should be advised that packages will only be accepted at our new address after December 31, 2009. This information will be included in all of the new applications.

The paper version of FRED's 2009 Small Telecommunications Compensation & Benefits Survey is sold out; however, CD copies of the publication are still available. Prices on the order form below reflect these changes.

The publication contains information on over 65 jobs and benefit areas. The cost of the survey varies by company membership in OPASTCO and participation in the survey.

CoBank and FRED are pleased to offer the 2009 TELERGEE Benchmark Survey, which includes 2008 year-end financial data from over 200 rural Incumbent Local Exchange Carriers (ILECs) nationwide. All participants in the study are clients of TELERGEE member CPA firms. Each TELERGEE firm supplies the financial statements that go into producing the benchmarks presented in the study. The study presents four classifications of ILECs:
- Cooperatives on cost study
- Cooperatives on average schedule
- Corporations on cost study
- Corporations on average schedule

The study is available only in PDF format this year.

OPASTCO Winter Convention in San Diego:
January 23 - 27, 2010
Next FRED Fundraising Event:
January 25, 2010
Clambake-on-the-beach Party