Florida's Broward County Public Schools Adopts the Blackboard Learning System to Provide Online Professional Development for Teachers.

Business Editors/Education Writers

WASHINGTON--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Jan. 30, 2003

Nation's 5th Largest Public School District Joins the Blackboard

K-12 Community

Broward County Public Schools has selected Blackboard Inc. to provide comprehensive e-Education solutions including enterprise software, hosting services, onsite training and course conversion services. The Blackboard Learning System(TM) and related services will be implemented to serve Broward's online learning initiatives for Professional Staff Development Programs.

"Broward County Public Schools' decision to standardize on the Blackboard Learning System reinforces the district's commitment to providing its teachers and administrators with anytime, anyplace professional development services. More than 40 online courses already have been developed and will be powered by Blackboard through our "Broward Virtual University". These teacher training courses are taught by practicing classroom teachers with expertise in reading, mathematics, writing, science, social studies, art, physical education, technology integration and exceptional student education. In the future we hope to co-develop online courses with our university partners who also use the Blackboard Learning System in order to expand online educational opportunities for Broward teachers," said Dr. Jeanine Gendron, Director of Customer Staff Development Services at Broward County Public Schools.

With more than 266,000 students, 14,000 teachers, and 238 schools, Broward County is the fifth largest public school system in the United States. Broward County Public Schools selected the Blackboard Learning System after a thorough two-year evaluation of a competing e-Learning platform.

Broward County Public Schools cites the following reasons for selecting the Blackboard Learning System:

-- Blackboard's commitment to serving the specific needs of the K-12 market

-- Ease of use for faculty and administrators regardless of technology expertise

-- Blackboard's proven interoperability with current instructional and administrative investments

Broward County Public Schools has licensed the Blackboard Learning System in an ASP environment to deliver 24x7 availability, security and support. Blackboard also will provide course conversion for 50 WebCT courses and onsite training for Broward teachers and administrators.

"We are pleased that Broward County Public Schools selected the Blackboard Learning System for its Professional Staff Development Programs," said Matthew Pittinsky, Chairman of Blackboard. "Blackboard continues to invest in the success of its K-12 community, particularly large districts like Broward that require enterprise level capabilities coupled with technology to deliver standards-based curriculum."

In what has become the company's fastest growing market, Blackboard now serves more than 360 K-12 clients in 41 states. Local school districts, service agencies and statewide school systems utilize the Blackboard Learning System to enhance classroom instruction, augment professional development and increase parent-teacher communication. The Blackboard Learning System powers more than a third of all virtual high schools across the country.

In addition to Broward County Public Schools, recent additions to the Blackboard K-12 community include Fairfax County Public Schools, Houston Independent School District (TX), the Michigan Virtual High School, the Louisiana Department of Education, Orange Unified School District (CA) and the National School Boards Association.

About Blackboard Inc.

Blackboard Inc. was founded with a vision to transform the Internet into a powerful environment for the education experience. Blackboard is a leading provider of e-Education solutions serving the global needs of primary and secondary schools, higher education, corporations and government agencies. Blackboard is headquartered in Washington, D.C., with offices and staff across North America, Europe and Asia. Please visit www.blackboard.com for more information.