The Florida Education Channel is a national direct satellite broadcasting channel on Dish Network originally funded in 2000 by the Florida Legislature. The channel uses distance learning technology to reach every school in Florida. FEC does this using a direct fiber line to backhaul our distance learning channel to EchoStar Satellite (Dish Network) Corporation in Cheyenne, WY. The FEC television signal is rebroadcast over one of EchoStar’s national public interest channels (9418 on 61.5) to sites all across the United States as well as schools within Florida. This has made direct satellite broadcast affordable with off the shelf receive equipment available at local department stores and has removed the barriers of distance to all schools in Florida, both rural and urban.

These broadcasts are coordinated with the Florida Department of Education Staff Development requirements, digitized, then archived, for anytime, anywhere learning over the PAEC website www.paec.org. Our staff uses these same broadcasts as part of the PAEC’s Professional Teaching Academy programming.

The broadcast channel, along with our web-based training, coordinates with the Florida Department of Education, as well as other statewide partners to facilitate the very best distance learning training of Florida’s teachers using the broadcast facilities of the Florida Education Channel.