E-training site enhanced

Agencies' online training programs eventually will become part of the Gov Online Learning Center — a one-stop shop for e-training that now hosts a career road map tool for information technology workers and other enhancements.

President Bush's fiscal 2004 budget, released Feb. 3, contains details about when some agencies should move their existing e-training programs to the center.

Migrations or interfaces to the GoLearn.gov site should be completed by Sept. 30, 2004, according to the budget.

The Office of Management and Budget will send agencies a letter to "provide clarity and consistency of guidance," said Mark Forman, associate director for IT and e-government at OMB. "Agencies have to see what the guidance is in a joint situation."

At least 10 agencies are investing about $50 million annually in online training programs that can be replaced by the Gov Online Learning Center, he said at an event Jan. 30 at the Office of Personnel Management. The business cases agencies submitted for the fiscal 2004 budget revealed the redundancies.

OPM is responsible for the e-training initiative, which is one of the Bush administration's 24 e-government initiatives. OPM launched the Gov Online Learning Center in July 2002, and Jan. 30 it launched the program's second phase, which includes new features and enhancements to the site.

They include a competency-based career path tool for IT workers, which will be fully functional in June. The tool, which was developed with the CIO Council, is the first in the site's Competency Management Center designed to help employees manage their careers and help managers with strategic workforce planning.

Also, agencies will be able to buy course libraries — such as an IT/ computer security library — from vendors on a per-user basis. Prices range from $33 to $145 per user per year.

Since July 2002, the site has registered 35,000 users who have completed 10,000 courses, said Norm Enger, OPM's e-government project director. OPM officials hope to link to the Defense Acquisition University's programs, he said.

The site will save the government $1.19 billion over 10 years, he added.

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Head of the class

The Office of Personnel Management last month launched upgrades and features to the Gov Online Learning Center. The improvements include:

* Fee-for-service technology.

* Access to additional free and mandatory training courses.

* Initial functionality with the Federal Law Enforcement Training Center and access to its secure Virtual Training Academy.

* Initial functionality with the Office of Executive and Management Development for leadership and management training.