Behind the scenes of talks about free laptops – what did we gain for the private sector?
In March 2024, the situation looked terrible. The government project assumed that free equipment would go exclusively to public schools, leaving the non-public sector out in the cold. As Sgela Education Advocacy, we entered the game when only 11 business days were left until the end of consultations.
Clashing with a wall in room number 304
We were sitting in a stuffy conference room number 304, and on the table lay a thick pile of papers with the draft regulation. Officials from the digitization department were convinced that community and private schools didn't need support because their owners could afford everything. It was a mistake in assumptions that could have cost thousands of kids access to modern tools. We presented hard data from 87 facilities in the Lublin and Podkarpacie regions, showing that the budgets of these schools are stretched to the limit by inflation and an increase in energy costs of 214% year-on-year.
Our conversation with the department director, Marek Nowicki, lasted exactly 114 minutes. We lay our cards on the table: no one there wanted to hear about equalizing opportunities until we showed specific numbers. We proved that omitting the non-public sector was not only an ethical problem but also a logistical one for EdTech platforms that would have to create two separate login systems for different groups of students. This was our first small breakthrough in these negotiations, which opened the door to further specifics.
Regulations are our field, so we knew that without hitting the ministry's operating costs, we wouldn't get anywhere.
Numbers that couldn't be ignored
The second meeting took place on March 19, 2024, at 9:15 in the morning. This time we came with a list of 3,243 students who, according to the original version of the project, would not get a single laptop. We showed that 62% of these children come from families with average incomes, and a community school is not a luxury for them, but a choice of a specific teaching method. Officials began to soften when they understood that our argumentation was based on facts, not on pleas for mercy. At Sgela Education Advocacy, we don't play at fluff; we show how much the state will save on an efficient implementation of the program.
The legal analysis prepared by our team within 48 hours pointed out 3 significant errors in the definition of a facility entitled to the subsidy. (To be honest, the coffee in that ministry was the worst I've had in years, but that was the least of the problems). We focused on Article 14 of the act, which in our interpretation had to cover all students fulfilling the school obligation, regardless of the management body. This was the moment the minister's advisors agreed with us, seeing the risk of an avalanche of compensation lawsuits from parents.
Battle for the deadline: 72 hours for corrections
Once they agreed to change the definition, another problem appeared: time. The Ministry wanted to close the shopping list by March 25. We had to collect statements from 127 EdTech platforms and 46 educational associations within 72 hours that they were ready to immediately provide technical data. We worked 14 hours a day, calling every school director from our database. We know who picks up the phone at the ministry at 9:00 PM, so we pushed where others would have long ago given up.
The effect was that on March 22, 2024, at 4:47 PM, we received official confirmation: the non-public sector was added to the list of beneficiaries. This was not the result of 'dialogue' but hard lobbying based on knowledge of procedures. Thanks to this, 3,240 students received equipment with a total value exceeding 9.6 million zlotys. For many small schools in the Lublin region, this was the only way for a technological leap this school year. Without our intervention, this money would simply have vanished into the central budget.
At Sgela, we don't wait for an invitation. We go where decisions about your money are made.
Why must EdTech keep its finger on the pulse?
This success is a lesson for all companies creating software for schools. If you don't have your voice in Warsaw, the law is created without your participation. In this case, we gained not only laptops but also standards for access to e-textbooks, which directly affected the revenue of 14 of our tech clients. On average, each of them gained access to a market 37% larger thanks to one change in system compatibility provisions. This is real money that was lying on the table, which officials wanted to sweep under the rug.
We are currently monitoring another 4 draft laws that could affect the financing of private education in 2025. We are not interested in talking about the vision of the education of the future. We are interested in whether your invoice will be paid from the subsidy or get stuck in the bureaucratic machine. Our team, consisting of 9 experts in Lublin and Warsaw, daily checks changes in the BIP and journals of laws so our clients don't wake up with their hands in the nightstand when the new law enters into force in the middle of the semester.
