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                                Before the
                      Federal Communications Commission
                          Washington, D.C. 20554

                                        )         
In the Matter of                             )    
                                   )
Request for Review                      )
of the Decision of                      )
the Universal Service Administrator by                 )
                                   )    
Carolina Friends School                 )                        
Durham, North Carolina                  )    File No. SLD-127497
                                   )
Federal-State Joint Board on Universal Service    )    CC Docket No. 96-45
                                   )    
Changes to the Board of Directors of the          )    CC Docket No. 97-21
National Exchange Carrier Association, Inc.       )
                                   
                             ORDER
                                
                 Adopted:  December 14, 1999                  Released:  December 14, 1999

By the Common Carrier Bureau:

     1.  This Order denies the Letter of Appeal filed September 20, 1999 by the Carolina
Friends School (Carolina).  Carolina is appealing an August 30, 1999 Administrator's Decision on
Appeal, which finds that Carolina's appeal had not been timely filed.  In the instant Letter of
Appeal, Carolina seeks "special relief" from the requirement that appeals of Schools and Libraries
Division (SLD) Funding Commitment Decision (FCD) Letters be received no later than 30 days
after the date the FCD Letter is issued.  

     2.  The record is clear that Carolina did not file its letter of appeal with SLD within the 30-
day time period.  The SLD FCD Letter relating to the request at issue is dated July 8, 1999. 
Carolina's letter of appeal filed with SLD is undated, but was received by SLD on August 12,
1999.  Carolina seeks "special relief" of the 30-day deadline.  Carolina states that it did not file a
timely appeal because Carolina was "in major transition" during the summer when the school
received its FCD Letter, no staff member was tracking universal service matters during the
summer, and the individual who filed the appeal "thought that the appeal letter was postmarked
within the appeals 30-day window."

     3.  Carolina's request for "special relief" of the 30-day deadline is effectively a waiver
request.  Although the Commission may waive any provision of its rules, a request for waiver
must be supported by a showing of good cause.  That is, "[t]he FCC may exercise its discretion
to waive a rule where particular facts would make strict compliance inconsistent with the public
interest" and where "special circumstances" might warrant a waiver.  Carolina's explanation as to
why its appeal was untimely reveals that the individual responsible for filing the appeal was under
the mistaken impression that merely having a postmark within the 30-day window would
constitute timely filing of the appeal.  As discussed above, such appeals must be received within
30 days of the date the FCD Letter was issued.  It was incumbent upon Carolina to familiarize
itself with, and follow, the appeal filing deadline requirements, which were set forth on SLD's web
site.  Failure to know the details of these requirements is not a reasonable explanation for late
filing and does not constitute good cause.  The other explanations provided regarding the skeletal
staff working during summer hours and other transition issues the school may have faced at the
time that Carolina received its FCD Letter similarly fail to present any special circumstances
warranting a waiver.  Carolina's explanation for failing to file its appeal within the 30-day deadline
does not provide a basis for treating it differently from other applicants that are required to appeal
SLD's decision in accordance with specified filing deadlines.
               
     4.  ACCORDINGLY, IT IS ORDERED, pursuant to authority delegated under sections
0.91, 0.291, and 54.722(a) of the Commission's rules, 47 C.F.R.  0.91, 0.291, and 54.722(a),
that the Letter of Appeal filed September 20, 1999 by Carolina Friends School IS DENIED.

                              FEDERAL COMMUNICATIONS COMMISSION


                              Yog R. Varma
                              Deputy Chief, Common Carrier Bureau