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E d Te c h S h o w D a i l y W e d n e s d a y, J u l y 1 , 2 0 1 5 2 2 COX BUSINESS METRO ETHERNET: DEPLOYING NEW INFRASTRUCTURE FOR SCHOOL DISTRICT IN RECORD TIME 20,000 devices to be migrated. 16,000 cables to be installed. 3,600 classrooms to be outfitted. 4,000 teachers to be retrained. Those would be staggering numbers for any organization undergoing a tech- nology change, but for the Mesa Unified School District, the pressures were extraordinary. The district's infrastruc- ture needed a complete overhaul – and before the 2014-15 school deadline that was only 120 days away. The problems were numerous: bandwidth was inade- quate, the network couldn't support increasing BYOD demands, teachers couldn't take advantage of new technolo- gy, etc. It all took a toll on the limited IT staff, with patches and fixes taking prece- dence over projects. "We wanted to put more devices out in the schools … in students' hands," explained David Sanders, Director of Information Systems for the district. "A gig might be OK for now, but not for long. … We should be able to go to what- ever bandwidth we need on a short notice." That also meant that Sanders needed complete infrastructure insight, with 24/7 monitoring and reporting, as his small staff spent their days chasing problems. With a lot on the line, Sanders selected Cox Business Metro Ethernet for the project. It was a tight schedule. All 20,000 devices had to be upgraded from Windows XP to 8.1, meaning 4,000 teachers had to be trained and 4,000 printers had to be switched—all with an IT staff of 15 working alongside Cox Business techs. Teachers and administra- tors were skeptical, but the result was better than expected. "They were say- ing the end date would be pushed out until December," said Sanders, "but it was done the first week in August." Metro Ethernet Enables the Success of Future Generations School districts like Mesa's are under tremendous pressure to meet growing tech demands with extraordinarily tight budget constraints – and often during the short summer-break time frame. As Mesa discovered, it could be accomplished successfully with an added bonus: the infrastructure overhaul saves the district $750,000 annually. More importantly, teachers can now leave their desks for personalized engagement with the students, resulting in a richer learning experience. Metro Ethernet supports the dis- trict's top three demands: 1. Increasingly mobile community with advanced technology needs: enabling videoconferencing, which allows one teacher to instruct students at sever- al facilities simultane- ously. 2. Scalable compo- nents to accommodate long-term growth: WiFi in every classroom sup- ports the BYOD initiative at Mesa. 3. Simple, reliable and flexible user experience: Metro Ethernet seamlessly supports a variety of legacy technologies, as well as new, which is critical for Mesa and many schools. Cox Business Metro Ethernet allows you to cost-effectively connect multiple locations together by combin- ing the simplicity of Ethernet with its reliable optical fiber network. You can securely extend the reach of your net- work without the cost and complexity of traditional WAN technologies. It's designed to effectively carry all of your converged services such as data, voice over IP and video over IP. For more information, visit www.cox business.com/education or stop by booth #224. WHY CHOOSE WI-FI NETWORK CLOCKS? Wi-Fi clocks are configured to receive a precise time signal from your school's network time server. This means that all of your clocks within your building are synchronized, which promotes responsi- bility, encourages punctuality and reduces tardiness because students and staff see the same time throughout your campus. And with a five-year battery life and the ability to automatically adjust for Daylight Saving Time changes, Wi-Fi clocks present a huge opportunity to save on maintenance time and cost. Wi-Fi clocks are battery operated and portable, and use existing Wi-Fi net- work infrastructure to receive the time signal, rather than a signal from a master clock. This means there is no need for a system controller, license fees, managed services or other costs. At installation, the clocks arrive pre- configured and automatically adjust to the correct time. They will continue dis- playing the accurate time without manu- al adjustments of any kind. In fact, there isn't a manual adjustment button or knob on the back of the clock, which prevents tampering with the clock's accuracy. In addition, the technology's staggered wake times mean that you will not notice any extra load or slow-down of your existing Wi-Fi system. Are Wi-Fi Clocks Right for Your School? Whether Wi-Fi clocks are right for your school depends on your needs and budg- et. The lower cost of entry for a synchronized timekeeping sys- tem is a huge benefit for organi- zations that may not require, or have the resources for, a more robust wired or wireless system. Without the need for additional infra- structure or equipment, you can easily expand your Wi-Fi clock presence sim- ply by purchasing additional clocks. Consider the benefits: All clocks within a school are precisely synchronized. Clocks rely on the existing Wi-Fi network and come pre-configured from the manufacturer. There is no need for a system con- troller, license fees, managed services or other costs. Clocks are battery-operated and portable, and clocks have a five-year bat- tery life. Staggered wake times for unnoticeable network load. Wi-Fi, FCC and ICC certified, and RoHS com- pliant with SNTP time ref- erence. Wi-Fi Clocks in Action St. Cloud State University, the second- largest public university in Minnesota, has installed Wi-Fi clocks in eight build- ings throughout the 100-acre campus. The university now has precise time with no discernible impact on the speed of its Wi-Fi network. Furthermore, it expects to save on maintenance costs with the clocks' five-year battery life. For more information, visit www.ameri- can-time.com, call 800.328.8996, email theclockexperts@atsclock.com or stop by booth #3137.