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News Archive
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News Archive
Iona College Becomes First Metro-New York College
With Completely Wireless Internet Campus
Cutting-edge Technology Provides Students with Any Time, Any Place Information Access New Rochelle, NY, September 5, 2001 - Iona College has become the first college in the metropolitan New York City area to install a completely wireless local area network (LAN), enabling students to use computers to obtain information by accessing the College's computer network, library databases or the Internet from anywhere on the 35-acre campus. Iona is located less than five miles beyond the New York City limits. "We are extremely pleased to be able to provide our students with this state-of-the-art technology," said James A. Liguori, CFC, President of Iona College. "We may be living in the 'Information Age,' but to fully realize the benefits of that information we must be able to access it when it is wanted. Now Iona students and our faculty will be able to obtain whatever material they want whenever they want from anywhere on campus - from the library to the classrooms to the dorms and even to the shade tree in the quad or the open hillside facing the athletic field. We believe that this access to information will give Iona students an advantage in terms of knowledge and experience with new technology. As the world becomes more technology-dependent, Iona students will be prepared to deal with whatever challenges lie ahead. And providing our students with that access, knowledge and experience gives Iona College a competitive advantage over institutions which are not fully wireless." Originally expected to be completed in 2003, Iona's wireless LAN was finished ahead of schedule and under budget, a rare occurrence for any capital improvement in this era. These positive results were achieved through close cooperation between Iona and vendors AVAYA Communications (which manufactured the equipment) and Bick Data Management Systems of Katonah (the retail seller of the components). Iona does not require students to purchase a laptop computer, but the school worked closely with Gateway Computers to provide a significant discount for students to purchase a laptop. "For this project to become a success, we needed business partners who could offer suggestions which helped us provide superior quality and performance at lower cost," said Joanne Laughlin Steele, vice provost for Information Technology. "The professionals at AVAYA and Bick worked closely with our staff and the result was a network that meets our current needs and provides for the future. And to help the wireless network gain quick and widespread acceptance, the team at Gateway helped us offer laptops at an amazingly low price. All of the companies that were involved with this project knew that it was the first of its kind in the New York City area and they went the extra mile to make sure it would be a winner. We at Iona thank them all for their assistance." Made possible by a generous gift from an anonymous donor, the Iona wireless LAN features 127 Access Points on 16 buildings in New Rochelle as well as the Rockland campus. The Access Points serve as antennas which send the Iona network throughout campus buildings and approximately 150 feet beyond them, and they are equipped with Access Point Cards (which provide the software to interface the Iona network with individual student computers) to ensure that only authorized users can work with the LAN. Students need to purchase wireless adapters (small, insertable devices roughly the size of a credit card) and install them in their computers to connect to Iona's wireless network. All incoming freshmen, all residential students and any upperclassmen who requested to participate in the program were provided access to the wireless network by the first day of Fall semester classes on September 4. The complete student body will have access in the coming months; the system is capable of handling the entire student body now, but not every student has a properly configured laptop computer. Students may also purchase any brand and model of computer they prefer, but each computer must be configured by the Iona Information Technology department to gain access to the wireless network. Part of the configuration process involves the addition of 128-bit encryption technology to minimize the possibility of unauthorized access or data corruption by an illegal user. Iona's new wireless LAN provides a variety of benefits including:
With 1,083 wired computers and over 500 student workstations on campus, Iona previously had the capacity to provide on-site information access to a large portion of its 3,000 full-time undergraduate students and 1,600 part-time graduate and undergraduate students. Now, the computer-access needs of the entire Iona student body will be accommodated. "Many of the wired workstations are available 7 days a week, 24 hours a day," said Laughlin Steele. "But sometimes the nearest work station might be several rooms away or the number of people at one location might be more than the number of computers available. Now, a student with a properly configured laptop can do research from any location on campus without waiting. Iona continues to make a conscious effort to enhance the learning experience by actively integrating technology with its curriculum. The wireless network is just the most recent example of our commitment to help all Iona students become skilled with new technology." Founded in 1940 by the Congregation of Christian Brothers, Iona College is a private, co-educational institution of learning in the tradition of American Catholic higher education. Iona offers undergraduate degrees in liberal arts, science, and business administration, as well as Master of Arts, Master of Science and Master of Business Administration degrees and numerous post-graduate certificate programs.
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