Wisconsin District Implements High Speed WLAN To Support BYOD
Kenosha Unified School District (KUSD) in
Wisconsin has implemented a high speed wireless local area network (WLAN) to
support tablets and a bring-your-own-device (BYOD) program.
The district currently supports nearly 7,000 tablets and 12,000 desktops and
laptops. A planned BYOD program will add as many as 10,000 more mobile devices
to the network. To support this dramatic increase, administrators wanted to
implement a standardized, centrally managed wireless network across all of the
district's schools. They conducted a comprehensive network test and technical
evaluation before selecting a WLAN solution from
Motorola.
The district's Motorola WLAN uses centralized
controllers to "provide comprehensive, hierarchical management enabling both
robust security and site-survivability at the edge of the network and seamless
roaming between sites," according to the company. The deployment also includes
1,000
access points in school buildings, which network administrators can manage
centrally, and it uses the
WiNG 5 operating system to create network awareness and route transmissions
efficiently.
Motorola worked with Advanced Wireless
to design, stage, install and support the KUSD WLAN. According to Motorola, the
companies surveyed the school buildings to identify the best placement positions
for the equipment. In conjunction with the WLAN implementation, the district
also "wired all of the buildings and moved to a Gigabit switching system to
support the new wireless infrastructure," according to Motorola.
With the improved network, the district can support its growing mobile
learning environment, so students and teachers can take advantage of online
educational resources and collaborative tools.
About the Author
Leila Meyer is a technology writer based in British Columbia. She can be reached at [email protected].