Networking & Wireless
Mansfield ISD Deploys Fiber Optic Network
Mansfield Independent School
District in Texas is implementing an all-fiber optic network to provide its
33,000 students and 4,200 staff members with data, video and voice service.
According to Sean Scott, assistant superintendent of technology and information services for Mansfield ISD, the upgrade was driven by the
district's "increasing reliance on virtual computing, the growth of mobile
computing and state online assessments, and reliance on cloud-based
instructional resources."
The district signed a multi-year agreement with Conterra Broadband Services, a North
Carolina-based provider of private fiber optic broadband networks, which has
already entered contracts with several other Texas school districts, including
El Paso ISD, Judson ISD, Tyler ISD and South San Antonio ISD.
Conterra will connect all of Mansfield's schools and administrative
facilities with the Mansfield ISD Data Center using a 10 gigabit fiber optic
network, which will deliver dedicated 1 or 10 gigabits per second (Gbps) to
each facility. When the private network is completed in early summer of 2016,
it will be scalable to 100 gigabits per location without the need for any
further construction.
In addition to implementing the network, Conterra will also monitor, manage
and support the network to ensure performance and reliability.
Scott said he expects the private fiber optic network to meet the district's
technology needs well into the future and to help the district meet its
educational goals, which include integrating technology into the curriculum,
instruction and assessment to improve academic achievement and technological
literacy.