Dive Brief:
- Georgetown University is upgrading its network to meet the rapid growth of connected devices on its campuses, according to Cisco, which is making the upgrades.
- Through a multi-year agreement between the two organizations, Georgetown will roll out what it calls Wi-Fi 7 across the university’s classrooms, dorms and stadiums to support faster speeds and lower latency, Cisco said in an announcement Tuesday.
- “Our community’s academic and research ambitions require a network that is as innovative and forward-looking as they are,” Doug Little, chief information officer at Georgetown University, said in a statement. “This investment ensures our students, faculty, and staff have the seamless, secure connectivity they need to excel in a rapidly evolving digital landscape.
Dive Insight:
Digital adoption across U.S. universities has been strong in recent years. The institutions are making widespread use of cloud services, core administrative and academic systems and video conferencing platforms, according to Louise Lee, principal consultant at Times Higher Education. Enterprise AI tools are also becoming increasingly prevalent, she says.
Systems needed for cutting-edge research require low-latency, high-bandwidth infrastructure beyond what current Wi-Fi can deliver, Lee said December during a webinar for Inside Higher Ed. “Without these, institutions risk falling behind in deploying the next generation of AI-enhanced learning,” Lee said in a slide presentation.
Georgetown's agreement with Cisco will deploy solutions built for high-density environments like Georgetown’s Hilltop and Capitol campuses, the networking hardware company says.
Cisco will be deploying its latest enterprise switching and wireless solutions, which can provide automation and advanced analytics for insights into network performance and usage patterns, the company says. This infrastructure will enable simplified operations, proactive optimization and a seamless digital experience for every user on campus, it says.
In addition to helping students and faculty connect with faster, more reliable teaching and learning tools, the upgrades will help researchers at the university working with large datasets and AI projects to share, analyze and store data securely from anywhere on campus, according to a release.
“In higher education, 'fast' is the past — 'instant' is the future,” Gary DePreta, senior vice president of the U.S. public sector at Cisco, said in a statement. “With one of the largest Wi-Fi 7 deployments in higher education, Georgetown and Cisco are redefining campus connectivity with faster speeds and lower latency for unmatched digital engagement.”
Cisco will also deploy a multi-layered security framework with the aim of protecting the campus and its digital assets. This framework includes multi-factor authentication, end-to-end network visibility and advanced security operations analytics, Cisco said.
The collaboration follows news of Cisco’s agreement with Monumental Sports and Entertainment, owner of the Capital One Arena, which is undergoing an $800 million renovation. The arena — home to Georgetown's basketball teams and multiple professional sports teams — also hosts Cisco Wi-Fi 7 solutions, including Cisco Spaces, Cisco ThousandEyes, Wipro VisionEDGE, IP Fabric for Media and more, the release says.
