DataBus - Vol 41 No. 3: April-May, 2001
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An Update on the Digital California Project
A Summary of DCP News and Events
It is nearly the end of March 2001 as of this writing, and the activity level related to implementation of CENIC's Digital California Project is picking up steam very quickly. Here's where we stand at the moment. The overall network architecture has been completed and the first round of 71 node sites located throughout all 58 county offices of education have been identified. During the month of February, onsite inspection visits were made to all candidate node sites. Installation of these sites will provide connectivity paths for the vast majority of K-12 schools throughout California. Of course, a project of this size requiring the cooperation of numerous public and private organizations does not come without challenges. Several rural areas where broadband circuits are not readily available may require special technical solutions, which are being evaluated and worked on. The current timeline calls for the majority of the first round node sites to come online before the start of the new academic year beginning in September, and for the remaining node sites to be connected by the end of this calendar year. Thereafter, it is anticipated that an additional 60 node sites will be brought online beginning in early 2002, providing more robustness to the DCP network and increased access for all K-20 institutions throughout the state. A comprehensive Request for Proposal (RFP) was issued in January for network hardware, equipment installation and circuits. A team of reviewers evaluated all proposals received. Pacific Bell, SBC DataComm, Verizon and Williams are expected to be the primary equipment and circuit vendors for implementation of the DCP network. The aggressive network implementation plan will require extraordinary cooperation and coordination activities among all the stakeholders, with liaisons from the eleven K-12 regions playing a major role in this project. Two other important teams are now in place and ready to tackle their activities. John Vaille from the Stanislaus County Office of Education has agreed to serve as Director of the DCP Applications Coordination team, while Stephanie Halnan-Couch from the University of California Office of the President (UCOP) has agreed to lead the DCP Communications team. We will hopefully be able to provide more detailed information in our next CEDPA DataBus Newsletter update as to the types of applications and content options under consideration for DCP, as well as the communications plans being developed for the various K-12 constituencies.
Dave Reese is Director of Network Administration and Planning for 4CNet, the telecommunications service and connectivity network for the California State Universities and the California Community Colleges. Edwin W. Smith is Project Manager for 4CNet. Dave and Edwin are members of the DCP Project Management Team.
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CEDPA