CC* Regional: Accelerating Research and Education at Small Colleges in Texas via an Advanced Networking Ecosystem Using a Virtual LEARN Science DMZ

The Lonestar Education And Research Network (LEARN), a consortium of 41 organizations throughout Texas, is expanding opportunities for students and faculty at smaller campuses to participate in research that relies on increasingly sophisticated network technology and the expertise to manage that technology. LEARN has identified an initial set of smaller campuses to take part in the first phase of the project and is providing these campuses with advanced network and performance monitoring technologies, the expertise to manage the technologies, training and assistance in increasing utilization of the technologies, and a community of similarly engaged scholars and administrators across Texas.

LEARN is partnering with national organizations in the implementation of this project. Projected impacts include increased opportunities for students to learn about and gain experience in advanced aspects of science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) for which they might not otherwise have had an opportunity, for extension of the project to students and faculty at other campuses in Texas, and for the extension of the LEARN model to other regional networks and smaller campuses throughout the United States.

Objectives

1. Establish a small college collaborative environment within the LEARN community
2. Improve network connectivity/services at each college campus for research and education
3. Establish a network performance monitoring infrastructure
4. Establish a means to facilitate the transfer of large data sets
5. Deliver technical training to personnel at each campus
6. Develop and implement an outreach program for informing/educating faculty, staff, and students at each college, and develop and disseminate project results

Participating Colleges

Collaborators