Wi-Fi here to stay

Teresa Wilson

Managing Editor

Wireless network access is now available to Shasta College students through Wi-Fi hot spots located in the cafeteria and Learning Resource Center.

Students can expect to have Wi-Fi availability in the quad sometime this semester. Future plans include installing access points in the new health and sciences center, library annex, automotive technology and the dorms.

“This was very important to a lot of people,” said Doug Meline, associate vice president of information systems and technology.

Meline credits the Shasta College Student Senate for their help in proposing Wi-Fi connectivity on campus, although it took a long time to find a solution that could be implemented district-wide, he is confident they made the right choice.

After several years of evaluating various vendors, the college purchased a CISCO solution that offered the support, connectivity and ability to expand easily by adding new access points at a relatively low cost.

We need to provide an environment that students want to be in. Where they can say, hey, Shasta College has a lot to offer said Steven Reeves, systems engineer.

Reeves was instrumental in securing the equipment and evaluating which access points would serve students best. He admits funding was the biggest obstacle in implementing a campus-wide solution.

While the current set-up does not provide access for staff and faculty it may in the future. Reeves said it was more important to serve the student population first and when it comes time to implement access to faculty and staff, the solution can be configured to provide secure access.

The initial access points were determined through a student questionnaire, distributed in the Learning Resource Center, to place Wi-Fi hot spots where students would use them most. The top three locations identified by students were the Learning Resource Center, cafeteria and the quad.

“I can really do a lot of research from my own computer. It is really helpful,” said Adawna Purdie, a West Valley high school student in our College Connection program.

Transfer students, Candice Metlock and Ryan Flynn poured over statistics homework in the Learning Resource Center while accessing the internet as needed through the learning center access point.

“It’s great. It’s awesome,” said Metlock pleased with the ability to access the internet from her own laptop computer from the convenience of the library.