Chris Nobriga ’15 was used to doing important schoolwork early in the day. The political science major wasn’t particularly a morning person; he was just avoiding the frequent afternoon slowdown of the campus’s Internet.
But now he and other students can afford to sleep in every once in a while, thanks to campus Wi-Fi upgrades that are taking Goucher into the future at the speed of, well, really fast Internet.
“The new Wi-Fi is definitely quicker,” Chris said. And as a community assistant in Welsh Hall, one of the first residential halls to obtain the new Wi-Fi, he said he’s heard no negative feedback. “There was plenty of tech support if people had trouble connecting. It seems they have really thought about the best ways they can support students when installing the new Wi-Fi.”
Student ease is the main reason behind the campus-wide upgrades that are bringing high-speed mobile wireless access to all computing devices everywhere on campus. This includes two networks—GoucherWi-Fi for computers and handheld devices, and GoucherMultimedia for gaming and online TV viewing devices.
“This is a game changer,” said President José Antonio Bowen, who made fast, readily accessible technology infrastructure for the entire community a top priority in his first few months on campus.
He said the improvements will impact everyone, with students gaining easier access to digital learning resources, professors having better access for student communication, and staffers’ increasing productivity with the fast connection. “It sounds silly, but it is really is something to celebrate,” Bowen says.
Vice President for Technology and Planning Bill Leimbach said Goucher first hired a company to walk through campus buildings to record information about building construction, lighting, electrical systems, and HVAC systems that provide challenges to wireless networks. Using the survey, a design was completed for each building denoting where access points should be located to provide the best coverage.
All of the residence halls have been upgraded, along with the Alumnae/i House. Up next are the academic buildings—the Athenaeum, Hoffberger, Meyerhoff, Van Meter, Julia Rogers, and the Psych Annex.
The outdoor network is also receiving an upgrade. It will soon be conceivable that a student walking down the stretch of Van Meter Highway from Stimson to Julia Rogers will be able to Skype with a friend studying abroad, not breaking the campus wireless connection once.
“Wireless access points have been installed on light poles, but they’ll also be mounted on the outside of buildings to provide the best outdoor coverage,” Leimbach said. Other campus locations—the Sports and Recreation Center, Dorsey College Center, FMS, Haebler Memorial Chapel, the heating and cooling plants, President’s House, stables, and the track—will wrap up the upgrade.
Work is in progress to configure and prepare the equipment and fiber optic cabling for the next phase of the upgrade. A date will be announced when all of the preparations are complete.
For questions regarding the new Wi-Fi, please contact the Help Desk at 410-337-6322 or helpdesk@goucher.edu. Also, stay tuned for news on how we are going to celebrate the fantastic addition of high-speed Wi-Fi in a big way soon.