FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE CONTACT:Malcolm Holmes Phone: (804) 523-5230 E-Mail: mholmes@reynolds.edu
J. SARGEANT REYNOLDS BECOMES FIRST MULTI-CAMPUS VIRGINA COMMUNITY COLLEGE TO HAVE WIRELESS INTERNET ACCESS ON ALL OF ITS CAMPSES
RICHMOND, VA - (August 23, 2006) - Both students and faculty at J. Sargeant Reynolds Community College are all-smiles as they ring in the fall semester with wireless Internet capabilities. The new wireless network allows anyone with a wireless enabled computer to access the Internet anywhere on Reynolds’ Downtown, Parham Road, and Western campuses.
“It's one of the most important steps we've taken in the last five years to narrow the divide between the 2-year and 4-year college campus experience. It will be a tremendous draw for our students who in the past have had little more than a "drive-through" experience at Reynolds,” said Dr. Miles Mccrimmon, professor of English.
Mccrimmon predicts that Reynolds students will start coming to campus to use wireless Internet for their classes even if they don’t have classes on that particular day. This type of student presence will make Reynolds feel more like a 4-year college.
The new wireless network which requires no cables in order to gain Internet access, replaces the old wired network where an Ethernet cable was required. This new feature gives both students and faculty more flexibility and provides different options when it comes to computer usage. “When I'm not in a computer lab, I can hook up my laptop to the built-in projection system and not worry using about the Ethernet cable. It saves me a step if I need to show my students something on Blackboard or anything on the Internet,” said Mccrimmon.
As Monday marked the first day of classes, students seem to already be well aware of this new feature. “We’re already seeing students studying and accessing the wireless network on their own laptops since fall classes have started,” said Buddy Bishop, a member of the information technology department. According to Bishop, no visual signs advertising the wireless network have been put up, which shows that being a wireless college is an expectation of today’s students.
Students are pleased with the fact that they no longer have to carry around Ethernet cables, and risk their laptops being tripped over. “It’s a lot easier and convenient for people to get to and use. Another plus is that I don’t have to carry around network cords,” said Ethan Kahn, a J. Sargeant Reynolds Community College student.
J. Sargeant Reynolds Community College’s department of technology began preparations to make all 3 campuses wireless in late 2005, after much encouragement from both faculty and students. Over the summer months the department worked endlessly to install the wireless network throughout the college.
Serving over 17,000 students annually, J. Sargeant Reynolds Community College is the youngest and third largest of 23 community colleges in Virginia. The College operates three campuses serving residents in the City of Richmond and the counties of Henrico, Hanover, Goochland, Powhatan and Louisa.
