The University of Vermont (UVM) will expand its relationship with FirstLight Fiber to include a 10Gbps connectivity upgrade.
The two have been working together since 2006, but new North East Cyberinfrastructure Consortium (NECC) grants that UVM received through its Vermont EPSCoR and Vermont Genetics Network (VGN) programs (supported by the National Science Foundation and the National Institutes of Health) will require multi-gigabit speeds. Access to “Tier 1” city infrastructures is a common goal for both the educational institution and the state of Vermont.
With nearly 10,000 undergraduate and 14,000 graduate students taking 100 majors in seven undergraduate schools and colleges, UVM’s connectivity is critical to internal and external communications. As a part of the network upgrade, UVM was in search of a dozen 10-Gig waves on two separate paths: UVM to Albany and UVM to Hanover/Dartmouth College. The NECC project connected UVM to FirstLight’s dedicated fiber optic network, linking UVM to research institutions throughout the Northeast and to the Internet backbone.
“FirstLight was the best option for our needs for this project. Through the university’s connection to FirstLight and its fiber portfolio, we have created many opportunities for our research and education partners to obtain high speed connectivity throughout this region,” said Patrick Clemins, a cyber-specialist for Vermont EPSCoR and assistant research professor in the Department of Computer Science at UVM. “Through FirstLight, we can offer more bandwidth and greater reliability to our community. Fiber networks serve as a gateway to the rest of the world, and because of FirstLight’s team and network, we can consider the next phase of connectivity for the entire State of Vermont, which includes VT UCAN, the Vermont Unified Community Anchor Network.”
FirstLight has been building and operating its own fiber-optic network for more than 15 years. The network provides connectivity to museums, schools, government buildings and many other institutions throughout Vermont, Upstate New York and the entire Northern New England region.
“We are honored to be the University of Vermont’s fiber-based backbone provider,”said Kurt Van Wagenen, president and CEO of FirstLight. “We pride ourselves on our ability to connect our talented team of experts with universities and educational institutions, like UVM, in order to design and implement a complete solution that allows these institutions to enhance the learning environment. As the needs of UVM and the community it serves evolve, we look forward to continuing to act as their primary connectivity resource.”
