Thousands of New
Mexico students to benefit from classroom
connectivity
DENVER, Aug. 15,
2024 /PRNewswire/ -- The New Mexico Office of
Broadband Access and Expansion recently selected Lumen
Technologies (NYSE: LUMN) to provide nearly 900 miles of high-speed
fiber connectivity to K-12 public schools around the state,
including charter and tribal schools.
Connecting the first school
The company is participating in a ribbon-cutting ceremony today
with state education and broadband officials at Albuquerque's 21st Century Public Academy,
which is the first school to be connected to the New Mexico
Statewide Education Network.
"We at the Statewide Education Network are very excited that
this school-centric network is finally operational and to be
working with Lumen and other national and local providers alike in
this extraordinary endeavor involving school connectivity," said
Ovidiu Viorica, Statewide Education
Network Broadband and Technology Manager. "This achievement
demonstrates New Mexico's
commitment to technology in schools and to develop a powerful,
collaborative, and creative learning environment for students."
"Our work with the New Mexico Statewide Education Network is
part of Lumen's commitment to unleash the power of our massive
fiber network to bridge the digital divide, foster digital
inclusivity and create new opportunities for all Americans to
thrive in today's interconnected world," said Michelle Watson, vice president of Lumen's
State, Local and Education business. "Lumen is delivering secure
high-speed connectivity to public schools and classrooms that will
create more opportunities for learning, collaboration and lesson
sharing among students and teachers across New Mexico."
Network design
Lumen provides the latest and greatest high-capacity,
low-latency fiberoptic wave technology, backbone circuits, network
nodes and cost-effective centralized network design, management and
support to the new school-focused broadband network.
The three-year contract is worth more than $4.3 million during the first phase, which will
securely link approximately 15,000 students at all 27 public
schools in the Gadsden Independent School District in Santa Teresa, N.M., and at three charter
schools in Albuquerque—21st Century Public Academy, Mark Armijo
Academy, and Mountain Mahogany Community School.
Program goals
Dozens of public schools across New
Mexico are committed to being a part of the Statewide
Education Network, which plans to interconnect all New Mexico schools by 2027. This effort will
lay the foundation for a state-coordinated middle mile network.
Middle-mile connectivity is critical to digital inclusivity,
equity, and affordability because it bridges the gap to the
last-mile broadband providers that connect homes and businesses to
the internet.
"Lumen is taking an innovative middle-mile approach to
addressing digital inclusion and creating pioneering public-private
partnerships that help bridge the digital divide," Watson said.
Additional Resources:
- Learn more about how the state of California tapped Lumen for a massive
mile-mile fiber network expansion: The California Department
of Technology tackles digital divide, taps network giant Lumen for
massive fiber expansion - Oct 25,
2023
- Learn more about how Lumen's public-private partnerships are
solving for digital
inclusion: https://news.lumen.com/how-partnerships-are-solving-for-digital-inclusion
- Learn more about how Lumen is supporting middle-mile
infrastructure for higher education:
https://blog.lumen.com/higher-education-regional-networks-help-address-the-rural-middle-mile-challenge/
- Learn more about how Lumen is supporting the public sector
here: https://www.lumen.com/public-sector.html
About Lumen Technologies:
Lumen connects the world. We
are igniting business growth by connecting people, data, and
applications – quickly, securely, and effortlessly. Everything we
do at Lumen takes advantage of our network strength. From metro
connectivity to long-haul data transport to our edge cloud,
security, and managed service capabilities, we meet our customers'
needs today and as they build for tomorrow. For news and insights,
visit news.lumen.com, LinkedIn: /lumentechnologies, X:
@lumentechco, Facebook: /lumentechnologies, Instagram:
@lumentechnologies and YouTube: /lumentechnologies. Learn more
about Lumen's public sector capabilities on X at @lumengov and on
LinkedIn at @lumenpublicsector.
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SOURCE Lumen Technologies