Chapter 12. Education Case Study

Opened in 1975 to the south of Brisbane, Griffith University specializes in Australian environmental studies, humanities, modern Asian studies, and science, with the addition of recently opened medical and dental schools. Serving a demographic area comprising of the Brisbane-Logan-Gold Coast corridor, the university opened a new $38 million campus at Logan City in the late 1990s. Today it has approximately 40,000 staff and students across five campuses. Over the years, Griffith University has demonstrated a capacity to innovate continually while adapting to change and has acquired an enviable national and international reputation. It is now considered one of Australia's most progressive and dynamic tertiary institutions (known as higher-education institutions in the United States). The university's five campuses are situated on the Brisbane-Logan-Gold Coast corridor of southeast Queensland, the fastest growing region of Australia.

Universities, by their very nature, tend to be vibrant and progressive environments. Young people, and especially those engaged in higher education, typically embrace technology, new media, and IT services. To satisfy this social dynamic and to address other more tangible business requirements, Griffith University decided in early 2004 to deploy wireless networks in targeted areas. Adopting a phased deployment process, the network and communication Services group chose to nominate "Smart Zones," which are specific areas where WLAN connectivity was provided with a high degree of stability, with a service-oriented design philosophy.

Note

Network and Communication Services is a work unit of 18 staff responsible for the design, procurement, implementation, operation, and maintenance of all aspects of the Griffith University voice and data network. Included within this network are a Smithsonian Medal-winning private wide-area network, a 13,000-port data network spanning the five campuses, and a voice network of 7,000 handsets.

The development of an inclusive and wide-ranging web portal, named Wireless@Griffith, was instrumental in achieving the success of the solution. Today, less than two years after the initial planning stages began, the adoption rate has proven higher than expected, and the popularity and real-world benefits of the solution are tangible. Student satisfaction is greater, the WLAN is highly used, the need for dedicated wired computer labs has been reduced, and the university boasts an impressive and progressive online campus in line with its reputation as a trendsetter in the Australian educational sector.