Tri-College University partners enabling Eduroam to enhance Internet access across campuses
Tri-College University faculty, staff and students will soon have immediate wireless Internet access when visiting other Tri-College University partnering campuses. Concordia College (Concordia), Minnesota State University Moorhead (MSUM) and North Dakota State University (NDSU) are enabling Eduroam (education roaming), a global wireless Internet access service developed for the research and education community.
NDSU Interim Vice President for Information Technology Marc Wallman initiated the project this spring after learning about the network through discussions with leaders from other regional research universities.
After learning about NDSU’s authorization of Eduroam, Tri-College University Provost Tim Flakoll with the charge from the TCU commissioners played an instrumental role in moving the Eduroam project forward at the Tri-College level. After Wallman expressed initial interest in joining the Eduroam network, Flakoll fostered collaboration among the provosts and CIOs at all three campuses – including Bruce Vieweg, associate provost and CIO at Concordia, and Daniel Heckaman, CIO and director of information technology at MSUM.
“This project fits very well with the mission of Tri-College,” Flakoll said. “With Eduroam, we’re melting away barriers and making it as seamless as possible for students and faculty to move from one college to the next.” Bruce Vieweg agreed, “Eduroam is a real benefit for all Tri-College students, faculty, and staff by providing unfettered, yet secured, Internet access on each campus.”
Flakoll said collaborative grant dollars were offered to the three colleges to defer costs associated with implementing the technology needed to join the Eduroam network. Outside of these costs, becoming a participating Eduroam member is free for any institution.
NDSU faculty, staff and students have been able to use Eduroam since April. Concordia joined the Eduroam network in June, and MSUM anticipates enabling Eduroam on its campus this fall.
MSUM’s Heckaman said, “Eduroam allows our students to stay connected throughout their studies locally and abroad. Connectivity is a key component to the learning process.” After MSUM deploys Eduroam August 27, members of each of the three institutions will be able to complete a one-time setup of their wireless devices to use secure wireless at any of the three campuses, in addition to many other participating institutions across the country and internationally.
“NDSU, Concordia and MSUM are among the first 100 educational institutions in the U.S. to activate Eduroam on their campuses,” NDSU Provost Bruce Rafert said. “This is a natural next step for giving Tri-College students the seamless ability to connect to the significant Internet resources that all three campuses possess.”
Eduroam setup instructions for faculty, staff and students are provided at:
- NDSU: http://www.ndsu.edu/wireless or call the IT Help Desk at 701-231-8685 or contact
by email: NDSU.HelpDesk@ndsu.edu - MSUM: http://web.mnstate.edu/it/wireless or call the Information Technology Help Desk at 218-477-2603 or contact by email: support@mnstate.edu
- Concordia: http://computersupport.cord.edu or call the Solution Center at 218-299-3375 or 877-399-3375 or contact by email: pcsupport@cord.edu
For more information regarding Eduroam and a map of participating locations please visit the following website: http://www.eduroam.US.org.
The mission of Tri-College University is to assist Concordia College, Minnesota State University Moorhead, and North Dakota State University by promoting cooperative efforts that will enrich the academic environment for the benefit of students, faculty, and the community.
For more information regarding Tri-College University contact Sonia Hohnadel at the TCU office at (701) 231-8170 or by email at sonia.hohnadel@ndsu.edu. You may also visit the TCU website at www.tri-college.org.