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Delaware State University: One University—One Telecom Infrastructure
11/1/2002
The new communications infrastructure promotes a more collaborative and creative environment on campus, between faculty members, as well as between students and faculty. DSU has also extended this connectivity off-campus to the University Apartments, a unique residence unit of 280 students developed privately in partnership with Ambling Development Company LLC. DSU extended fiber from campus to the University Apartments so that students could have the same level of access to University services as do those living on campus.
These services now include the support of a contact center that allows the University's 15 call center agents to provide students with critical support for financial aid, admissions, registration and administration. In addition, reporting functions track both calls and expenses, which allows administrators to better analyze department cost expenditures.
The new telecommunications systems will provide a fine return on investment (ROI) for DSU. With the old Centrex system, the cost of leasing figured to be $15 per line, per month, bringing the total yearly cost to approximately $360,000. The new system is expected to have a complete system payback in just six years and eliminate the costs associated with the leased lines.
The new telecommunications network was not only a solid investment for the university, the multi-year project has clearly created the type of infrastructure required to provide a quality education for DSU's 3,350 students. The IT department at DSU has provided the kind of technology that, in-line with the university vision, will "thrust" the school forward.
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