
					Rod R. Blagojevich, Governor

Higher Education Success Stories

	Blackhawk College
	Carl Sandburg Community College
	Illinois Institute of Technology
	McKendree College
	Sauk Valley Community College
	Southeastern Illinois College
	Southern Illinois University at Carbondale
	Southern Illinois University School of Medicine
	University of Illinois Extension Offices

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	Blackhawk College is using the increased bandwidth provided by the ICN to meet their online growth goals to facilitate online learning. Once a major cause for concern, the college no longer has to worry about the lack of adequate bandwidth required for their online programs.
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	Carl Sandburg Community College has partnered with 26 local schools to provide state-of-the-art web development and course management software. The partnership provides schools and teachers with free technical training, free access to software, and free technical support. The program's goal is to introduce and train instructors to effectively use technology in the classroom.
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	Through their connection to the ICN, the Illinois Institute of Technology is able to expand their research capabilities by sharing traffic with their key partners, such as Argonne Lab, Fermilab, and other Illinois higher-education institutions.
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	While McKendree College has only been a member of the ICN for a very short time, their connections to the Internet through the ICN have been performing in a very satisfactory manner. The need for Internet access has proven to be a necessity for all educational venues. The college gives special recognition to the Regional Technology Center VIII staff for their cordial, professional and high-quality service. ICN personnel were able to troubleshoot and solve connectivity problems that affected one of the campuses through delicate and patient coordination of efforts among themselves and two other parties involved.
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	Sauk Valley Community College is not only saving money with their ICN connection, they are serving as a leader in testing compressed interactive video standards that will deliver business-quality videoconferencing over an IP network. The information and experience gathered from this project will assist others in making a smooth transition to the new video standards.
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	With their ICN connection, Southeastern Illinois College is pursuing real-time audio and video instructional technology that previously was not physically or economically possible. The savings they realize through the ICN is allowing them to expand and improve their use of technology in the classroom.
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	Through the ICN, Southern Illinois University at Carbondale can now meet their Internet bandwidth needs. Prior to the ICN, the University could only afford 6MB of bandwidth. Today utilization often reaches over 20MB. As a result of the additional bandwidth, SIU can now participate in Internet2 allowing them to further their research efforts.
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	In cooperation with the Southern Illinois University School of Medicine, the ICN participated in a Teleburn demonstration that allowed doctors to utilize the ICN network to conduct remote diagnostics of critical burn victims. Using the ICN to facilitate telemedicine applications means that in the near future, Illinois citizens may have access to specialists and specialized services in even the most remote areas of the state.
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	To date, more than 30 University of Illinois Extension Offices are connected to the ICN, improving access to a wealth of educational information and programs to all Illinois Citizens.