One-of-a-Kind Purchasing Program Simplifies Higher Ed Cloud Adoption
Keeping pace with changes in enterprise-level technology is no easy feat. For education institutions and universities, in particular, making sense of the available options for managing complex operational and technological infrastructures can be mind-boggling.
The importance of cloud computing in this mix can’t be underestimated. Today, nearly 70% of higher education institutions in North America have moved or are moving systems to the cloud, while 50% have adopted cloud-based collaboration systems.
But beyond email and file sharing, the opportunities for the cloud are significant. In “The Future of Higher Education and Cloud Computing”, Edudemic.com identifies six ways the cloud can help colleges and universities:
- Accommodate the rapid increase in mobile device dependency
- Store expansive amounts of sensitive data and information that’s easily accessible
- Stay current (e.g. provides students with digital campus storage for class notes, papers and projects)
- Acquire and implement the latest software and application updates
- Streamline enrollment and admissions processes that are costly and time-consuming
- Turn to subscriptions that are scalable and provide options
Moving to the Cloud Isn’t Just an IT Issue
But moving to the cloud isn’t just an IT decision. The unique culture of academic institutions impacts how cloud buying decisions are made. For example, students inhabit a multi-platform world and expect interoperability across devices and desktops. Funding and procurement is another consideration. Finally, consensus and an understanding of the benefits of cloud must be reached across a broad base of academic leaders and other stakeholders.
Addressing these concerns beyond IT, requires strong processes and technical standards that provide for broad and rapidly growing user needs.
A Custom, Institutional Solution for Cloud
One way higher education institutions can do this is to take advantage of an exclusive program that allows higher education institutions to quickly and easily access the scale of the cloud, avoiding many of the inherent – and time-consuming – hurdles associated with procuring this technology.
The custom NET+/DLT AWS program is a result of a partnership between DLT Solutions and Internet2® and provides higher education campuses with access to Amazon Web Services (a critical player in the cloud landscape) via the Internet2 NET+ program. This program has an introductory promotion with an immediate opportunity to leverage substantial benefits by April 30, 2015.
The program makes it easier to procure Amazon Web Services (AWS) and provides key enhancements to the standard AWS terms, currently offered to higher education and research communities, to support enterprise usage and broad adoption across campus, and includes.
- A community-friendly, self-service portal
- Pre-negotiated Internet2 community contract
- Flexible payment options not available in the standard AWS program
This innovative program will enable universities to aggregate individual and institutional usage of AWS to achieve cost savings, and improved performance and functionality. It also addresses data transfer costs, and DLT Solutions provides options for end-user and enterprise support services.
What is Internet2?
Internet2® is a community of academic, research, industry and government leaders who seek to remove barriers to discovery and advance the use of innovative technologies to improve the delivery of public services. The Internet2 NET+ initiative is a research and education (R&E) community-driven initiative that focuses on providing secure, agile and reliable user mobility in the cloud to higher education’s diverse users. Through a rigorous peer-driven evaluation process, R&E institutions and cloud service providers work together to develop offerings that maximize deployment efficiencies and minimize the business and legal challenges, financial costs, and technology risks of migrating from on-campus to cloud-based solutions.
Learn More
You can learn more about the program, the unique benefits it brings, and how to access the contract by visiting www.dlt.com/Internet2 or by contacting cloud@www.dlt.com.
Image courtesy of toss.com.
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