Ruckus Wireless Announces Winners of "Back to School Wi-Fi Makeover Contest"

SUNNYVALE, Calif., June 30, 2011 /PRNewswire/ -- Ruckus Wireless announced today the three winners of its "Back to School Wi-Fi Makeover Contest," which included two school districts and one private girls' school, whose submissions demonstrated a real hunger for better wireless networking capabilities to support a richer teaching and learning experience.

The first place winner, which will receive a fully installed and configured 50-access point dual-band 802.11n network, is William C. Overfelt High School on behalf of the East Side Union High School District in San Jose, CA. In second place came Cedar Drive Middle School on behalf of Colts Neck Township Schools in Colts Neck, NJ, which will receive a 25-AP dual-band 802.11n WLAN; and in third place came the Saint Joseph Academy for Girls in Cleveland, OH, which will receive a 12-AP dual-band 802.11n WLAN. Each school will also receive the Ruckus ZoneFlex centralized WLAN controller.

The winners were selected out of numerous entries based on the creativity they demonstrated in their video submissions, along with the compelling stories they told of students' and teachers' growing frustrations with their existing wireless networking limitations. In all cases, limited budgets were the main obstacle to the schools being able to upgrade their wireless infrastructure.

"What's most telling about the need schools everywhere have for better Wi-Fi is that the students themselves took the lead on these submissions," said David Callisch, vice president of marketing for Ruckus Wireless. "Selecting just three winners was not an easy decision since so many of the entries demonstrated a genuine desire for an improved educational experience based on advanced wireless technology. The flood of wireless-only devices in classrooms everywhere has really changed schools' computing needs. Hopefully our contribution to these schools will make a difference in students' lives."

The winning video entries can be viewed at the following links:
William C. Overfelt High School: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8ChD51CBcfo
Cedar Street Middle School: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iRFOFYAaeik
Saint Joseph Academy: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ntkt6mIDZyE

"The increased access this wireless network provides will help close the digital divide and ensure all of Overfelt's students are prepared for the technology demands of college and 21st century careers," said Vito Chiala, principal of William C. Overfelt High School.

Overfelt has a student body of 1,600 kids, most of which are from low-income families. As part of the larger 25,000-student district in the heart of Silicon Valley, Overfelt will use the Smart Wi-Fi network to support laptops in a variety of settings including science labs, tutoring areas, and more. Additionally, the network will allow teachers and students to connect online and share assignments through the district's School Loop portal. The district can also now explore use of devices like iPads and e-readers to allow students to work online from a variety of locations.

"A wireless network in our school will offer enhanced learning opportunities for our children in a flexible environment," said Terry Pilitzer, technology coordinator for Colts Neck Township Schools. "Use of technology – anytime, anywhere – is the best way to incorporate technological literacy and innovation in the classroom and beyond, and prepare students for careers in a global economy."

With 1,239 students, and approximately 270 staff members, the Colts Neck Township School District will look to the new wireless network to empower teachers and students through use of web-based technologies and more mobile devices. The Wi-Fi network will give students access to instructional content online, and offer freedom for students and staff to move around the school with laptops and handheld computers.  

"When I first presented the contest to the girls in our computer club, they took the initiative to record classmates during free periods and produced our video, which captures the frustration we deal with on a daily basis," said Ryan MacRaild, instructional technology education coordinator for Saint Joseph Academy. "With the help of Ruckus, we will be better connected and will be able to move forward as a school and as digital learners."

At Saint Joseph, the Smart Wi-Fi network will support the school's move to a one-to-one computing environment, and provide better, more reliable, campus-wide wireless access to teachers and students anywhere in the 90-year-old building. The school also hopes to now allow students to bring in their own mobile devices from home, which it has until now prevented due to the poor performance of its Wi-Fi network.

Ruckus Wireless can be found on Twitter at www.twitter.com/ruckuswireless and on Facebook at http://facebook.com/ruckuswireless. The company's blog can be read at www.theruckusroom.net. Ruckus also has a YouTube channel at http://youtube.com/ruckuswireless.

About Ruckus Wireless, Inc.

Headquartered in Silicon Valley, Ruckus Wireless is supplier of advanced wireless systems for the mobile Internetworking market. The company markets and manufactures a wide range of indoor and outdoor "Smart Wi-Fi" products for mobile operators, broadband service providers and corporate enterprises around the world. Ranked as the top telecom company in the 2009 Inc. Magazine 500 list and named a World Economic Forum Technology Pioneer, Ruckus Wireless has realized dramatic growth. Since 2006, revenue and shipments have grown by over 1000 percent. Ruckus invented, and has patented, innovative state-of-the-art wireless technology that steers signals around obstacles and interference. This unique capability extends signal range and ensures consistent reliable distribution of delay-sensitive multimedia content and services over standard 802.11 Wi-Fi. The company has shipped over 2 million Smart Wi-Fi systems around the world and has raised $51 million in funding from premier investors such as Sequoia Capital, Focus Ventures, Sutter Hill, Motorola, T-Ventures, Telus Ventures and Firelake Capital. The company is led by Ms. Selina Lo, president and chief executive officer. For more information, visit Ruckus Wireless at http://www.ruckuswireless.com.

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SOURCE Ruckus Wireless