The TCU Faculty Senate passed a resolution on Thursday, Nov. 3 urging Technology Resources to make student and faculty Wi-Fi access more reliable. Bryan Lucas, Chief Technology Officer, said Tech Resources is aware of the problem and gave a number of solutions to resolve the issue.
“I am confident that Bryan and Technology Resources are doing everything possible to provide reliable capacity, but I think further development and resources are necessary to ensure full coverage for all faculty, staff, and students,” Dan Williams, chair of the Faculty Senate, wrote in an e-mail.
Two possible options Lucas gave for resolving the issue were to create an in-house guest network or outsource to a company such as AT&T.
“There are network equipment and personnel costs associated with these options,” Lucas said.
If an in-house guest network is created, Tech Resources would have to add more personnel to help with problems on the network and TCU would have to increase capacity and licensing with the network, Lucas said.
A cheaper option would be to make the current network bigger, Lucas said.
One of the problems associated with this solution is that Technology Resources does not have enough personnel to help with issues regarding Wi-Fi for personal devices, Lucas said.
Right now there are many “open” tickets on technology issues around campus, and adding personal devices into the mix would slow the process even more, Lucas said.
“I don’t prefer one option over another,” he said.
Ted Legatski, chair of the Student Relations Committee, said he is glad the issue is being addressed and is confident a workable solution can be found.
“This is a complex issue that requires more information and investigation,” Legatski said.
Students who are able to get Wi-Fi on their personal devices are having trouble connecting to the current network, which is why Student Government Association and the Student Relations Committee decided to write a resolution, Legatski said.
The resolution states these “difficulties negatively impact the ability of TCU students, faculty and support staff to contribute to TCU’s misson and achieve academic and operational excellence.”
The resolution is a formal statement of a Faculty Senate consensus opinion, and it is intended to let Technology Resources and the administration know that the Faculty Senate is concerned with the wireless issues and hopes that they can be adequately resolved, Williams wrote.
In the meeting on Thursday, the resolution was formally passed by the Faculty Senate. The Faculty Senate asked Technology Resources to keep it updated on the progress regarding this issue.
The Faculty Senate will invite Lucas to a meeting in the spring to get an update on the situation, Williams wrote.
