Indianapolis Public Schools Chooses Utah Scientific for Facility Upgrade

Indianapolis Public Schools Television has installed three Utah Scientific routers and the company's SC-4 control system to support production, videoconferencing, distance learning, training opportunities, and community programming in the district that serves 35,000 students spread among 79 buildings. Located in a central facility in the Indiana capital, the district's television operation feeds 70 channels to the school system, which is the largest in Indiana, as well as two channels to communitywide cable television. 

The new UTAH-400 HD router, expanded UTAH-300 analog video router, and UTAH-400/Data router are part of a phased-in facilitywide upgrade to HD prompted in part by the ambitions of the school system's training program for students seeking careers in broadcast engineering. 

Indianapolis Public Schools' Chief Information Officer Dorothy Crenshaw has a technology mission, "To provide resources and support that enable educators to engage students in rich, real-world learning experiences so that they can meet academic and technology standards and participate successfully in the global digital environment." This includes providing student interns with the opportunity to use up-to-date HD equipment, ultimately making them more employable in the industry. 

Jeff Walker, Indianapolis Public Schools Television chief engineer, said he was very pleased with the easy installation of the Utah Scientific equipment, which went live earlier this year. "Utah Scientific allowed me to do a lot of configuration before they sent the routers, which was extremely helpful," he said. "By the time the routers arrived, all we had to do was plug them in, and we could start routing signals. In addition, the Utah engineers on site were very helpful and committed to understanding my network."

Indianapolis Public Schools Television selected Utah Scientific equipment for the upgrade in part because of the district's previous experience with a hard-working and reliable Utah AVS-2 router. More selling points included Utah's 3-GHz HD card, powerful enough to handle future expansion, and GUI-based softpanel routing control. The latter feature is so easy to use that a Spanish teacher in one of the district's four TV studios can teach four elementary school classes remotely while simultaneously acting as her own master control operator. 

"Like the Indianapolis schools, many educational institutions embarking on upgrades are relying on Utah equipment," said Tom Harmon, president and CEO of Utah Scientific. "Schools are accountable to taxpayers, which makes them tough customers. Their choice of Utah is testimony to the durable equipment we sell and to its cost-effective operation."