Savannah Morris, of Butler, a history student at Butler County Community College, sends emails while sitting outdoors on BC3’s main campus in Butler Township on Wednesday, Aug. 28. BC3 has received a $300,000 grant from the state Department of Education that will fund the replacement of approximately 300 electronic devices that allow for connectivity among BC3’s main campus and its additional locations in Armstrong, Butler, Jefferson, Lawrence and Mercer counties. Submitted photo

Butler County Community College has received a $300,000 grant from the state Department of Education that will fund the replacement of approximately 300 electronic devices that allow for network connectivity among BC3’s main campus and its additional locations in Armstrong, Butler, Jefferson, Lawrence and Mercer counties.

The 95 switches and routers and nearly 200 wireless access points are nearing the end of their life span and will no longer be supported by the manufacturers, according to James Hrabosky, BC3’s vice president for administration and finance.

New devices are expected to last 10 years and will provide additional functionality, faster network speeds and additional security, as well as continued maintenance and support from manufacturers, Hrabosky said.

The college’s network provides students and employees hard-wired and wireless connectivity to the internet, network security services, desktops, laptops and mobile devices, according to Hrabosky, in addition to email, payroll and student information systems.

BC3 was among 12 of the state’s 15 community colleges to receive a grant to assist with short-term and long-term debt service projects, capital leases or cash capital projects approved by the state Department of Education.

Bill Foley is coordinator of news and media content at Butler County Community College.