Asante Helps Schools Upgrade to Latest Switching/Routing Technology Despite Lack of Government Education Technology Grants.

SAN JOSE, Calif. -- Asante and Cleveland Independent School District Ready to Breeze Through Tough Times Ahead with IntraCore Enterprise Networking Solutions

In the U.S., tough times are ahead for school IT departments. The Department of Education recently proposed to eliminate Education Technology State Grants, a loss of $496 million to U.S. schools in 2006. Many districts will be hard hit, and lack the funds necessary to maintain or upgrade their networking equipment for years to come. But at the Cleveland Independent School District (ISD) in Texas, Technology Coordinator Cindy Lucas is breathing a sigh of relief. With limited funds, Lucas and the Cleveland ISD technology staff have recently future-proofed their network by turning to Asante's (OTC:ASNT) IntraCore(R) enterprise networking solutions.

The Cleveland ISD team recently upgraded their system with Asante's enterprise-class Gigabit Ethernet multi-service network switches: IntraCore IC35516 16-port Layer 3 backbone router switches at the core, and IntraCore IC3548 48-port 10/100 managed switches with Gigabit uplinks on the edge.

Asante IntraCore for Education: Plays Well with Others

Lucas says the IT team selected IntraCore over the competition because it works seamlessly with the District's older, existing IT infrastructure. The District is also experiencing a real cost-savings because IntraCore's interoperability allows the IT team to leverage their installed base without having to rip older, existing equipment out. "We have 9-year-old machines and a hodge-podge of equipment," Lucas explained. "But with Asante, whenever we buy anything new, it's just incredible the way it plays with everything."

Since installing the new system, Lucas often finds herself evangelizing to her cash-strapped colleagues in other districts about the benefits of moving to Asante. When she explains how Asante products are perfect for educational environments because of their affordability and interoperability with existing equipment, her counterparts are in disbelief. "But when I show them how Asante products work, they're just blown away," she said.

In this small district 45 miles north of Houston, Texas, Lucas and the four-person IT staff oversee the IT needs of over 3,400 students spanning six campuses. Prior to installing Asante's products, Lucas' team had a wireless LAN with just one router for the entire district. When it went down, the District would be in chaos. Funding for new equipment was scarce, until six years ago when a new superintendent, Terry Myers, took the helm, and everything changed.

"Since he's come into our district, we've built new schools, and bonds have passed that never would before," says Lucas. Myers and the school board are the driving force behind the acquisition of the district's new fiber network and Asante equipment purchases. "He trusts my department, which is a huge leap forward," she said.

In a small school district, solid vendor relationships are critical in order to achieve school board buy-in on major purchases, Lucas explains, but before Asante, Cleveland IT staff never had any kind of ongoing relationship with their networking vendors' sales reps.

"You never knew what person was coming out. They didn't know our network, and this person may have one opinion but then the next person to visit will have theirs. It was a nightmare," she said. "In a lot of educational institutions you'll deal with very old equipment, and hand-me-downs," Lucas explains, and adds that Asante has really taken the time to know details of their network.

Thanks in part to Asante's rock-solid products and responsive support staff, the school board has allowed the District's technological capabilities to grow exponentially. Now, every classroom is wired with fiber, every teacher has a computer, and students are reaping the rewards.

"I just get so tickled; I walk into my server room and go 'Oh, listen to that sound!'" she says.

Cleveland ISD and Asante: Ready for the Future

"The Asante products we purchased for the district are incredible. At the high school, we have a video technology class doing a lot of streaming, using a lot of bandwidth," Lucas said. "There's a lot of stuff coming through those switches, but it's not a problem. They're just purring," she added.

With a new high school under construction, the Asante and Cleveland ISD team is working together to outline the equipment needed to meet current and future needs of the new campus, as well as examining VoIP and fiber expansions for the entire district. Despite steep cuts in funding, the IT team knows they will be able to keep up with upgrades and network expansions.

Lucas is jubilant about their new network, and is looking forward to a long-term relationship with Asante. "We're looking at purchasing 60 more Asante switches," she says, "and I don't want those no-name generic switches out there; I want Asante."

About Asante

Asante Technologies, Inc. (OTC:ASNT) is a leading provider of networking solutions for the small-medium business (SMB) market. Asante designs, markets, and sells a full line of networking solutions that provides its customers with high-performance, reliable, and value-based solutions. The company's FriendlyNET(R) and IntraCore product families offer companies a full breadth of products -- from the edge to the core of their networks. For additional information, visit www.asante.com or call 800-662-9686.

Asante, FriendlyNET, and IntraCore are registered trademarks of Asante Technologies, Inc. All other names may be trademarks or registered trademarks of their respective owners.