Office of the Provost
THE UNIVERSITY OF VERMONT
Waterman Building
Burlington, Vermont 05405

Advanced Networking Infrastructure and Research Division
NATIONAL SCIENCE FOUNDATION
4201 Wilson Boulevard
Arlington, Virginia 22230, USA

July 21, 1998

Dear Program Director:

The University of Vermont offers its support and commitment to the proposal entitled "The University of Vermont vBNS Connection." An enhanced information technology infrastructure is one of the small number of initiatives that the University views as strategic to its mission. The University, a member of the Internet2 coalition, is pledged to continuing vBNS connectivity beyond the initial two-year NSF funding period.

In the years since our initial connection to the NSFnet, our University has been profoundly affected by computer networking. The connection to the vBNS is viewed by many on campus as having an even greater impact. It comes at a time when combined data, voice, and video services are rapidly expanding and creating a knowledge-rich environment for research and learning. It opens new avenues for collaboration and resource sharing.

Although the details of our institutional support are provided in the proposal, let me highlight a few major ones:

- a new Chief Learning and Information Officer (CLIO) position has been created, and a search is currently underway. The CLIO will report directly to the Provost and have broad oversight responsibilities in information technologies investments,

- as a result of ongoing construction on and near campus, the University has installed significant, new fiber optic network capacity, a portion of which will be used to provide a high-performance campus backbone network,

- New routers and switches will be acquired for the vBNS connection and the upgraded campus backbone network,

- Local, building-scale networks are being upgraded. In the Votey Building, for example, network wiring has been converted to "category 5" cabling, and the legacy Ethernet LAN is being upgraded to fast Ethernet.

- Networking Services, the Division of Computing and Information Technology, and academic researchers are developing a prototype gigabit Ethernet to ensure vBNS capabilities are available at the desktop,

- The University is actively working with Dartmouth College, the University of New Hampshire, and the University of Maine in developing a regional networking infrastructure.

In addition, the university is in the process of procuring a new telephone system as well as a new library catalog and management system. We anticipate that these new systems will lead to new uses of the communication network.

In addition to providing University scientists and scholars with access to the National Science Foundation vBNS network, this project will stimulate new research collaborations by reducing the barriers of distance and enhance the University's role in creating new knowledge- and information-based industries in Vermont.

The University of Vermont looks forward to participation in the NSF research network and is fully committed to being a valuable and constant contributor to national research efforts.

Yours,

(Signed)

Geoffrey Gamble
Provost, The University of Vermont