Teacher Leonard Runck, right, and student Lucas Marsh troubleshoot a high school computer problem. Central seniors maintain school servers, transmitter radios and home receivers, as well as network-linked computers. The students receive minimum-wage pay and one class credit. Some of Runck’s former students have graduated to full-time tech support jobs, including two who now provide backup for him. Education First RRCNET was started to give rural students the same broadband access as those in more populated areas. They gain equal footing in other ways, including earning college credit while still in high school. Nearly half of Red Rock’s 40-some seniors are taking college challenge classes, says teacher Jenifer Goblish, aided by online interaction with teachers 40 miles away at Southwest Minnesota State University. Beginning this school year, a Kindle in the Classroom project provides e-readers to senior English students to download a selection of books. As part of her advanced degree work, teacher Susan Wilmes is researching whether technology can inspire greater student appreciation for reading. Another high-tech teaching tool is used in a sixth grade math class. Teacher Brian Walker uses a blackboard-mounted interactive touch screen called a Smart Board to engage his students in a new hands-on way. The students enthusiastically endorse the paperless, chalkless learning aid. Cooperative Connection The network has several links to Meadowland. With locations throughout the school district, the cooperative was an early supporter, including purchasing the original radio gear. “The cooperative has been very good to us,” says Runck. To offer wireless Internet, RRCNET set up access points atop 10 Meadowland elevators and two others in the area, including CHS at Tracy, Minn. Several producers host antennas on their grain legs to fi ll coverage gaps and boost signals over Red Rock Ridge, a prominent outcropping. In return for providing its town-topping roofs in place of wireless radio towers that would have cost millions of dollars, the cooperative economically networks its 15 grain, agronomy, energy and feed locations. They can securely transmit everything from sales transactions to site-specifi c production data. Meadowland provides work-based experience for tech-support students, too. They benefi t from interaction with cooperative employees, Runck says, including RRCNET’s main contacts, Greg Hall, feed department manager, and Gordy Woelfel, chief fi nancial offi cer. “Greg and Gordy have been excellent mentors for the students and offer real-life experience,” Runck says. “It’s been a terrifi c partnership,” General Manager John Valentin adds. “I remember fi rst talking to Leonard about this. It’s exciting to see where it’s gone.” Subscriber fees — $29.95 per month for wireless and $19.95 per month for dial-up — pay for a T1 telecommunications line to the school, new equipment and student labor. Tech-savvy Red Rock “It’s a good thing for the kids, and it’s a good thing for the region.” — Leonard Runck Keeping Region Connected RRCNET also helps parents check their students’ progress. Residents fi nd plenty of other uses, including monitoring local elevator grain bids, virtually visiting regional medical centers and searching for jobs. Runck says the grain page alone on the network’s website receives 250 hits a day. In the race to keep pace, Runck says the system faces demand for connection speeds faster than its maximum of 3 megabits per second (Mbps). A task force has recommended statewide download speeds of 10 to 20 Mbps by 2015, a goal he believes will be tough to reach. Buried fi ber optic cable is the answer, Runck says, especially on the prairie where storms often knock out wireless access points. But current commercial providers say fi ber is too expensive. In the meantime, the homegrown provider network continues to serve its role of wirelessly connecting the region to the broader broadband world. •• SHARE THIS •• You can share this story at chsinc.com/c. 24 November/December 2011 CHSINC.COM