Cisco gets Academic at Flinders

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From left: Professor Richard Constantine, Mr Ken Boal, Mr Irving Tan and Dr Anna Shillabeer.

The newly established Cisco Academy at Flinders University is ready to start teaching this month, presenting a unique opportunity for current and future Cisco network professionals to gain and renew their certification in South Australia for the first time.

A provider of network systems worldwide, Cisco is the supplier of state-of-the-art campus network infrastructure at Flinders.

Flinders Pro Vice-Chancellor (Information Services) Professor Richard Constantine met senior Cisco staff Mr Irving Tan (Cisco Systems Senior Vice-President, Asia Pacific and Japan), Mr Ken Boal (Cisco Systems Vice President, Australia and New Zealand), and Mr Jim Higginson (Cisco Regional Manager) on July 1 at the new Cisco Academy facility, located at Flinders at Tonsley.

The newly appointed Director of the Cisco Academy, Dr Anna Shillabeer, says the Academy is an exciting development.

“The Academy will assist South Australian businesses to reduce the impact of the cost and lost productivity previously felt when increasing the capacity of their technical work force,” Dr Shillabeer said.

“At the same time, Flinders students undertaking topics through the Academy will have the opportunity to graduate with two industry-recognised qualifications.”

The Flinders Cisco Academy will join the international network of Cisco Academies in delivering a curriculum that will train students for the jobs of the future enabled by the Internet of Everything. The IoE, the intelligent connection of people, processes, data and things through the Internet, will bring a new range of economic opportunities to private and public sectors.

Cisco is supporting the Academy through the provision of state of the art equipment installed in a specialised collaborative computer and communications network laboratory. The laboratory has been designed to support the teaching of both Flinders and TAFE students, together with industry practitioners, at the Tonsley campus.

Professor Constantine says he is pleased to see the Flinders partnership with Cisco go from strength to strength.

“The collaboration with Cisco has put Flinders at the forefront of network capability and resources among Australia’s universities, and the presence of the Cisco Academy at Tonsley will not only bring further benefits for our students, but also more broadly for business in the State through an enhanced capacity for training and education in technology,” Professor Constantine said.

 

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