Certification program to provide veterans with valuable experience and industry-recognized credentials

Ciena® Corporation (NASDAQ: CIEN), the network specialist, today announced a new program with the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs to offer qualified honorably discharged, retired and active duty service members for all five branches of the U.S. Armed Forces access to Ciena’s world-class technology certification programs, free of charge. Spots will be reserved for veterans in each of Ciena’s industry-leading Carrier Ethernet (CE) certification and Optical Communications associate level classes, which are offered at over 50 accredited colleges from throughout the world. This training will provide qualified veterans with applicable training in emerging technologies for a wide variety of jobs that are needed across different disciplines including telecommunications, IT and cyber security.

Key Facts:

  • As demand for faster communications and bandwidth grows, so does the need for qualified people who can support these cutting-edge technology networks. This certification program will provide selected veterans with the skill set to complement existing military training and compete effectively in the highly competitive telecommunications industry.
  • The CE and Optical certification program courses are offered on an open-enrollment basis at community colleges throughout the Global Corporate College (GCC) network. In addition, courses taken at an accredited college are also eligible for GI Bill reimbursements and tuition assistance.
  • Ciena offers a number of other advanced telecommunications training and certification programs that qualify for benefits under the GI bill, including additional courses on the Optical technology track which is available today, and the Test & Measurement programs, which will be launched next year.
  • In addition, veterans participating in the Vocational Rehabilitation and Employment (VR&E) program, which assists Veterans with service-connected disabilities to prepare for, find, and keep suitable jobs, may talk to their counselors about including this training in their rehabilitation plan. For those interested in joining the VR&E Program, visit the VetSuccess website for more information.

Executive Comments:

  • “We believe that the Carrier Ethernet and Optical certifications are an essential requirement for all networking professionals, and have now become a differentiator in the hiring market today. Ciena Learning Solutions is honored to offer this program through the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, and hope that through this certification program, we will be able to provide veterans service members with new skills that will help them gain long-term employment in their desired field.”
    -          Jim Caprara, Vice President and General Manager of Learning Solutions at Ciena
  • “In August 2012 Ciena Learning Solution extended an invitation to provide a one week free Ethernet certificate course to 15 VR&E participates who need these skill sets to become employed in this area. In an effort to continue providing this free training, Ciena is now offering two free seats in every class held worldwide for VR&E participants.” -          Dr. Dorothy Williams, Supervisor of Rehabilitation Services Vocational Rehabilitation and Employment Services at U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs

Additional Background:

  • Ciena launched the industry’s first vendor-neutral certification program focused on Carrier Ethernet in 2009.  Since then, Ciena’s Technology Certifications program has grown to include Optical technology certification, and has become the industry leader for professionals seeking certification on these select technologies.
  • Thousands of networking professionals have been certified by Ciena around the world. The company’s four-tiered certification programs are available in colleges throughout the world with our partnership with the Global Corporate College.
  • Ciena Learning Solutions provides a comprehensive learning and certification product development process to support the global advancement of emerging technologies, such as carrier Ethernet, optical communications, test and measurement and advanced software.
  • As a founding member of the Metro Ethernet Forum, Ciena has played a leading role in the development of each generation of Carrier Ethernet technology. In fact, Ciena was among the first companies the Metro Ethernet Forum (MEF) Carrier Ethernet 2.0 (CE2.0) certification program and receive certification for its award-winning packet networking platforms.

Supporting Resources:

About CienaCiena is the network specialist. We collaborate with customers worldwide to unlock the strategic potential of their networks and fundamentally change the way they perform and compete. Ciena leverages its deep expertise in packet and optical networking and distributed software automation to deliver solutions in alignment with OPn, its approach for building open next-generation networks. We enable a high-scale, programmable infrastructure that can be controlled and adapted by network-level applications, and provide open interfaces to coordinate computing, storage and network resources in a unified, virtualized environment. For updates on Ciena news, follow us on Twitter @Ciena or on LinkedIn http://www.linkedin.com/company/ciena. Investors are encouraged to review the Investors section of our website at www.ciena.com/investors, where we routinely post press releases, SEC filings, recent news, financial results, and other announcements. From time to time we exclusively post material information to this website along with other disclosure channels that we use.

Note to Ciena InvestorsForward-looking statements. This press release contains certain forward-looking statements based on current expectations, forecasts and assumptions that involve risks and uncertainties. These statements are based on information available to the Company as of the date hereof; and Ciena's actual results could differ materially from those stated or implied, due to risks and uncertainties associated with its business, which include the risk factors disclosed in its Report on Form 10-Q, which Ciena filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission on September 11, 2013. Forward-looking statements include statements regarding Ciena's expectations, beliefs, intentions or strategies regarding the future and can be identified by forward-looking words such as "anticipate," "believe," "could," "estimate," "expect," "intend," "may," "should," "will," and "would" or similar words. Ciena assumes no obligation to update the information included in this press release, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise.