New 100G high-capacity network will support 128,000 students and staff across Houston

Cypress-Fairbanks Independent School District (CFISD), the third largest school district in Texas, is deploying a private optical network leveraging high-capacity networking solutions from Phonoscope LIGHTWAVE, a leading private fiber optic network service provider, and Ciena® (NYSE: CIEN). CFISD is building a 100G network with the vision of providing students and staff ‘Anytime, Anywhere’ broadband access so they can easily interact and collaborate with peers and engage in distance learning initiatives. 

Key Facts:

  • With approximately 114,000 students and 14,000 staff across more than 100 campuses and service centers, CFISD plans to utilize this robust fiber optic network to improve access to web-based educational resources while enhancing learning and collaboration. The network is funded in part by the E-Rate program and is designed in accordance with the Smart Education Networks by Design (SEND) Initiative through the Consortium of School Networking (CoSN). 
  • The Ciena-powered 100G network will enable CFISD to support the growing adoption of mobile devices among students - according to a Pew Research Center study 73 percent of teenagers have smartphones - and connect to the latest educational applications and tools. CFISD’s own Vision 2020 program includes a Bring Your Own Technology (BYOT) policy, which the school district expects will result in the need to support up to three devices for each student (depending on the grade level of the student), teacher and staff member. 
  • Ciena’s 6500 Packet-Optical Platform offers reliable high-capacity connectivity between CFISD’s six main hubs and three data centers through Phonoscope LIGHTWAVE’s extensive dark fiber network footprint. The network will also provide reliable connections between CFISD’s educational campuses and its three data centers, one of which is a collocation facility located outside of the district and used to back up all mission-critical information. 
  • Phonoscope LIGHTWAVE, a CFISD strategic partner of many years, will provide managed services to CFISD over the new network. This deployment builds on Ciena and Phonoscope LIGHTWAVE’s long-standing work together as well. 

Executive Comments: 

  • “Our mission is to maximize every student’s potential through rigorous and relevant learning experiences by preparing students to be 21st century global learners. To achieve it, we are proactively building a high-capacity network that will support the increased demands of wireless technologies, mobile devices, and high-speed connectivity. The Phonoscope LIGHTWAVE and Ciena solution provides the scalability and security we need to support these innovative programs that facilitate new types of classroom instruction, while also managing our mission-critical data and enabling future growth.”
    - Frankie Jackson, Chief Technology Officer, Cypress-Fairbanks ISD 
  • “Leading school districts like Cypress-Fairbanks are moving to higher speed and higher capacity networks to meet new curriculum standards while keeping up with growing mobile device use by students and staff. This network solution gives Cypress-Fairbanks a powerful and reliable way to support digital learning and collaboration efforts today – and well into the future.”
    -     Jason Phipps, General Manager and Vice President, North America, Ciena 
  • “We are pleased to support the forward-thinking administration of Cypress-Fairbanks ISD and its Vision 2020 educational initiative, which calls for the installation of a state-of-the-art, high-speed wireless access network infrastructure to meet student learning needs while providing secure backup of mission-critical data. We developed a custom network design to connect 100 campuses and facilities to each other and to a highly secure data center to enable access to cloud-based learning materials while providing the bandwidth necessary to support streaming video, collaboration and the school system’s Bring Your Own Technology (BYOT) digital device policy.”
    - Rhonda Cumming, CEO, Phonoscope LIGHTWAVE 

Supporting Resources:

About Cypress-Fairbanks Independent School District
The CFISD is the third largest school district in Texas and the 25th largest in the nation, representing 127,000 students and staff, 100 campuses and 186 square miles of land. The district’s vision is to LEAD (Learn, Empower, Achieve, Dream). Its mission is to maximize every student’s potential through rigorous and relevant learning experiences, preparing students to be 21st Century global leaders. The district supports technological innovation through its Vision 2020 initiative, which includes the development of a state-of-the-art private, high-speed network connecting all campuses to support mission-critical data back-up, cloud-based learning initiatives and the adoption of a Bring Your Own Technology (BYOT) digital device policy for students and staff. For more information about CFISD, please visit www.cfisd.net.

About Phonoscope LIGHTWAVE
Phonoscope LIGHTWAVE, a leading telecommunications service provider headquartered in Houston, Texas, owns and manages one of the nation’s largest private fiber optic Metropolitan Area Networks (MANs). The facilities-based fiber optic network spans approximately 5,000 route miles, features 1,400 on-net locations, and delivers managed Gigabit Ethernet services, Internet, Dark Fiber, Voice over IP (VoIP) and interconnection services to carriers, enterprise, cities and municipalities and educational institutions throughout Texas. Phonoscope LIGHTWAVE’s switched Layer 2 infrastructure is backed by 24/7 Network Operations Center (NOC) support and connects 50+ fault-tolerant multi-gigabit Ethernet rings for built-in redundancy, security, high-availability, and sub 2ms latency. At Phonoscope LIGHTWAVE Great Connections Happen Here™. For more information please visit www.pslightwave.com or call 832-615-8000.

About Ciena
Ciena (NYSE: CIEN) 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 its OPn architecture for 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. 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 Investors
Forward-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-K, which Ciena filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission on December 21, 2015. 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.

About Cypress-Fairbanks Independent School DistrictThe CFISD is the third largest school district in Texas and the 25th largest in the nation, representing 127,000 students and staff, 100 campuses and 186 square miles of land. The district’s vision is to LEAD (Learn, Empower, Achieve, Dream). Its mission is to maximize every student’s potential through rigorous and relevant learning experiences, preparing students to be 21st Century global leaders. The district supports technological innovation through its Vision 2020 initiative, which includes the development of a state-of-the-art private, high-speed network connecting all campuses to support mission-critical data back-up, cloud-based learning initiatives and the adoption of a Bring Your Own Technology (BYOT) digital device policy for students and staff. For more information about CFISD, please visit www.cfisd.net.

About Phonoscope LIGHTWAVE
Phonoscope LIGHTWAVE, a leading telecommunications service provider headquartered in Houston, Texas, owns and manages one of the nation’s largest private fiber optic Metropolitan Area Networks (MANs). The facilities-based fiber optic network spans approximately 5,000 route miles, features 1,400 on-net locations, and delivers managed Gigabit Ethernet services, Internet, Dark Fiber, Voice over IP (VoIP) and interconnection services to carriers, enterprise, cities and municipalities and educational institutions throughout Texas. Phonoscope LIGHTWAVE’s switched Layer 2 infrastructure is backed by 24/7 Network Operations Center (NOC) support and connects 50+ fault-tolerant multi-gigabit Ethernet rings for built-in redundancy, security, high-availability, and sub 2ms latency. At Phonoscope LIGHTWAVE Great Connections Happen Here™. For more information please visit www.pslightwave.com or call 832-615-8000.

About Ciena
Ciena (NYSE: CIEN) 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 its OPn architecture for 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. 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 Investors
Forward-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-K, which Ciena filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission on December 21, 2015. 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.