ACADEMIA

Dolgonas recognized as a leader in extending the reach of advanced networking into the K-20 education community

Internet2 has honored Jim Dolgonas, president and chief executive officer emeritus of CENIC, as this year's Richard Rose Award winner. This annual award recognizes extraordinary individual contributions that extend the reach of advanced networking into the K-20 education community.

"Jim has been a great contributor to fostering access to and the use of technology in all aspects of education in California,” said Dave Lambert, Internet2 chief executive officer and president. “He has been a strong advocate nationally for the most advanced and imaginative uses of the Internet to help our community and the people we serve.
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Jim Dolgonas served as president and chief executive officer of the Corporation for Education Network Initiatives in California (CENIC), from July 1, 2004, until he stepped down January 31, 2012. California’s education and research communities leverage their networking resources under CENIC to obtain cost-effective, high-bandwidth networking to support their missions and answer the needs of their faculty, staff, and students. CENIC's membership is drawn from California’s K-20 research and education institutions and includes nearly all of the state’s public education system and a significant number of private research and education institutions.

“Jim has worked tirelessly to include the K-20 community in all aspects of CENIC -- in shaping the budget, services and products, internal and public policy agendas, and governance,” said Louis Fox, current CENIC President and CEO. “Keeping in mind that nearly one in eight Americans lives in California and roughly one-quarter are part of the state’s research and education communities at any given time as faculty, staff, or students, Jim’s impact as a single individual over more than a decade of service becomes even more awesome.”

“It’s also stunning to see Jim’s hand in so many important projects that extend beyond the educational segments and, in fact, reach many underserved communities throughout California via anchor institutions,” Fox added. “His foresight in anticipating the importance of such institutions in expanding the reach of advanced broadband capabilities predated the development of current national and state-level efforts such as Internet2’s U.S. UCAN by at least a decade and was pivotal in their implementation.”

Most recently, Dolgonas worked with a consortium of small telecommunications carriers and community groups to win $46 million in federal stimulus funds to expand CENIC’s fiber path in the underserved areas of the Central Valley. The Central Valley Next Generation Broadband Infrastructure Project will improve the availability of broadband networking infrastructure to schools, colleges, and universities in 18 counties, as well as to anchor institutions in those counties such as county and main libraries, public safety answering points, and healthcare providers.

As a leader and collaborator, Dolgonas also helped to reshape the public policy agenda for the California Public Utility Commission’s California Teleconnect Fund to provide additional support for K-12 and community colleges. “Jim’s relentless efforts to enhance broadband access for California’s K-20 education and research community has spanned more than a decade,” said Patrick Perry, Vice Chancellor of Technology, Research and Information Systems, California Community Colleges Chancellor’s Office. “Jim has literally saved the State of California tens of millions of public dollars.”

“Jim has consistently demonstrated a vision for successful collaboration between all educational entities in California in order to efficiently serve all the needs of the public and maximize resources,” said Anne Mallory, Superintendent for Imperial County Office of Education. “Jim has a proven record of successful leadership in bringing in new resources, seeking and fostering collaboration between agencies, and proactively working to enhance broadband access for students across California.”

Further, Dolgonas has been a longtime supporter of content initiatives. A recent example is the provision of start-up and support to early phases of what is now a California-wide STEM initiative. The initiative has grown to become independent of CENIC and is now its own 501(c)(3) organization with its own funding and governance.

Prior to joining CENIC, Dolgonas served for 25 years in various technology leadership positions within the University of California system, including as system CIO. He has been active in EDUCAUSE, including service on the Administrative Systems Advisory committee, as well as in Internet2 as a member of the External Relations Advisory Council. Dolgonas has also served on various industry advisory committees, including those of IBM and Sun. He holds a Bachelors degree from the University of California, Davis and an MBA from UCLA.

The Richard Rose Award, presented by the Internet2 K20 Initiative, in which Richard Rose played an early and influential leadership role, focuses on efforts to extend advanced networking and applications from research universities to the broadest education community, including primary and secondary schools, community colleges, libraries, museums, zoos, aquariums, and performing arts and cultural centers, America's "anchor institutions." The Award celebrates educators or technologists who have had a demonstrable impact on the K-20 community. Mr. Rose was the executive director of the University of Maryland Academic Telecommunications System (UMATS) and USM Office IT, when he passed away in January 2007.

The award was presented on April 24, 2012, at the Spring 2012 Internet2 Member Meeting held in Arlington, Virginia. For more information about the Richard Rose Award, visit http://www.internet2.edu/rose.