Texas’s Fort Worth Independent School District
(FWISD) worked with BearCom to create its own
private LTE network via a CBRS platform. FWISD
used its emergency fund to address the growing
need for students to learn remotely as a result
of Covid 19 outbreak. Bearcom is a network and
backhaul solution provider. According to Bearcom,
most of these citizens are living in the rural, urban
and tribal communities and do not have access
to a reliable internet access which put them in a
disadvantage position compared to their peers.
Challenges
To provide internet access not just to students but for
the people in the district, Bearcom partnered with
CommScope, Athonet, Airspan and Cradlepoint to
build a core network and radio sites. The challenge
is to put them up and running within 60 days. This
projects must also consider the funding provided by
the government. FWISD will also own the network
infrastructure to reduce opex. The school will also
utilize the government’s CBRS spectrum allocation
for General Authorized Access.
Solution & Benefits
To operate the network services, CommScope provided Spectrum Access, Cradlepoint supplied routers
with sim card and FWISD provided laptops and tablets to students. Airspan CBRS and Open RAN
technologies have played a vital role. 12 CBSDs were deployed across 4 sites. With CBRS, the school
was able to own a private LTE network with carrier-class speed, security, range, and capacity. CBRS
can provide a secure internet connections to students at a lower cost compared to wifi. 4,000 students
were expected to connect during the first quarter.
This project has become a milestone for Bearcom and FWISD. More than sustaining the internet need
for distance learning and WFH jobs, it has addressed the issue of digital divide as a result of poor
internet connection and lack of access to online opportunities and important information.
