iSchool students to offer observations on Interop 2010 conference at May 5 presentation

Four Syracuse University School of Information Studies (iSchool) students in the M.S. in telecommunications and network management program will share highlights from their recent trip to the Interop 2010 conference during a presentation on Wednesday, May 5, at 5 p.m. in Room 011 of Hinds Hall (the Innovation Studio). The iSchool invites anyone interested—SU students, faculty and staff, as well as community members—to attend the presentation. Refreshments will be served.

The Interop 2010 conference took place April 27-29 in Las Vegas. Interop is the largest conference for business technology professionals. It attracts hundreds of exhibitors–including IBM, VMware and Microsoft–to display their latest business technology products and services. The conference also provides attendees with the opportunity to participate in educational programs, workshops, real-world demonstrations and live technology implementations.

Each of the four iSchool students received a conference pass, valued at $2,095, courtesy of United Business Media (UBM), publisher of Network Computing magazine and owner of Interop. The iSchool contributed funding for the airfare and three nights of hotel accommodations for the students.

Students interested in attending Interop 2010 submitted a one-page proposal to iSchool associate professor Martha Garcia-Murillo, the director of the telecommunications and network management program, and Assistant Dean for Technology Dave Molta. The proposals outlined how students planned to spend their time at the event and how the experience would advance their professional and educational goals. The students selected were Jay Bhansali, Ashutosh Bhatt, Benson Matthews and Paridhi Nadarajan.

“The winners did a good job of clearly articulating their objectives, balancing the benefits they would realize personally with the benefits the iSchool would realize by sending them as ambassadors of our program,” Garcia-Murillo says. “Work is already under way to try to secure passes for the fall Interop conference in New York City. We hope to make this an annual event.”