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August 26, 2003
Bonnie Neas
Assistant Vice President for Federal Government Relations & Director
of Internet Research
North Dakota State University
Annie Stunden
CIO and Director of Division of Information Technology
University of Wisconsin,
Madison
Dear Bonnie and Annie,
This letter is being sent to you as co-chair of the Northern Tier Networking
Collaborative (NTNC) and constitutes an invitation to become a project of
Internet2, as a means of supporting NTNC’s efforts to extend next generation
high-performance networking into the northern tier states. The Internet2
member universities in these states are clearly committed to working together
to establish local high-sped connectivity, and this commitment corresponds
with the goals of Internet2 to deploy advanced networking in support of research
and education. It is in the interests of the Internet2 membership community
for the organization itself to support NTNC’s efforts, and this letter
outlines more specifically what that support could be.
Internet2 currently provides support to several projects and collaborations,
which serve as examples applicable to NTNC. These arrangements include
support services such as:
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Financial services (accounts payable/receivable, reporting, etc.)
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HR services (employment by Internet2 for any direct hires devoted to
NTNC work, assistance with preparation of consulting agreements, etc.)
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Financial support for planning and working meetings (meeting location
costs)
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General organization assistance as needed, including for vendor
agreements and other contracts (costs associated with these agreements
and contracts will be borne by the project itself).
We propose that Interent2 commit to supporting NTNC for a period of one
year, in effect, to incubate the Collaborative. This will give NTNC
time to work out details for the projects it wants to undertake, and to determine
the best long-term organizational form. The precise details of the support
Internet2 will provide will be worked out prior to the start of the one-year
period, and we will meet towards the end of the year to determine what happens
after that, which includes continuing to have NTNC as an Internet2 project.
Whether NTNC chooses to become a project of Internet2 or organize itself
some other way, Internet2 staff will continue to work with the Collaborative
to ensure that its work is successful. Steve Corbato, Rick Summerhill, and
Jill Arnold will remain engaged in the technical planning, and Laurie Burns
and Jill Arnold will remain engaged in the organizational and process work.
We are delighted to see the commitment and progress so far, and look forward
to working with you in the months ahead.
Sincerely,
Doug Van Houweling
President and CEO, Internet2
Laurie Burns, Director of Member Activities
Internet2
3025 Boardwalk, Suite 100
Ann Arbor, MI 48108
Office: (734) 913-4251
Cell: (734) 604-9558
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