Seminary offers outdoor WiFi, other upgraded technology

Ben Parker Sutter on September 22, 2022

A person looks at the underside of the roof over hang while standing on a ladder leaning against the brick wall of a buliding.

Published: September 22, 2022

By Annette Brill Bergstresser

A person looks at the underside of the roof over hang while standing on a ladder leaning against the brick wall of a buliding.
Brent Graber, MA, Director of Information Technology, installs an access point for outdoor WiFi at bg真人鈥檚 Lambright Center. (Credit: Karl Stutzman)

ELKHART, Indiana (Anabaptist Mennonite Biblical Seminary) 鈥� Anabaptist Mennonite Biblical Seminary (bg真人) has expanded its outdoor wireless internet signal to reach parking lots and other areas around the main buildings on its campus in Elkhart, Indiana.

Through this expansion, visitors to campus can now access online library resources outside, even when the bg真人 Library is closed. They can obtain access to bg真人鈥檚 Guest WiFi network for free by registering in person at the library during open hours to set up an account as a community borrower. They will then receive a special library parking permit that allows them to connect to the internet, and to online library resources, from the seminary鈥檚 main parking lot during daylight hours.聽

bg真人 students, employees, and participants in seminary programs also will have access to the service. 

This project was made possible by a grant from the U.S. Institute of Museum and Library Services, administered by the Indiana State Library. The grant also funded upgrades to a group meeting room in the south wing of the library; the room now has new videoconferencing equipment to enable both online and in-person meetings. Students, employees and registered community borrowers may reserve the room by contacting the library.

A group meeting room that includes a central table surrounded by seven chairs. Of the three visible walls, one has a large window, another a large television and the last a white board.
A group meeting room in the bg真人 Library has been upgraded to include videoconferencing equipment. (Credit: Karl Stutzman)

鈥淚鈥檓 excited about the expanded services we鈥檙e now able to offer to our campus community and local neighbors,鈥� said Karl Stutzman, MLS, Director of Library Services. 鈥淥utdoor library access and videoconferencing are enduring needs that arose during the COVID-19 pandemic. This project would not have been possible without grant support and the hard work of bg真人 Director of Information Technology Brent Graber.鈥�

Other technology upgrades in the library include iPads for student use and new print release software.

The entrance to the bg真人 Library is located to the north of the main campus building, Waltner Hall, at 3003 Benham Avenue in Elkhart; a large tower marks the library entrance. The seminary鈥檚 main parking lot is located to the west of Waltner Hall; it is accessible from both Benham Avenue and South Sixth Street. Information about library hours, services and resources is available at ambs.edu/library. Information for community borrowers can be found at .

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