Verizon Community Blog

But who or what is the unsung hero of your favorite games?

By: George Koroneos - Manager External Communications

Two months after the season ended in Las Vegas, football is back on the main stage, with the Draft roaring into the Motor City, Detroit, MI.

The 2024 championship game had some impressive high points - a second-half turnaround, quite possibly the highest volume of #TSwizzle mentions in a single football broadcast, and of course, our unbreakable advertising spot with a legendary lemonade songstress.

But for Verizon, our innovation took center stage with Coach-to-Coach communications, a managed private wireless network solution that enables secure and reliable communication between the coaches of the competing teams during the biggest game of the year.

Our very own tech aficionado George Koroneos, broke down Coach-to-Coach tech and spoke with Verizon Business CEO, Kyle Malady on what makes this technology so special and adaptable for businesses.

What is Coach-to-Coach communications?

Coach-to-Coach utilizes custom headsets equipped with SIM cards that connect to a dedicated system of radios at the field level. This creates a private signal exclusive to the coaching staff, eliminating any interference, lag, or downtime that could affect the game strategy.

There’s even a digital dashboard that allows teams to customize who can talk to whom, streamlining the communication flow and reducing the risk of miscommunication.

“NFL games come down to only a handful of plays. And if your communication isn’t rock solid 100% of the time, you risk maybe blowing up one of those plays because your communications didn’t work,” said Malady.

Life beyond the stadium

However, Verizon’s managed private network solution is not designed solely for professional sports. At its heart, Coach-to-Coach is a managed wireless network that can work for any business, whether a sold-out stadium in Las Vegas, a farm in rural Iowa, or a manufacturing floor in Philadelphia - Verizon Business’s private and managed networks provide unmatched security and unparalleled reliability.

To learn more about Verizon’s 5G private network solutions, visit Verizonbusiness.com.

About the author: George Koroneos is PR manager for the Verizon Consumer Group and resident tech and gadget expert.

Media contact:
Hope Arcuri Armanus
hope.arcuri.armanus@verizon.com

BASKING RIDGE, NJ – Verizon Innovative Learning, the company’s signature education initiative focused on driving digital equity and inclusion through a suite of programs and resources, is continuing to partner with the National Association for Community College Entrepreneurship (NACCE) to bring the Verizon Innovative Learning STEM Achievers program to Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs), Hispanic-Serving Institutions (HSIs) and community colleges.

Verizon Innovative Learning STEM Achievers is a free, project-based immersive STEM program open to middle school students in under-resourced communities to explore STEM subjects, learn problem-solving skills and gain exposure to career opportunities in technology fields. In 2023, 90% of students in the summer program said they enjoy learning new things that involve STEM and 83% said that they can use STEM to impact issues affecting the community, nation, and/or the world. This year, Verizon Innovative Learning STEM Achievers is expanding and now able to accommodate more students: from 11,900 last year to 13,500+ students this year.

The program’s interactive curriculum, developed by Verizon in partnership with Arizona State University’s J. Orin Edson Entrepreneurship + Innovation Institute, centers on four educational tracks: immersive media, smart solutions, digital product innovations and artificial intelligence. Participating students receive mentorship, access to next-gen technology-- such as 3D printing, augmented reality (AR) and robotics, and hands-on training connected to real-world challenges that help teach design thinking and social entrepreneurship. The program is held on the campuses of 45 HBCUs, HSIs and community colleges across the country.

"As tech and AI continue accelerating the pace of innovation, it’s up to all business leaders to ensure digital equity and inclusion,” said Rose Stuckey Kirk, Verizon’s Chief Corporate Social Responsibility Officer. “One of our many strategies to address this is Verizon Innovative Learning’s STEM Achievers summer program, in partnership with NACCE, which provides students with hands-on learning, mentorship, and opportunities to engage with emerging technologies and develop the necessary skills to succeed in the digital workforce. The opportunity for students to engage with tech over the summer and propel their own learning and digital skills can set them up for success during the school year, beyond middle school and in life. Verizon Innovative Learning STEM Achievers do big and bold things through the program and beyond – both inside and outside the classroom – and Verizon is honored to be part of their journey.”

Free registration is now open for parents to sign up their rising 6th - 8th grade students for the summer sessions being offered in-person. The Verizon Innovative Learning STEM Achievers program also consists of one in-person full-day workshop, both in the fall and spring, onsite at the partner college. To sign up for Verizon Innovative Learning STEM Achievers, please visit here.

Next-gen learning for all
Teachers and students can also leverage Verizon Innovative Learning HQ, an award-winning, free education portal that makes next-gen learning tools, including a curated collection of lesson plans, available to all. Through Verizon Innovative Learning HQ, K-12 educators nationwide gain free access to over 375 lesson plans with 22 corresponding augmented reality (AR) and virtual reality (VR) apps. The education portal also provides educators with extensive training and resources, including over 50 professional development courses. Educators can visit Verizon.com/Learning to sign up.

Verizon Innovative Learning, Verizon's award-winning education initiative, is celebrating over a decade of commitment to addressing barriers to digital inclusion for students and teachers. Since 2012, the initiative has committed $1 billion in market value to support digital equity, reaching over 7 million students. Verizon Innovative Learning provides free technology, internet access and innovative learning programs to students in under-resourced communities - enabling students to develop the skills, knowledge and confidence needed to build an innovative workforce of the future. A key initiative under Citizen Verizon, the company’s responsible business plan for economic, environmental and social advancement, Verizon Innovative Learning is helping to drive the company’s goal to provide 10 million youths with digital skills training by 2030.

Celebrate Verizon Innovative Learning’s latest milestone and learn more about our mission to reach 10 million students by 2030.

A little Verizon Innovative Learning math to get your brain pumping.

We have:

• 11 years operating 📅
• A variety of programs offered, including Verizon Innovative Learning Schools, Labs, a summer program, and more
• Through the Verizon Innovative Learning Schools program in particular, 626 schools enrolled 🏫 (including 34 new Title I schools from 13 school districts in the upcoming 2024-2025 school year)

Verizon Innovative Learning equips students, educators and administrators with technology or resources to address the barriers to digital inclusion in Title I schools and others across the country.

If you aren’t sure how difficult the barrier is to bridge, consider the fact that, according to the Federal Communications Commission (FCC), there are still nearly 17 million school children in the U.S. that lack internet access at home.

📖 If our goal is to reach 10 million students🎒by the end of the decade – how will we make it happen?

👩‍🏫It takes a VIL-lage

With leading education partners, Verizon Innovative Learning Schools empowers students with new ways of learning through extensive support for educators, technology-integrated curriculum, emerging technologies including 5G and free internet access.

We also provide educators nationwide with access to tools to help bring new ways of learning into their classrooms through Verizon Innovative Learning HQ. The free next-gen online K-12 education portal offers hundreds of free lessons across subjects ranging from supplemental turnkey lessons to yearlong courses and immersive learning experiences with augmented reality (AR) and virtual reality (VR). In fact, Verizon Innovative Learning HQ is a major way we’ve reached our 7 million student goal!

Verizon Innovative Learning HQ also provides over 50 professional development courses, many aligned with microcredentials, enabling educators to learn new skills and feel confident integrating technology into the learning experience.

📚Let’s have a study session

Learn more about Verizon Innovative Learning from a teacher who’s putting it to work in the classroom [02:37]. Marisol Caraballo is a 5th grade teacher at Hawkins Street School in Newark, New Jersey. She runs a jewelry design program for students, teaching the class everything from design technology to entrepreneurship as they sell their artwork.

Marisol actively seeks curriculum inspiration from Verizon Innovative Learning HQ to infuse art into various subjects and is passionate about making learning relevant for students – emphasizing the importance of connecting education to real-world topics.

📌Expanding the reach

According to Rose Stuckey Kirk, Senior Vice President and Chief Corporate Social Responsibility Officer, we’re continuing to expand the program into new communities, especially focusing on middle schoolers in under-resourced schools. Said Rose, “We are moving into new states and new territory. That’s why I think new districts, such as the one in New Mexico, are going to see the value of the program. It helps us to continue to level the education playing field for so many.”

In case you missed it during the game, see if Beyoncé can break Verizon's network.  See the extended version here:

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