UC Tech News is excited to share the stories of the people and projects behind the winners of the 2026 UC Tech Awards.
Team Name: Secure UCSB Switch Replacement Team
Award Category: IT Security
Location: UC Santa Barbara
Team Members:
- Dylan Bolf, Senior Network Architect, Information Technology Services, UC Santa Barbara
- Alex Carreno, Senior Network & Security Services Engineer, Information Technology Services, UC Santa Barbara
- Darcie Sweet, Office Manager, Information Technology Services, UC Santa Barbara
- Cliff Hom, Lead Network Engineer, Information Technology Services, UC Santa Barbara
- Brandon Kay, Network Services Engineer, Information Technology Services, UC Santa Barbara
- Patricia Lapadula, Communications Manager, Information Technology Services, UC Santa Barbara
- Chris Lee, Project Manager, Information Technology Services, UC Santa Barbara
- Alex Mook, Enterprise Architect, Information Technology Services, UC Santa Barbara
- John Niessen, Associate Director of Network Services, Information Technology Services, UC Santa Barbara
- Dan Schley, Senior Network & Security Services Architect, Information Technology Services, UC Santa Barbara
- Kevin Schmidt, Director of Networking and Communications Services, Information Technology Services, UC Santa Barbara
The Secure UCSB Switch Replacement Team won the Silver IT Security Award at the 2026 UC Tech Awards for unifying UC Santa Barbara’s campus network to meet UC-wide cybersecurity mandates and creating a secure foundation for the university’s network services.
Project Summary
In response to the May 2024 UC presidential cybersecurity mandate, UC Santa Barbara launched the “Secure UCSB” project to modernize and unify its aging, decentralized network environment spanning over 400 buildings and 1,400 network switches.
The Secure UCSB Switch Replacement team coordinated this effort using a three-pronged operational strategy:
- Configuration Conversion: The first group converted decades-old equipment and network configurations into standardized formats that were compatible with new hardware.
- Logistics and Communication: The second group notified building occupants about scheduled migrations and navigated timing to ensure the project didn’t interfere with classes, finals, and other academic activities.
- Deployment and Troubleshooting: The third group physically installed over 1,200 new switches, managed outages, and resolved connectivity issues in real-time.
The team completed the entire network replacement in November 2025, creating a unified campus network with the visibility and management controls necessary to meet the UC cybersecurity mandate. Beyond compliance, Secure UCSB established a secure foundation for the university’s current and future digital services.
Kevin Schmidt, the team representative, shared some of his thoughts on the project and its impact in the Q&A below.
How did collaboration across teams or campuses shape the project?
Our project required replacement of departmental network switches across the campus while consolidating equipment management under the Network Operations Center (NOC) team.
Local IT managers were critical to project success. They provided existing configuration files to expedite proper configuration of new hardware, identified special issues (e.g. VoIP systems, problematic physical environments) and ensured effective post-migration testing and hyper-care delivery.
The project communications team ensured timely migration schedule reminders were delivered via administrative channels, and the hardware VAR on-site project team provided most of the hands-on equipment replacement.
Each of these participants proposed changes to improve the project.
Was there any user feedback that stood out and led to a meaningful change in your project?
There were two process changes that stood out:
During the first migrations, local IT staff validated service after equipment replacements were completed in a building. Subsequent deployments had strong involvement from local IT staff to validate service immediately after each switch was replaced. This led to Google Chat sessions to keep IT staff advised of each replacement, and to take problem reports as quickly as possible. This tight coupling between local IT and the project team kept migrations on schedule and minimized any post-migration problems.
A second change was providing greater operational visibility. During migrations, some local IT staff requested access to the NOC’s monitoring system. By granting access, some IT staff had more data than prior to the migration and were better able to either self-service or request assistance with greater detail and accuracy.
What did winning this UC Tech Award mean to your team personally or professionally? How has this project shaped your perspective personally or professionally? What’s something you’re proud of?
Speaking for the team, we appreciate recognition for a project that took many long hours, evenings, and weekends to complete. UC has many people contributing to its success.
I’m proud of UCSB’s IT community. Our team was coming into IT staff’s “work homes,” which they have operated for years in service to their clients, and asking them to trust us as we rapidly changed their environment. Our goal was always “as good or better,” and their support and patience made it possible.
What did you learn from this experience that you can share with other UC teams?
There can be a fine line between, “perfect as the enemy of good,” and “serve no wine before its time.” With any major project, developing a sense of where you are on that continuum is essential, along with an implementation plan that accommodates the inevitable unknowns inherent to the diverse environment of a university campus.
Contact
Kevin Schmidt, Director of Networking and Communications Services, Information Technology Services, UC Santa Barbara
