When AAPS students and staff enter a school building, they encounter spaces that are consistently connected, comfortable, and safe thanks to the district’s Network Operations Center.
Most capital improvements in a school district are visible: new classrooms, updated flooring, modern lighting. The AAPS Network Operations Center (NOC) operates out of sight, but its reach extends into every classroom, hallway, and common space across the district’s thirty-six buildings. From the moment a student connects a device to a school’s wireless network to the moment a fire alarm is tested in a gymnasium, the NOC is the infrastructure layer that makes all of this work and more.
Five Key Takeaways from this Article on the AAPS Network Operations Center (NOC):
- The NOC is the district’s central network hub. The NOC houses the servers and fiber infrastructure that distribute connectivity to all 36 AAPS buildings.
- Teaching and Learning device access depends on the network. Every wireless connection, cloud-based application, and student device in AAPS relies on the network infrastructure maintained at the NOC.
- Building Automation Systems improve operational efficiency. Web-based controls allow district staff to easily adjust heating, cooling, ventilation, and lighting.
- Emergency and life safety systems run through the network. Fire alarm systems, card-access entry, mass notification, and emergency communications are coordinated through district network infrastructure.
- Redundancy is built into the system. The NOC is designed with backup power systems that keep operations running continuously, 24 hours a day, 365 days a year.
The Network’s Dedicated Facility
As the district’s network demands grew over the years, the former NOC space could no longer accommodate the physical and mechanical requirements of the equipment it housed. The district, working with program manager Gilbane Building Company, determined that a new, purpose-built facility was the appropriate path forward. The project, run by construction manager The Christman Company, was started in July 2025 and completed in April 2026, a roughly nine-month timeline that included design, material procurement, and construction.
The new facility includes a dedicated HVAC system to manage the heat generated by server equipment, along with battery backup and generator systems to maintain operations during a power outage. The space was also designed with capacity for future growth.
“The NOC facility is a purpose-built environment designed specifically to house and protect the equipment and connectivity that the district depends on every day. It’s the entire backbone of the district,” explained Dr. Heather Kellstrom, Executive Director for AAPS Instructional Technology & Information Services.
Teaching and Learning Device Support
Every wireless connection in every AAPS building traces back to the district’s network infrastructure. The district’s device program provides a dedicated, age-appropriate learning device to every student. When those devices connect to cloud-based platforms, stream educational content, or support real-time collaboration, they are drawing on the system the NOC distributes.
Building Automation Systems
A Building Automation System (BAS) is a web-based control platform that allows facilities staff to monitor and adjust a building’s mechanical systems, including heating, cooling, ventilation, and lighting, from a central interface.
Chris Bullinger, Director of Physical Plant at AAPS, oversees the mechanical, electrical, and plumbing systems across all district facilities. He describes the practical value of the building automation system directly: “It would take me several days to travel to thirty six buildings. Now I can sit down and go through all the systems in a matter of hours, very thoroughly.”
The system also functions as a real-time diagnostic tool. When a room is reported as too warm or too cold, Bullinger and his team can identify the likely cause from a workstation before dispatching a technician. “Previously, you might not find out about an issue until it had become a much more significant problem. Now we get remote notifications. We can get an alarm sent to a phone at 2 a.m. on a Sunday that there is a problem in a building.”
Emergency Notification and Life Safety
The district’s network infrastructure also supports systems designed to protect students and staff in the event of an emergency. Fire alarm systems in new construction and renovation projects include remote monitoring capabilities, meaning district personnel can be notified of an alarm condition without requiring someone to be physically present in the building at all times.
Card-access door systems, which control entry at secure points across district buildings, are also coordinated through network infrastructure. For broader emergency communications, AAPS uses RAPTOR, a platform that delivers severe weather alerts, emergency notifications, and other time-sensitive communications across the district. Erik Bodker, Senior Project Manager at Gilbane Building Company explained “Everything is remote through some district department or entity and goes through servers and network capabilities from the NOC.”
Supporting the District’s Sustainability Goals
AAPS has adopted a board-approved framework that includes a goal of carbon neutrality across district facilities. The building automation systems contribute to that goal by reducing energy use in unoccupied spaces, limiting unnecessary heating and cooling, and enabling more precise control over how mechanical systems operate.
Bullinger connects the BAS directly to the district’s energy objectives: “What the controls do is make sure we’re being efficient. Not over-cooling or heating spaces that are not occupied, and not bringing in fresh air to an unoccupied space.” This efficiency work operates alongside the investments in rooftop solar and geothermal heating and cooling as the district works to achieve environmental sustainability goals.