Massachusetts. Education and technology are two of our greatest social equalizers.

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1 Corporate Social Responsibility Massachusetts Education and technology are two of our greatest social equalizers. As the worldwide leader in networking, Cisco knows technology can be used to improve access to education. Education can improve individual economic opportunities, helping to create a relevant, strong workforce and advance the economy. Cisco delivers education programs through partnerships with private and public organizations. Now in its 15 th year, Cisco Networking Academy is the largest of these programs, partnering with over 10,000 education organizations in 165 countries to reach over 1 million active students. With the growing demand for ICT professionals, Networking Academy is providing the skills to design, build, manage and secure computer networks, including the career-ready soft skills employers require. Students learn through classroom instruction, online materials and interactive tools, and hands-on experience. As organizations become increasingly reliant on intelligent networks and innovative workers, Cisco and our partners are helping prepare the global workforce of the future. The Impact in Massachusetts 3,367 students taught in ,076 students since inception 45 organizations offering Cisco ICT courses 88 instructors preparing the ICT workforce 5.65 Million estimated in-kind contribution to education you + networks = impact 2013 Cisco and/or its affiliates. Cisco Systems, Inc. All rights reserved. Page 1 of 7

2 Academy Impact Profile 2013 Massachusetts Preparing Today s Students for Tomorrow s Challenges For a competitive and sustainable economy, the United States must have a skilled and well-trained workforce that can meet the evolving needs of industry. Students must now acquire problem-solving and critical-thinking skills, in addition to specific job-related expertise, to reach their full potential as a vital work resource. The growth of global networks has resulted in a shortage of people qualified to design, build, manage and secure the information infrastructure needed to do business, support communications, and even save lives. Every business, school, hospital, nonprofit, and other organization that relies on intelligent networks needs trained professionals to keep them running and secure. A workforce that is well-schooled in information and communications technology (ICT) and engineering can spur innovation across many industries, which in turn inspires additional opportunities to fuel productivity and economic growth. ICT investments are expected to play a major role in generating stable, high-paying jobs and boosting the nation s GDP. An Innovative Education Program that Supports Standards Cisco Networking Academy is a technology education program that partners with public and private organizations to provide the knowledge and skills required for career- and college-ready students. Students acquire basic-to-advanced knowledge of information communications technology and learn networking skills. They develop the analytic, teamwork, and efficiency skills and the self-confidence that are so essential in the 21st century, both in the job world and in college. Coursework reflects all STEM Cluster Topics, and teaches many of the reading and writing Common Core Standards for technical subjects. College-ready students strengthen their understanding of technology, as well as math, science, and engineering concepts, improving success in their advanced studies. Career-ready students prepare for globally recognized certifications. Cisco is the first vendor to offer a robust networking certification portfolio that meets the ANSI accreditation standard. Yahoo! Finance 1/16/2013 Most of my students get multiple job offers before they even graduate. David Kotfila, Director/Instructor, Rennselaer Polytechnic Institute, NY Technical and Career-Ready Skills Courses include IT Essentials, Cisco CCNA (Cisco Certified Networking Associate), CCNA Security, and the more advanced Cisco CCNP (Cisco Certified Networking Professional). With a focus on learning technical skills, the instructional approach encourages student engagement and the ability to synthesize what they learn and apply it in other contexts. Course content integrates four skill areas identified by education researchers as critical for 21st century workers: Problem solving and decision making: Students practice and test their knowledge by configuring and troubleshooting networks using hands-on labs and simulation software; real-world scenarios develop advanced problem-solving techniques. Creative and critical thinking: Students understand the how and why of networking by combining hands-on learning with conceptual and analytical exercises. Collaboration, communication, and negotiation: Students acquire individual and teamwork skills by performing lab exercises and practicing problem solving within business scenarios. Intellectual curiosity and information handling: Students develop the ability to locate, select, structure, and evaluate information. Courses also prepare and motivate students to pursue further education or certification. Many go on to apply their skills on the job or in their own businesses Cisco and/or its affiliates. Cisco Systems, Inc. All rights reserved. Page 2 of 7

3 Academy Impact Profile 2013 Massachusetts Comprehensive Curricula with Communities of Support Each course is free to not-for-profit organizations and includes instructor-led course content, lab exercises, simulation software, skills assessments, case studies, gaming, interactive teaching guides, and grade books. All materials are available to instructors online with 24/7 support. Unique to Networking Academy is our focus on instructor professional development, and the creation of communities to support both instructors and students. Instructors receive training prior to teaching their first class, and many free professional development opportunities throughout the year. Cisco hosts peer communities that enable instructors to collaborate and share best practices, online and in person. Students have access to skills competitions and a global network of peers to troubleshoot coursework and prepare for exams, while also mentoring and encouraging one another. A High Demand for ICT Skills Although economic downturns hinder most employment sectors, ICT professionals enjoy a continuously increasing demand because of exponential growth in technology and related services. Networking is expected to be the second fastest growing ICT area in the United States, faster than the average for all occupations, as we continue to invest in cloud and mobile networks U.S. Employment Predictions % + 22% + 22% + 18% + 18% +22% +14% 443, , , , ,700 All Computer Info Sec Analysts, Computer Comp and Systems Web Developers, Support Info Systems Analysts Network Architects Specialists Managers Network and Computer Systems Architects/Admins 2020 Massachusetts Employment Predictions % + 36% + 33% + 25% + 29% Computer Occupations 1 Source: US Department of Labor, Bureau of Labor Statistics, 2 Source: Massachusetts Office of Labor and Workforce Development, All Occupations Top Cisco Certifications by Salary 3 ICT salaries are on the rise, particularly if professionals have specialized training or have earned a certification. For example, Cisco network administration knowledge and skills result in a 9% higher salary, on average. $82,923 $90,457 $74,764 Additional Cisco certifications are available, including CCNA Security, CCNA Voice, CCIE, CCDA, and more. 3 Source: Global Knowledge, 15 Top Paying IT Certs, Cisco and/or its affiliates. Cisco Systems, Inc. All rights reserved. Page 3 of 7

4 The Impact in Massachusetts The partnership between Cisco and Massachusetts educational institutions has touched the lives of more than 13,000 students and generated a large estimated in-kind contribution towards education. Impact since the beginning in ,076 $5.65M 1-10 (100%) Students Estimated In-Kind Contribution Value Congressional Districts Participating Impact over the last 12 months 3,367 18% Students Female Students Instructors Academies Education Levels Secondary s Community Colleges Universities Other 4 Students 53% 46% 0% 1% Curricula 5 Academies 67% 29% 0% 4% Students 46% 43% 9% 2% Basic ICT Basic Networking Intermediate Networking 4 Community-based organizations, middle schools, military, nontraditional educational settings, and post-graduate institutions 5 Students that enroll in more than one education level or curriculum in 12 months may be counted more than once Advanced Networking Education Organizations Teaching Networking Academy Courses in Massachusetts COUNTY CITY SCHOOL Upper Cape Cod Regional Bourne Barnstable Technical West Barnstable Cape Cod Community College Berkshire Bristol North Adams Pittsfield New Bedford Taunton McCann Voc/Tech Berkshire Community College Greater New Bedford Regional Vocational Technical High New Bedford High Bristol Plymouth RVTHS Dukes Vineyard Haven YMCA of Martha's Vineyard Andover Greater Lawrence Technical High school Essex Danvers North Shore Community College Lynn Lynn English High Middleton North Shore Technical High Chicopee Comprehensive Chicopee Vocational Technical High Hampden Springfield Technical Community Springfield College West Springfield Career and Technical Education Center Middlesex Norfolk Westfield Billerica Cambridge Everett Framingham Marlboro Medford Somerville Tyngsboro Canton Franklin Quincy South Weymouth Westfield Vocational HS Shawsheen Valley Vocational Technical High Cambridge Rindge & Latin High Everett MA High Joseph P. Keefe Technical Massachusetts Department of Corrections Assabet Valley Regional Technical High Medford Vocational High Network Technology Academy Somerville MA High GLTech Blue Hills Technical High Massasoit Community College Franklin MA High Tri-County Regional Vocational Technical High Quincy High Weymouth High Plymouth Brockton Brockton High 2013 Cisco and/or its affiliates. Cisco Systems, Inc. All rights reserved. Page 4 of 7

5 Suffolk Hanover Boston South Shore Vocational Technical High Boston Chinatown Neighborhood Center, Inc. Boston Latin Academy Bunker Hill Community College Wentworth Institute of Technology Year Up Boston Worcester Roxbury Roxbury Crossing Fitchburg Worcester John D. O'Bryant High of Mathematics & Science Timothy Smith Network Madison Park Montachusett Regional Vocational Technical Worcester Technical High Dorchester DotWell Academy Impact Story As Cisco Networking Academy turns 15, we look back to see how far we ve come. We see millions of students, each with a unique educational experience and a track record of accomplishments beyond the classroom. Their stories are our story. Digital Novice Reinvents Herself as ICT Professional At first she felt out of her element, but Rebecca Baca parlayed her Networking Academy courses into a fresh start and a successful technology career. Since it began as a program for disadvantaged high school students in Silicon Valley, Cisco Networking Academy has made inclusiveness a top priority. Academy students now represent a broad range of ages, cultural backgrounds, economic levels, and career aspirations. Because women have traditionally been underrepresented in the STEM areas science, technology, engineering, and mathematics the academy has worked to promote female enrollment and encourage women and girls to pursue careers in information and communications technology (ICT). In 2012, 20% of Networking Academy students and 17% of instructors worldwide were female. Rebecca Baca was looking for a new start and a more stable livelihood when she signed up for a Networking Academy course in Although she had never heard of Cisco and had little idea of what networking was all about, she stuck with it. After completing her coursework and earning a Cisco certification, she landed a job at an ICT services company and became the first woman in her organization to rise to the position of project consulting engineer. She now serves as an academy adviser and a role model for women who are wondering whether technology is right for them. In 2003, Baca was a 27-year-old single mother living with her parents in Albuquerque, New Mexico. After several years in low-paying service jobs in the hospitality industry, she wanted to become financially independent and make a better life for herself and her daughter. But she knew she would need more education to make that happen. Nearby Technical Vocational Institute (now Central New Mexico Community College, or CNMCC) offered an Associate of Science degree in technology that seemed promising, but first she had to prepare by taking refresher courses and an elementary computing class. It was kind of embarrassing how little I knew about computers, she says. Baca admits she felt intimidated when she walked into her first Networking Academy course. There were only six women and about 20 men, she recalls. I think my desire to succeed kept me going at the beginning. I thought, I don t care if this is completely over my head, I am not going to quit. Then I found that the instructors were very supportive. They really wanted to see the women do well. Even so, only three of the six stuck with it. I found that the instructors were very supportive. They really wanted to see the women do well Cisco and/or its affiliates. Cisco Systems, Inc. All rights reserved. Page 5 of 7

6 Two of her academy instructors, Robert Hennigan and David Clauss, remember Baca as both motivated and generous with her new knowledge. Rebecca displayed the hard work, diligence, and dedication required to succeed in the highly competitive networking field, says Hennigan. Adds Clauss, She was always willing to help other students in the networking lab. She realized that helping others deepened her own understanding of the concepts. Using a state grant and working part time to help pay her way, Baca completed the Cisco CCNA courses for networking associates, attained her associate s degree in less than two years, and soon passed the Cisco CCNA certification exam. But she wasn t sure there would be a job waiting for her. She thought, I m a straight-a student in the academy, but does that mean I can get hired? But with the support of academy instructors, including Hennigan, she weathered an extensive interview process and finally landed an internship at the ICT services firm Network Architects (now Presidio), working at their help desk. I remember seeing their work environment and thinking it was like a fraternity house, with foosball and pool tables, she remarks. But I loved it. The job required her to assist Cisco CallManager telephony customers, so she had to learn about voice-over-ip technology on the fly. Underlying it all was her networking education. If you don t know networks, you will never understand the applications running on them, she says. Without my Networking Academy training, there was no way I could have gotten my head around the voice technology so quickly. After three months as an intern, Baca was offered a fulltime job as an associate consulting engineer, the first woman to hold that position at the company. Her duties involved staffing the help desk, making proactive system checks at customer sites, and working closely with Cisco Technical Assistance Center teams. She also studied for and obtained the more advanced Cisco CCNP certificate for networking professionals. It wasn t long before Baca decided she had earned the opportunity to work on the project side of the business, taking responsibility for planning and installing networks for a variety of enterprises. My big breakthrough was being named lead engineer on a 19- site telephony project. Now I m a senior voice consulting engineer. I was able to step back and see what I had become where I came from, and what I am now. That meant proving herself to her male managers. As she puts it, My approach was: Yes, I m a woman and, no, I don t want your job. I just want to learn. I started to do user training and then worked up to installing equipment. My first project was at an Indian reservation school, where I installed a small network myself. My big breakthrough was being named lead engineer on a 19-site telephony project. Now I m a senior voice consulting engineer. Baca discovered that the Networking Academy had prepared her well for the ICT business. In academy courses, we approached networking as a business challenge, starting from the initial project proposal and continuing all the way through to the hardware, cabling, and pricing, she says. Working in teams, we learned how to take different roles and how to lead. Troubleshooting was a big part of it. The instructors broke things and asked the teams to diagnose the problems using different simulated help-desk scenarios. We had to collaborate to get the best results. Baca has taken on an advisory role for the Networking Academy programm at CNMCC, helping to mentor and motivate a new generation of students. She has advocated for more attention to public speaking and project management in the classroom. Presentations are always a challenge, whether presenting ideas to the customer or to the boss, she says. In class, we diagramed networks to help explain our designs. If you want to advance, you need to be able to manage a project effectively, whether or not you re the project manager. Once you start and open your mind, you can find ways to relate to what is being presented to you even if it s not the way the person next to you understands it Cisco and/or its affiliates. Cisco Systems, Inc. All rights reserved. Page 6 of 7

7 Baca has helped promote the program at public events. She represented CNMCC at the Cisco Networking Academy s 10th anniversary celebration in Washington, D.C. There she met Cisco CEO John Chambers as well as one of her state s senators. That s when I truly realized my accomplishments, she observes. Before then, I was thrilled that I had a job that I liked, and that I had made it. But that was the first time I was able to step back and see what I had become where I came from, and what I am now. What advice would she give a girl or woman contemplating an ICT career? I think the biggest thing is to not be intimidated, she says. Because it s no different than learning the culinary arts. It might seem foreign at the beginning, but once you start and open your mind, you can find ways to relate to what is being presented to you even if it s not the way the person next to you understands it. Adding creativity to your learning will help you embrace the subject more easily and quickly. Rebecca Baca is one of the thousands of women who have used Networking Academy courses and Cisco certifications as a platform for launching a rewarding career. Whether they choose ICT or some other field, their networking education gives them confidence and skills that create new opportunities for success. Learn More See videos and success stories. Learn how to get involved. cisco.com/go/netacad/usc Cisco Corporate Social Responsibility cisco.com/go/csr We believe that businesses have a responsibility to operate in ways that respect and ultimately benefit people, communities and the planet we live on; we call this Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR). Our core CSR philosophy is that impact multiplies whenever human and technology networks combine to solve a problem. This is why we approach CSR the same way we approach business by applying our technology, employee expertise and partnerships. We are focused on four primary goals: improving the well-being of people and communities around the world, reducing our environmental impact and helping our customers do the same, conducting our business ethically, and creating a workplace where our employees thrive Cisco and/or its affiliates. Cisco Systems, Inc. All rights reserved. Page 7 of 7