Central Michigan University

Office of the CIO

• Fall 2009 Information Technology Update

  In late June, I provided an update on our progress towards our 2010 goals and noted that we expected to accomplish a number of things over the summer. I'm pleased to announce that all of the projects I listed in that update are substantially complete.

  
  

  The executive summary available here includes more information on all our 2008-2009 achievements, as well as a summary of our planning for 2009-2010 and beyond. Here's a quick excerpt of what's to come for Fall 2009:

  • This map details the current status of the CMU network, and this one details our current wireless capabilities. The Music Building will be upgraded this fall to the latest switches and fastest wireless protocol, as will Ronan as that building is remodeled. Park Library and the College of Health Professions will follow in 2010-2011 or as soon as funding for these projects becomes available.
  • Blackboard will be upgraded to version 9 for the Fall of 2010, and the transition to the new version will begin this fall. The implementation plan is available here.
  • Consistent with our goal to enhance recruitment and retention, we'll be prioritizing the delivery of a number of new services to enhance both admissions and online student services. A second phase of our portal redesign, featuring a new design and a number of new and simplified services, will be released into beta alongside the production portal later this fall.
  • We expect to complete analysis of our options and make a decision regarding our next generation email solution by the end of the fall semester. Transition to whatever follows will begin in the spring.
  • We hope to begin consolidation into a campus-wide, OIT-supported document imaging system sometime this fall. This system will be linked to SAP and other campus administrative systems and should greatly reduce the need to pass paper documents from office to office.
  • We've launched our "GreenIT Initiative" and should have initial projections of its impact by the end of the fall semester.
  • October is "National CyberSecurity Month," and our CMU observance will focus on "protecting yourself online" and "protecting CMU data."

  
  

  Be the first in your neighborhood to learn about new IT developments and initiatives! If you found this update useful, please consider subscribing to this blog. As always, I’m happy to respond to questions or comments.

• The Greening of CMU IT...

  One of the most fascinating of our summer projects has been the formation of a CMU "GreenIT" initiative. A collaborative effort being undertaken by Facilities Management (FM) and the campus information technology community, this initiative seeks to explore the many areas in which information technology and energy use can or do overlap. For the 2009-2010 academic year, we expect to develop and implement plans for:

  • Turning off personal workstations when not in use,
  • Turning off workstations and other equipment in labs and mediated classrooms when not in use,
  • Targeted replacement of CRT monitors with more energy efficient LCD monitors,
  • Reducing energy use in data center operations, and
  • Leveraging CMU technologies in conjunction with FM systems to reduce campus energy use.

  
  

  I'm really encouraged by the very positive interactions among the staff involved in this initiative, and we've already seen some very promising, but very preliminary outcomes. I'll be reporting on our progress through subsequent blog posts and as a part of my regular updates.

• Spring 2009 Information Technology Update

  In April of 2007, the Technology Planning Board (TPB) formulated IT Goals for 2010…

  1. Maintain an exemplary learning environment, both on- and off-line
  2. Protect the university's data and systems
  3. Use data to drive decision-making and support continuous improvement
  4. Build comprehensive communications and services environment
  5. Support the research and creative mission
  6. Understand the IT services we offer

  Since my last update on these goals last August, there’s been a lot of activity on a number of fronts, and I’ve included links below to more in-depth info on some of these initiatives.

  1. There’s been lots of activity behind Blackboard, including the new photo roster and Facebook and iPhone integration.
  2. We formed a 3-tiered committee structure to review and ensure university compliance with federal and state legislation.
  3. Through this committee structure, we put new Data Stewardship and Responsible Use Policies in place, and we conducted a survey to help us establish training and awareness targets for a Fall ’09 campaign.
  4. We developed a comprehensive plan to address immediate online security concerns over the next year.
  5. We completed a $1.9 million project to upgrade the CMU network and to bring wireless to all academic and residential spaces.
  6. We compiled specifications for a new CMU data center.
  7. We developed an IT Executive Council with the goal of improving IT-related communication among campus IT units and between IT units and the general campus community.
  8. We retired our local dial-up services after 20+ years of successful service.
  9. We built and piloted a digital imaging solution integrated with SAP that we expect to expand across campus over the coming year.
  10. We launched new personal and team websites available to all members of the CMU community, and we implemented a new single sign-on framework.
  11. We upgraded or installed 100 mediated classrooms and conference spaces.
  12. We took over 60,000 Help Desk calls with an average resolution that EXCEEDS expectations.
  13. We completed over 14,000 workorders.
  14. We upgraded SAP – TWICE!

  Clearly, it’s been a busy year!I expect to provide another update at the end of the summer, at which time I’ll provide updates on the following projects that we expect to complete over the next few weeks - and there are lots more exciting projects taking place behind the scenes that I should be able to report on in my next update.

  1. The CMU portal is being redesigned in preparation for a variety of new services that we’re planning to deliver over the next couple of years.
  2. 41 classrooms will receive refreshed and upgraded mediation equipment, bringing more classrooms closer to our standard.
  3. A new OIT website is on the way.
  4. All IT work in the new College of Education facility should be complete.

  Be the first to know about new IT developments and initiatives!If you found this update useful, please consider subscribing to this blog. As always, I’m happy to respond to questions or comments.

• Aligning IT Goals with CMU 2010
  July 10, 2008

  
  

  Over the past several months, I've worked closely with Technology Planning Board to articulate five high-level information technology goals to accompany the CMU 2010 Vision Plan.

  1. Maintain an exemplary learning environment - on- and off-line
  2. Protect the university's data and systems
  3. Use data to drive decision-making and support continuous improvement
  4. Build comprehensive communications and services environment
  5. Support the research and creative mission
  6. Understand the IT services we offer
  

  
  

  In this 10 minute podcast, I discuss both these goals and also a number of the supporting projects they suggest. The podcast can also be downloaded from CMU's page in iTunes U.

  
  

  
  
• Update #1: Aligning IT Goals with CMU 2010
  August 23, 2008

  
  

  This is the first of several planned updates regarding progress on our IT goals accompanying the CMU 2010 Vision Plan. In this 10 minute podcast, I outline progress to date on our goals and identify areas of emphasis for the coming months.

  
  

  As usual, this podcast is also available through CMU's page on iTunes U.