Face of information technology changing on campus
Information technology is impacting Utah State University. From the computer labs to Champ Hall in Old Main, students, staff and administrators expect convenient and enhanced Web access.
Potential students and faculty rate USU by how well connected the institution is, the capacity and capability in support of teaching and research via high performance computing and connection to Internet and the Web-based access to business processes and procedures of the institution.
Planning is currently underway for the upgrading of the existing Student Information System (SIS). This will enable greater flexibility in student registration, fee payment and drop/add in addition to the use of randomly assigned student numbers rather than social security numbers said Barbara White, vice president for Information Technology and chief information officer.
Evaluation of portal applications is also underway with the hope of implementing a USU portal entry into the institution by fall semester. This will allow a “front door” to the institution and enable individual students easy and rapid access to information important to the individual student and in building a “community” of students based on common interests and needs.
Bob Bayne, manager of academic user services, said a couple years ago open access to the Internet was free for all students. As part of registration and tuition fees students paid for rights to use the on-campus computers and services, including the dial-up modems. Over the next few years the university grew in size and so did on-campus computer and modem usage volumes. Student computer fees for modem pool usage were instigated three to four years ago. The overall increase of computer fees was allocated to a new package of services rather than toward maintenance of existing services. This new package provided for a three-year replacement cycle of computers (previously a four-year) for on-campus computer labs.
“Every student who attends will see a computer replaced” here on campus, Bayne said.
“Since then we haven’t had a capacity problem,” Bayne said, speaking about general Internet access and modem usage.
White said for USU the most predominant resource which touches every unit and individual is the data network. It crosses all college, department, residential housing, research, service and administration boundaries. More than 200 Local Area Networks (LANs) connect more than 6,000 personal computers to assigned servers which are linked to a campus Wide Area Network (WAN). The goal for USU is an increased level of connectivity campus wide including the Innovation Campus and Continuing Education Centers.
One problem common with the dial-up modems is the connection speeds, which can vary from 28 kps to 56 kps via the local phone lines, Bayne said.
Today, on-call classroom technology support is available and allows for projection systems, computers, network services and information technology and employment opportunities for students, Bayne said.
White said today about 17 percent of the 146 classrooms on campus have been technology-enhanced to meet minimum instructional standards including ceiling-mounted video projectors and interface for a laptop or other computer. Increased functionality needs for classrooms are evident such as wireless access. To meet this need, personnel are currently planning for the installation of wireless access points in selected classrooms, university libraries, the Taggart Student Center, The Hub and The Junction. The installation of wireless access points enabling off-campus students a faster alternative to dial-in access to the campus data network is also underway.
USU computer labs have standard word processing and engineering software available to every student. This readily available computer access creates a decentralized campus with a bunch of independent systems, Bayne said.
White said the main three services provided through the university include: Academic support, administrative support and research support.
Bayne said There is an “abundance of resources for most of our educational research and outreach needs” on campus.
Bayne said, USU uses a variety of satellite technologies in classroom, research and distance education settings. The university is also the host site for the Utah Education Net, or UEN, which hosts classes on campus and across Utah.
Information delivery and access devices are growing in popularity here on campus, including: Pagers, cell phones, PDAs and wireless laptop computers, he said. This makes for a greater demand for Utah State University to keep up.
Students all use the same e-mail server on campus and are given an official e-mail account whether it is used or not. This mobility of information technology has led to some confusion about student use of e-mail accounts given and instructor’s desires to communication to them via the WebMail server, White said.
Some students do not use their official USU e-mail account, but have accounts with other Internet service providers (ISPs) like AOL, Yahoo!, Hotmail, or AT&T, White said.
“USU’s instructors have a lack of communication to students’ official USU address,” Bayne said.
Bayne said he had two suggestions to remedy the confusion: “First, each student should activate their USU account and second, have a permanent forwarding address.”
Bayne said a persisting forwarding address is available upon graduation through the alumni office. He also said that the alumni office offers a permanent forwarding to outside e-mail accounts. USU is also beginning to dabble in wireless Internet services, Bayne said. In the future, students could connect to the Internet via wireless modems in classrooms and commons areas, he said.
There are ongoing issues with hackers and use of on-campus computers, which are monitored by Miles Johnson, a network systems specialist, Bayne said.