Debra Scott Julian Young Technology Plan Update FRIT 8132 Spring 2012 Georgia Southern University

Part I: arrative Introduction:

Located in the Atlanta metropolitan area, Georgia Perimeter College (GPC) is the largest associate degree-granting college and the third largest institution in the University System of Georgia. As of fall 2011, the student population was 27,000 students, attending 5 campuses, as well as taking part in online instruction. International students account for 15 percent of the total student population and represent 157 countries (Fact Sheet, 2010).
In March 2009, Georgia Perimeter College began implementing a strategic planning project for information technology. The Chief Information Officer began an internal environmental assessment through the use of presidential open forums, personal interviews, and input from an Information Technology Advisory Council (ITAC) to gather information from various stakeholders (i.e. students, faculty, staff, and community). An ongoing planning process to execute specific strategic tactics based on a quarterly review process was to be implemented. In March 2010, five information technology open forum sessions were held to inform the college community of recommendations and actions resulting from the data collected. The open forum process has continued annually and is evidence of the colleges commitment to shared governance. Though the initial plan clearly recognized the need for continuous development and revision of the strategic plan, it appears that the actual document has not been officially updated from the original 2009 version (Strategic plan, 2009). Overview: Strengths and Weaknesses Goals and Strategies: The IT plan has six broad strategic areas that cover twenty-eight specific objectives. This section is well organized and moderately detailed. All of the goals and objectives are clearly related

to learner outcomes and are specifically linked to the colleges strategic plan. Many of the objectives not only relate to the colleges strategic plan, but they also link to other IT goals within the plan itself. This section lacks detailed information that answers the questions of who, how, or when. A general timeframe of 1-2 years or 3-5 years is given for the completion of the goals with no specifics of how they are to be accomplished or the methods that will be used. Many of the objectives have vague descriptions that make it difficult to understand what the objectives are actually addressing. The goals and strategies section of the technology plan receives an assessment score of two due to the fact that the plan does an excellent job of relating its technology goals with that of the colleges strategic plans, but lacks specifics about who, when, and how. Professional Development Strategy: The professional development strategy outlined in the plan focused primarily on a commitment to continuous staff development and training for the IT staff with the ultimate goal of providing 1outstanding support for the faculty, students, and staff. The overall objectives included enhancing and simplifying the learning environment, enhancing teaching excellence, and assisting in facilitating collaboration within the college as well as with local, state, national and global communities. The strategic plan targeted several areas for improving faculty support: provide more brown bag luncheons to encourage faculty to share instructional strategies using innovative technologies; clearly define a faculty support portfolio; implement a regular communication plan for collaboration between IT and faculty; define an advisory process for proposing software acquisition; establish a periodic review process for academic support services; and define categories of support designed to streamline faculty productivity. The strategic goals were clearly identified with a timeframe of 3-5 years but the specific tactics identifying who will do what, when, and how was not specified therefore the professional development strategy section receives an assessment score of 2, indicating proficient performance. Assessment of Technology:

The tech plan gives very little information about the assessment of technology. Computers, laptops, networking, and video conferencing are mentioned, but with no detail concerning quantity, age, type, or any other specifics. No technology inventory is included in the plan. There is no information about the learning environment. No mention of technology in the classroom, computer labs, or any other areas on campus are given. This section receives an assessment score of 1 due to the lack of information and no technology inventory. Evaluation Process: The strategic plan clearly indicates a commitment to the implementation of an ongoing information technology planning process to cultivate ideas, formalize the ideas into proposals, and ultimately gain commitments and deliverables. The goals include: better defining a philosophy for the adoption of new technologies, defining a support model for early adopters of new technologies, defining a process for collaboration between faculty, vendors, and other institutions to generate ideas, and developing an ongoing evaluation process to critically evaluate the ideas as they relate to the colleges core values. The strategic goals were clearly identified with a timeframe of 3-5 years but the specific tactics identifying who will do what, when, and how was not specified therefore the evaluation process section receives an assessment score of 2, indicating proficient performance. Summary Overall the greatest strength of the strategic plan is its commitment to the alignment of the IT goals with the colleges overall goals and objectives. The level of details provided offered a firm foundation for continuous revision and development. The plan recognized the need for a continuous development process but the lack of revision indicates that it has not been given sufficient priority. One of the greatest weaknesses of the plan is the organization of ideas within the document. Determining an assessment in any given area required associating details located in various sections of the document, which would eventually allow a comprehensive view of the criteria, but did not readily provide a snapshot view of critical areas.

The information technology strategic planning core team seemed to be representative of numerous and diverse entities within the college. The overall document addresses the needs of each of the entities but lacks detailed action plans and timelines required to facilitate its implementation. The technology plan was a good starting point for future revisions. However, its lack of detail made the plan feel rushed and incomplete. A critical objective of the technology plan update is to reorganize the data in a format that provides a clear snapshot view of each of the identified areas. Sections will be updated to include greater detail and current status. Several sections not included in the original document will be added in order to provide a more comprehensive view of the role of information technology at Georgia Perimeter College. Outline of Planned Changes Action Plan/Multi-Year Planning

1. The problem(s) that you see in the existing plan. Strategic goals were identified with a 3-5 year time frame but clear objectives with specific measurable outcomes were not clearly defined. Who will do what, when, and how was also unspecified. 2. The change(s) that you want to make in this section of the plan. Clearly define objectives with specific measurable outcomes to be achieved in a 1-2 year time frame. Specify who will do what, when, and how. 3. Why you believe this change is necessary and what resources are required. This change will make the document more relevant as well as identify personnel, funding, and skill sets required. Professional Development 1. The problem(s) that you see in the existing plan.

Strategic goals were identified with a 3-5 year time frame but clear objectives with specific measurable outcomes were not clearly defined. Who will do what, when, and how was also unspecified. 2. The change(s) that you want to make in this section of the plan. Clearly define objectives with specific measurable outcomes to be achieved in a 1-2 year time frame. Specify who will do what, when, and how. 3. Why you believe this change is necessary and what resources are required. This change will make the document more relevant as well as identify personnel, funding, and skill sets required. Evaluation 1. The problem(s) that you see in the existing plan. Strategic goals were identified with a 3-5 year time frame but clear objectives with specific measurable outcomes were not clearly defined. Who will do what, when, and how was also unspecified. 2. The change(s) that you want to make in this section of the plan. Clearly define objectives with specific measurable outcomes to be achieved in a 1-2 year time frame. Specify who will do what, when, and how. 3. Why you believe this change is necessary and what resources are required. This change will make the document more relevant as well as identify personnel, funding, and skill sets required.
Needs Assessment, Standards, Funding Alternatives, School Pilot Projects/Educational Research, Model Classroom Configurations, Facilities, Software Agreements, Gifts and Disposal, Staff Development

1. The problem(s) that you see in the existing plan.

All of the above mentioned topics were not specifically addressed in the original technology plan. Information regarding the current status of these issues was accessible from a variety of reliable sources. 2. The change(s) that you want to make in this section of the plan. Add the sections to the technology plan along with clearly defined objectives and specific measurable outcomes to be achieved in a 1-2 year time frame. Specify who will do what, when, and how. 3. Why you believe this change is necessary and what resources are required. This change will make the document more comprehensive, making it the ultimate resource for all technology related issues. Expected Consequences of Proposed Changes As a result of the changes in the Information Technology Strategic Plan, we hope to provide a comprehensive source for all stakeholders for any technology related concerns. We would like for the document to truly become a live document that is constantly being updated and revised using a SharePoint site to allow all applicable departments to take ownership of relevant parts of the document and edit their sections as needed. The original technology plan provided a firm foundation for continued development. Numerous strategic plans were implemented and executed based upon the plans outlined in the document. It appears that the various stakeholders began to execute tactics from particular vantage points without giving as much consideration to how each tactic impacts the overall technology plan. There are many good ideas, but because of budget and resource constraints, they cannot all be executed. It is very difficult to conceptualize many technology projects being executed simultaneously without referencing a single document source.

Despite not having a comprehensive document, significant progress has been made toward accomplishing the strategic goals. Providing access to a comprehensive document with priorities, resources, and budget constraints clearly defined (and or linked to an external reference) will allow decisions to clearly be data driven. Georgia Perimeter College is committed to shared governance. GPCs dynamic Shared Governance Model is linked to its Strategic Plan, with an emphasis on work that is timely, targeted, transparent, and temporary. The Shared Governance Model is a composite of college-wide Standing Committees, Task Teams, and Presidential Think Tanks, each comprised of constituents from across the college. These groups along with the Presidents Policy Advisory Board, Executive Team, Policy Councils, Presidents Cabinet, Faculty and Staff Senates, and Open Forum participants comprise GPCs shared governance model (Shared governance, n.d.). A comprehensive instructional technology strategic plan will enhance the shared governance process by providing the transparency clearly valued.

Part II - Technology Plan Update Broad-Based Support IT Advisory & Governance Information Technology Advisory Council The Georgia Perimeter College Information Technology Advisory and Policy Councils review current and proposed policies and procedures for all issues related to any and all matters associated with information technology, information systems and information security to enhance teaching, learning or scholarly activities. In addition, they provide advice and consultation to the Chief Information Officer (CIO), and communication for the strategic and tactical planning of information technology from a college perspective. Academic Technology Advisory Committee Provides advice and guidance to the Chief Information Officer (CIO) and Information Technology Advisory Committee (ITAC) for issues related to any and all matters associated with technology to enhance teaching, learning or scholarly activities including classroom instructional technologies, e-portfolio products, online collaboration tools, and support services for faculty who are integrating technology into their instructional programs. The Academic Technology Advisory Committee is charged with serving as the voice for faculty technology needs for both operational purposes and strategic purposes, and collect and solicits ideas from colleagues. Student Technology Advisory Committee Provides advice and guidance to the Chief Information Officer (CIO) and Information Technology Advisory Committee (ITAC) for issues related to student use of technology. The Student Technology Advisory Committee is charged with serving as the voice for student technology needs for both operational purposes and strategic purposes, and collects and solicits ideas from the student body (IT Advisory, n.d.). The Information Technology Strategic Planning Core Team Members include representation from all areas of the college: Assistant Vice President and Chief Information Officer Associate Professor Director of Educational Technology Director of Admissions and Recruitment Director of IT Infrastructure Executive Vice President for Administration Assistant Director, Instructional Technology Business Analyst Director, Facilities Planning

Needs Assessment Mission

Vision

Goals and Objectives

Director of Information Systems Executive Director of GPC Online Senior Administrative Secretary Associate Vice President for Enrollment Management Director, Instructional Support Services, GPC Online Director of Learning Resources & Assistant Professor Vice President for Academic and Student Affairs Director, Center for Teaching and Learning Director of Institutional Research and Planning Faculty Chief Information Security Officer Associate Director, Admissions and Records Dean of Academic Services Include an assessment of the current state of technology OIT provides information technology services and resources that support and enhance Georgia Perimeter Colleges teaching, learning, research, and administrative activities. OITs primary goal is to provide technology services that enable our students, faculty, and staff to be successful at GPC. OIT employees strive to provide excellent customer service, respond to the changing needs of the college community, and make it easy and convenient for everyone to use technology at Georgia Perimeter College. It is very important to us in OIT that all of our customers are completely satisfied with their service experience. OIT believes that GPCs future depends on our ability to retain our customers (students, faculty and staff) by providing exceptional experiences (Information Technology, n.d.). The vision for information technology engagement at GPC is that information technology at the college is to become a nationally recognized model among two-year public institutions by: Creating and supporting a transparent and seamless environment for academic learning, creative endeavors, and appropriate research. Enabling student success, facilitating faculty activities and supporting efficient and effective administration of the college. Fostering collaboration among its diverse community of students, faculty, and staff. Promoting and supporting continuous innovation. Measuring the success of information technology accomplishments by its relevance to the colleges mission (Strategic plan, 2009). In defining IT strategic directions that will be consistent with the colleges four strategic goals, this plan

Action Plan/Multiyear Planning

asserts that pursuing six major IT Strategic Goals will result in advancing the colleges already planned strategies: 1) Information technology should empower and enhance the academic learning process. 2) The college must continue to build and expand reliable, robust and secure access to information and technology systems. 3) The college must promote customer-centered information technology services and support. 4) Innovation through technology must be assured, but not at the expense of sacrifice of stable service delivery. 5) The effectiveness of the colleges administration and management should be enhanced through technology systems and data mart and data warehouse infrastructure and tools. 6) The college should continuously look for ways to enhance its management of information technology and information systems as a true institutional strategic asset, like corresponding other institutional assets: human, fiscal, intellectual and physical (Strategic plan, 2009). Goal#1:Empower and Enhance Academic Learning and Processes Recommendation: Increase pilot program participation by faculty. Communicate the impact of mobile device technology on faculty practices and perceptions. Proposed Timeline: Ongoing Responsible Department(s) Academic Technologies Measurable Outcome: Schedules for administration of surveys and questionnaires. Analysis of survey, questionnaires, and student & faculty logs. Recommendation: Develop strategies to convey information utilizing various electronically based applications. Provide faculty with mobile, electronic devices, to promote the exploration of using mobile technology with students. Develop podcasts content to customize learning opportunities utilizing mobile devices. Instructors involved in pilot programs must be available to be contacted by other faculty for guidance and consultation, present workshops, and/or be willing to provide scheduled access to their classroom for other faculty (iTeach, 2011). Increased Access to Classes Growth of use of hybrid courses can have an effect of reducing seat time and demand for classrooms during peak hours, providing more access to high demand courses. This may, in turn, reduce student difficulties in getting classes needed to complete courses of study in specific time frames. Recommendation: Increase access to hybrid courses. Increase access to training for faculty in hybrid best practices. Appoint a hybrid coordinator, master hybrid instructors, and an assessment

team. Proposed Timeline: 1-3 years Responsible Department(s): Academic Technology, Academic Services Measurable Outcome: Review of Hybrid Department meeting minutes posted on the GPC governance and policy webpages. An annual report submitted by the Hybrid Assessment Team. A list of evaluated hybrid courses and the final assessment. Goal #2: Build and Expand Reliable, Robust, and Secure Access to Information and Technology Technology Infrastructure: GPC is a leader in innovative infrastructure technology deployment: New eco-friendly power and cooling system in the Clarkston data center. Partnership with PeachNet to create a North Atlanta fiber ring to connect three of our campuses to this USG backbone. A USG leader in Cisco voice-over-IP telephony. The first large USG institution to deploy Banner on the Linux operating system. This has provided much higher performance for significantly lower operating cost, resulting in dramatically improved efficiency. The first USG institution to implement the Banner Enrollment Management Suite software product. This SunGard Higher Education product uses data analysis to make enrollment decisions. GPC is the first University System of Georgia (USG) institution to implement Business Intelligence using Cognos to facilitate data-driven decision making. Recommendation: Preserve and enhance the network infrastructure through an ongoing commitment to upgrade, extend and diversify its capabilities and support. Timeline: 3 year replacement cycle Responsible Department(s): Infrastructure Technology Measurable Outcomes: Annual report of the technology replacement schedule Recommendation: Continue to develop and fund a model for the availability of consistent, up-to-date technology. Establish and clearly define an Acquire, Retire, and Upgrade cycle for computers, software, and other information technology. Implement processes and measures to ensure consistency where applicable across the college. Timeline: Variable replacement cycle(s)

Responsible Department(s): Infrastructure Technology Measurable Outcome: Annual report of the technology replacement schedule Goal #3: Promote Customer-Centered Information Technology Services and Support Information technology encourages and supports an operational environment that is customer-centered and provides quality assurance for information technology services and support. To accomplish this goal, the following imperatives are recommended: Recommendation: Continue to expand IT support for students. The following support areas are currently accessible on at least one GPC campus location: JagSpots are located on each campus. JagSpots provide students, faculty and staff an area in which they may access computers to check emails, study, research, write and print papers, and take online tests. JagSpot assistants are on duty to answer questions. MediaSpots offer GPC students access to state-of-the-art media production and post-production equipment, facilities, and training. MediaSpots are currently located on the Clarkston and Dunwoody campuses. TechSpots will provide access to GPC technicians offering laptop support to students. Services will include virus scanning, system cleaning info, browser configuration, installation assistance for GPC-provided software, troubleshooting hardware, and assistance with wireless, peripherals, and system maintenance. The first two TechSpots will be located inside the Clarkston and Newton JagSpots. GroupSpots are technology enhanced student collaboration spaces. They are to be located in open student centric areas around campus (Classrooms and Labs, n.d.). Proposed Timeline: 1-3 year implementation schedule Responsible Department: Educational Technologies, Academic Services Measurable Outcome: Increase in the number of IT support spots. Increase in the number of work stations at each location. Increase in the variety of software and hardware available. Goal #4: Ensure Continuous Innovation, Yet a Stable Production Environment Aggressive experimentation with new technologies occurs in a controlled, non-production environment to determine whether and when new technologies should be deployed more generally across the college. To accomplish this goal, the following imperatives are recommended: Recommendation: Publish the Projects & Planning Offices

Technology Project Portfolio on the Projects & Planning website pages to increase visibility of completed, current, and completed projects. Timeline: ongoing Responsible Department(s): Project & Planning Office, Academic Services, Academic Technology Measurable Outcome: The portfolio will clearly be accessible on the GPC website. Recommendation: To increase awareness, market the process which invites Georgia Perimeter College students, student organizations, faculty and staff, or any grouping of our community, to submit proposals to request funding to provide technology resources to our students. The Student Technology Fee Committee is responsible for reviewing and evaluating student technology proposals and recommends funding allocations to the President and Chief Information officer and the Executive Cabinet. Timeline: 6 mos. to a year Responsible Department(s): Marketing, Academic Technology, Executive Cabinet Measurable outcome: Increase in the number of proposals received and processed by the Projects & Planning Office (Projects and Planning, n.d.). Goal #5: Support College Administration and Management Recommendation: Develop responsive and secure system to access administrative information that facilitates informed college decisions. Acquire and implement a college-wide system of data management, tools and processes that focus on data integrity and effective reporting support. Critical attention should be paid to assuring that access granted to information is commensurate with the specific need to perform ones duties, whether operational or strategic in nature. Continue the Deployment of Content Management System. This system would facilitate routing electronic documents through business and academic processes. Recommendation: Implement a system of electronic signatures in order to move manual paper-based business functions to electronic paperless functions. Proposed Timeline: 1 to 3 years Responsible Department: Information Systems, Administrative Support Measurable Outcome: Steadily increasing number of documents revised from paper submission to electronic submission. Recommendation: Continue to expand the use of collaboration software such as SharePoint to clearly define workflow processes across departments and facilitate project coordination.

Program Integration

Curriculum Integration

Timeline: Responsible Departments: Information Systems Measurable Outcome: Increased interdepartmental collaboration reported by project management teams. Recommendation: Continue to deploy a unified web authoring tool for web content management. Proposed Timeline: 1 year Responsible Department(s): Marketing, Information Technology Measurable Outcome: Unified look and feel of all college affiliated web pages. Goal #6: Plan and Manage Information Technology External Liaisons and Collaboration: Recommendation: Fund an administrative staff position that is responsible for building and facilitating discussion by creating virtual and face-to-face professional communities. Sharing of technical expertise will reduce duplication of effort across all the Georgia Perimeter College campuses (Strategic plan, 2009). Timeline: 1-2 years Responsible Department(s): Administrative Support Measurable Outcome: Increased collaboration efforts reported in published departmental meeting minutes. Recommendation: Ensure institutional participation in appropriate national, regional, and statewide collaborative efforts to maintain competitiveness, and capitalize on best practices and innovation in the use of information technology in higher education. Timeline: ongoing Responsible Departments: Academic Technology, Academic Services Measurable Outcome: Generate a report that outlines the colleges & faculty participation (attendance/presenting/hosting) of conferences. This Information Technology Strategic Plan includes in its scope not only issues related to the technology, but also includes managing aspects of the human resources, services to be delivered, managed expectations and fiscal resources required to accomplish the strategic goals. The plan encompasses all departments of the institution with no specific domain restrictions based on organizational unit or functional uses of information technology. This includes uses of these technologies, systems and resources in both the academic, administrative and operational infrastructure components of the college. The Information Technology Strategic Plan is closely aligned with the four overarching institutional goals in the College Strategic Plan (Strategic plan, 2009). Educational Technologies Educational Technology consists of the following areas that

Evaluation

provide ongoing training and support: Instructional Technology area is responsible for providing technology training and support that enhances the teaching and learning practice using pedagogically sound instructional design principles. Classroom and Event Technology is focused on the integration of classroom technology through design, installation and use. Also, providing audio visual support for college sponsored events. The Technology Support area endeavors to provide desktop and classroom support that is prompt, proactive, highly responsive and adaptable to the needs of the college community (Organizational Units, n.d.). Recommendation: Based upon the evidence of positive impact on teaching and learning determined by analysis of collected data, expansion of the following pilot programs are recommended: The Nursing iTouch Pilot Project began in the Fall of 2009. It is a partnership between the nursing department and Instructional Technology Services. The GPC Nursing Department received a grant that would allow for 12 iTouches to be purchased and loaned to nursing students and faculty. Instructional Technology Services purchased licenses for the Unbound Medicine App, Nursing Central. The app was loaded on the iTouches. Additionally, Instructional Technology Services worked with the nursing department to make their lectures and lecture notes available to students as podcasts viewable on the iTouch. The Health Science Mobile Device Pilot Project is a partnership between the Health Science discipline and the Office of Information Technology. Faculty teaching in the Health Sciences will receive a iPad or iPod Touch. First year Health Science students will receive an iPod Touch. Second year Health Science students will receive an iPad. Discipline specific apps such as Unbound Medicine's Nursing Central app will be provided to the faculty and students. Faculty will be creating podcasts of lectures and skills labs for students to view (Academic Technology Projects, n.d.). Continuous staff development and training are essential for an IT organization to maintain its core competencies. The IT organization must know how it measures customer service, what service level expectations are needed and how to manage expectations in a proactive, communicative manner. Recommendation: Assess faculty utilization of technology enabled instruction through the administration and analysis of pre and post surveys. Evaluate student perceptions and practices

through use of pre and post student surveys. Develop assessment instrument to evaluate both faculty and student level of ability to use various software applications and hardware. Assess student impressions of electronically based applications and mobile devices collected from Student logs. Evaluate student academic performance by comparing the average of e scores in technology enabled instruction vs. faceto-face web enhanced instruction. Compare scores on the end of course assessment. During a pilot technology program, both faculty and students are required to complete surveys & logs regarding their experiences (Academic Technology Projects, n.d.). Recommendation: Create a small evaluation body that can comment authoritatively on use of new software and hardware based on established campus technology specifications. Timeline: ongoing Responsible Department(s): Academic Technology Measurable Outcome: Annual assessment of current software and hardware as well as those under consideration for future use. Recommendation: Evaluation of the design of all hybrid courses using an approved Hybrid course design rubric. Courses must meet 75% of the specified standards in order to gain approval for implementation. Timeline: 1-2 years Responsible Department(s): Academic Technology, Academic Services Measurable Outcome: Annual reports of the Hybrid Course Coordinator and the published departmental meeting minutes Standards Funding Alternatives The Office of Grants and Sponsored Programs exists to support Georgia Perimeter College's faculty, staff, and administrators in obtaining funding from external sources in support of instructional programs, professional development, demonstration, and public service projects targeted to implementing the goals of Georgia Perimeter College's Strategic Plan (Grants, n.d.). Private support comes primarily from five sources: GPC (and DeKalb College) alumni, GPC Faculty and Staff, corporations, philanthropic foundations and friends. The GPC Foundation works hard to create and strengthen corporate and community partnerships (GPC Foundation, 2012). Recommendation: Continue to aggressively seek alternative funding sources by researching grants, and building and maintaining relationships with local and global community. Timeline: ongoing Responsible Department(s): GPC Foundation, Institutional Advancement

School Pilot Projects/Educational Research

Measurable Outcome: Annual reports of collected funds. In order to promote the GPC strategic plan to strengthen student success, Academic Technology continues to initiate and support projects such as the following that expand teaching and learning opportunities for faculty and students: Respondus LockDown Browser Pilot Spring/Summer 2010-Present Online and face-to-face faculty pilot the use of the Respondus LockDown Browser, an Internet browser that blocks all other computer applications while a student is taking an online quiz, test, or exam. ursing iTouch Pilot Fall 2009/Spring 2010 -Present In partnership with the nursing department, Instructional Technology Services purchased apps and provided instructional support for the use of iTouches acquired by grant funding. Health Sciences Mobile Device Pilot Fall 2010/Spring 2011, Fall 2011, Spring 2012 In partnership with the Health Science discipline, the Office of Information Technology provided faculty with an iPad or iPod Touch, first-year students with an iPod Touch, and second-year students with an iPad. Student Media Projects Spring 2010-Present Instructional Technology Services and Media Developer, team with instructors to assist students with the creation of course related videos (Academic Technology Projects, n.d.).

Model Classroom Configurations

Facilities

Georgia Perimeter College classrooms are equipped with advanced instructional technology tools to enhance instruction. Standard Classroom Hardware: o Classroom Computer o LCD Projector o Sympodium o DVD/VCR player o Document Camera o Speaker System o Laptop Connection o Wall Panel Switch o Ethernet Access at the Presentation station o Wireless Access for students Specialty Classroom Hardware: o GPC Rewind / Echo360 Lecture Capture available in select classrooms o Presentation Capture - available in select classrooms o Turning Technologies Clickers available by request GPC classroom computers are equipped with specialty software in addition to the standard GPC computer software. The classroom computer uses software called Deep Freeze that returns the computer to default settings after logout in order to ensure that the user experience is not disrupted by the alterations of other users. Specialty software is available on classroom computers: SMART otebooks (available on all classroom computers) This software works in tandem with the Sympodium to allow mark up using the Sympodium stylus. SMART Sync (available in computer classrooms) a computer monitoring software that allows the instructor's computer to interact with and monitor student computers in computer classroom (Classroom Technology, n.d.). The Instructional Design Labs offer faculty a place to experiment with technology and to design innovative instructional materials. We maintain specialized hardware and software to give faculty the opportunity to experiment with instructional technology tools and develop new forms of instructional content. In the IDL, faculty can: build web pages, practice with a Sympodium, create videos, use a scanner, or just brainstorm with an Instructional Technologist. IDL Locations:

Alpharetta 217A- Under development Clarkston CH2161

Decatur SC1148 Dunwoody NE2903 Newton 1N3415 Clarkston- GPC Online Offices JCLRC

Maintenance/Support

Additionally, Instructional Technology Services have a training facility located at the Clarkston Campus in Room H2160. This room can be reserved for small group training. Student MediaSpots, multimedia development labs for students are located on the Clarkston and Dunwoody campuses (Facilities, 2012). The GPC Technology Service Desk acts as a central point of contact for technology-related questions, issues and problem resolution. Physical and Environmental Security Georgia Perimeter College will implement and maintain security controls and safety measures to protect computer operations (systems, buildings, equipment, and related supporting infrastructures) against physical and environmental threats. GPC will implement physical security measures to prevent, detect, and mitigate unauthorized physical access or damage to information assets, and environmental controls to protect against fire, flood, and other environmental and natural hazards (Physical and Environmental, 2010). Infrastructure Technology Security Infrastructure Technology operations is responsible for the operation of enterprise-wide computers and monitoring enterprise-wide applications and the campus-wide network. Infrastructure Technology is responsible for providing the following services: System Status and Availability Network Status and Availability Storage of Backup Media Problem Escalation for Enterprise Applications and Campus-wide Network Network Services team provides internet and telecommunication services for Georgia Perimeter Colleges (GPC) students, faculty, staff and GPC guests who are mobile users. The Network Services group supports a voice and data network, which is an Ethernet based network IP network spanning 55 buildings on six campuses. The data network includes border routers, core routers and distribution routers that are interconnected via gigabit Ethernet between Alpharetta, Clarkston, Decatur, Dunwoody, Newton and Lakeside campuses. Network service is responsible for Firewall, Intrusion detection, packet shaping, and content filtering. The

Network Service team also provides design for data cabling, voice cabling (including multi-pair backbone cabling), fiber optic cabling (both interior and outside patch cabling), all associated pathways, and termination hardware and wire management. Network Services installs, maintains and supports the data network from the wall plate to our Internet services. Telecommunication support is also provided from the Network Services team. This support is for all Georgia Perimeter College students, faculty and staff. The premise-based system is deployed using the advance VOIP services for voice and messaging services. The services also provide local and longdistance dial tone, faxing, fire alarm, and analog service. The GPC Data Center provides a secure facility with redundant power, network connectivity and systems monitoring. Enterprise Server Support (ESS) team provides support for all server and database services for all of Georgia Perimeter College Faculty, staff, students, and Guest. The Enterprise Server Support team operates over 500 server-based systems supporting GPC. The systems are located at two large data centers and 6 smaller supporting data centers. ESS provides centralized data backup, and archival and tape storage. Application support for Email, Banner, Maximo, student email, Enrollment Management as well assistant Database support for Microsoft SQL Server, MySQL, and Oracle. In addition, backup services is an additional service offered by Enterprise Services Support. This allows server administrators to backup server data and operating systems to the centralized backup environment. In addition to onsite storage, the backup environment as a whole is backed up and sent offsite, thus maximizing the redundancy of your data. Enterprise Services Support also runs an enterprise level VMWare server environment which allows a single physical server to be partitioned into multiple virtual machine servers, each with the appearance and capabilities of running on its own dedicated machine. Each virtual server can run its own operating system (Windows or Linux), is assigned its own hostname and may be independently administered, configured and rebooted without impact on other virtual servers. Technology Support - The Assistant Director of Technology Support leads the Technology Support Group and multi-campus Teams to resolve all computing and audio visual challenges of our Students, Faculty and Staff. Responsible for providing leadership, overall coordination and direction for the Georgia Perimeter College, OIT, Technology Support Department, in support of technical services delivery and customer support initiatives. Champions and coordinates service

Software Agreements

reliability and customer service improvement initiatives for Students, Faculty and Staff. Operations include management of the personnel, procedures and policies governing the implementation, deployment and maintenance of Technology in the GPC environment; includes the integration of micro computing hardware, software Audio Visual and networking components. Analyzes, maintains and revises existing practices, performance metrics and processes to drive operational excellence and support product life-cycle management. Project management duties include task management, action plans, implementation timelines and activities. Coordinates the equipment upgrade program, specifies equipment pool, and the cost effective procurement of upgrade equipment. Approves College Technology purchases as Supportable in the environment and ensures warranties are sufficient to sustain lifecycle. (Organizational Units, n.d.). Recommendation: Annually review end-of-life status of the Districts servers, computers, digital projectors, and audiovisual assets to project annual expenditures. Measurable Outcome: Annual report detailing current status and replacement schedule. etwork Infrastructure Physical Security: Recommendation: Improve security to ensure that physical access to wiring closets limits unauthorized access to physical electronic and cable components in these closets. Measurable Outcome: Reports of traffic entering secured areas using card key access. Software Licensing and Management Recommendation: Evaluate opportunities for providing universally available software licenses, processes to support volume purchasing of software, access to the software regardless of geographic location, and central maintenance and clearinghouse capabilities. Responsible Department(s) Information Technology Timeline: ongoing Measurable Outcome: Annual report of research and evaluation. Information Security Third Party Software Policy Faculty and staff will only use software applications and services provided by the Georgia Perimeter College to conduct official business with students and each other. These Collegeprovided applications and services ensure that: 1) appropriate information security procedures are used, 2) individual privacy rights are protected, and 3) Georgia Perimeter College intellectual property rights are preserved. Use of any third-party application software or service not provided by the College requires approval of the Office of the Chief Information Officer

Copyright/Acceptable Use Policy

Gifts and Disposal

and the Chief Information Security Officer, who will ensure that appropriate contractual safeguards are in place. This policy applies to all GPC faculty and staff. The Chief Information Officer and Chief Information Security Officer are responsible for assessing and approving requests for any software or services not provided by the College. In order to appropriately protect GPCs valuable and sensitive information, including personal information of the students, faculty, and staff, all applicable users are required to comply with this policy. Persons in violation of this policy are subject to a range of sanctions, including the loss of computer network access privileges, disciplinary action, dismissal from the College and legal action. Some violations may constitute criminal offenses, as outlined in the Georgia Computer Systems Protection Act and other local, state, and federal laws. The College will carry out its responsibility to report such violations to the appropriate authorities. Appeals should be directed through the existing procedures established for employees or students (Policy Statement, 2010). The purpose of the Georgia Perimeter College (GPC) Copyright Compliance Policy: Library and Classroom is to provide a summary of U.S. copyright law as it relates to the use of text-based copyright-protected works in the classroom and library at GPC, and to provide guidelines and procedures for obtaining copyright permission to use these works (Copyright Guide, 2005). FAIR USE A provision for fair use is found in the Copyright Act at Section 107. Under the fair use provision, a reproduction of someone else's copyright-protected work is likely to be considered fair if it is used for one of the following purposes: criticism, comment, news reporting, teaching, scholarship and research. If the reproduction is for one of these purposes, a determination as to whether the reproduction is fair use must be made based upon four factors: 1. The purpose and character of use (principally, whether for commercial or nonprofit educational use); 2. The nature of the copyright-protected work; 3. The amount and substantiality of the portion used; and 4. The effect of the use being evaluated upon the potential market for or value of the copyright-protected work. Equipment Re-Use or Disposal GPC will ensure equipment or media containing institutional information will be rendered unrecoverable prior to re-use or disposal. The disposal of equipment or media will be done in accordance with all applicable surplus property and

Staff Development

environmental disposal laws, regulations, or policies (Physical and Environmental, 2010). Training Provided by Academic Technology The area of Academic Technology provides face-to-face and online training for various software applications and hardware. Online sessions are delivered live via Wimba classroom or are accessible as video tutorials. In addition, some vendors and organizations offer free training. Throughout the year, we also host conferences and events which provide supplemental training and allow faculty to showcase innovative classroom and online teaching techniques (Academic Technology, n.d.). Customized training can be scheduled specifically for departments or groups of 3 or more participants. A representative from the group should place a work order with the helpdesk to schedule training. Times and dates are subject to the training personnel schedules and computer room availability (Customized Training, n.d.). The training schedule is planned one month at a time to allow maximum flexibility and to allow us to address changes in training needs. On all campuses, the times and dates are subject to computer room availability. In general, offerings will usually rotate between the Clarkston, Decatur, Dunwoody, Alpharetta, and Newton campuses each month in order to provide a fair opportunity for participation on all campuses. Online instructorled training via Wimba Classroom is also offered. (Training Policies, n.d.).

References Academic technology projects. (n.d.). Retrieved April 12, 2012, from http://www.gpc.edu/oit/?q=its_projects Campus guide to copyright compliance. (2005). Retrieved April 12, 2012, from
http://www.copyright.com/Services/copyrightoncampus/compliance/policy_sample.html

Classrooms and labs. (n.d.). Retrieved April 12, 2012, from http://www.gpc.edu/oit/jagspot Classroom technology. (n.d.). Retrieved April 12, 2012, from http://www.gpc.edu/oit/classroom_tech Customized training. (n.d.). Retrieved April 12, 2012, from http://www.gpc.edu/oit/training/customized Fact sheet. (2012). Retrieved April 5, 2012, from http://www.gpc.edu/News_and_Information/fact.php3#data Georgia Perimeter Colleges shared governance model. (n.d.). Retrieved April 12, 2012, from http://depts.gpc.edu/governance/governancemodelinteractive.pdf GPC foundation. (2012). Retrieved April 12, 2012 from http://depts.gpc.edu/Foundation/ Grants and sponsored programs. (2012). Retrieved April 12, 2012, from http://depts.gpc.edu/~gpcgsp/mission.htm Information security physical and environmental security. (2010). Retrieved April 12, 2012, from http://depts.gpc.edu/governance/policies/New600/614.pdf Information security third party policy statement. (2010). Retrieved April 5, 2012, from http://depts.gpc.edu/governance/policies/New500/506.pdf Information technology strategic plan. (2009). Retrieved April 12, 2012, from http://www.gpc.edu/oit/itplan.pdf

Instructional technology facilities. (2012). Retrieved April 12, 2012, from http://depts.gpc.edu/~gpcits/resources/facilities.html IT advisory and governance. (n.d.). Retrieved April 12, 2012, from http://www.gpc.edu/oit/it_governance iTeach. (2011). Retrieved April 12, 2012, from http://www.gpc.edu/iteach/ Organizational units. (n.d.). Retrieved April 12, 2012, from http://www.gpc.edu/oit/about/organizational Projects and planning office. (n.d.). Retrieved April 12, 2012, from http://www.gpc.edu/oit/projectplan Welcome to the office of information technology. (n.d.). Retrieved April 12, 2012, from http://www.gpc.edu/oit/sliderstory1 Training policies. (n.d.). Retrieved April 12, 2012, from http://www.gpc.edu/oit/training/policies Training provided by academic technology. (n.d.). Retrieved April 12, 2012, from http://www.gpc.edu/oit/training