INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY SERVICES

Transcription

1 INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY SERVICES Annual Report Robert A. Riley, Vice President Administration and Information Technology with assistance from Robert J. Dillane, Director of Information Management Services David W. Shapiro, Director of Technical Services Michael C. Zeigler, Director of Client Services

2 Information Technology Services Annual Report Personnel CURRENT STAFFING As of June 2009 there were fourteen positions in ITS. An organization chart for and a breakdown of the positions in ITS can be found in Appendix A. Note: ITS also employs about two dozen students. NEW POSITION FOR In late spring 2009, we received approval for a new position in the Technical Services group. The new position, OneCard Coordinator and Communications Technician, was created by combining two part-time positions: the Telecommunications Specialist and the Summer Student Network Technician. PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT AND COMMUNITY SERVICE ACTIVITIES During , ITS staff members were involved in the following professional development and community service activities. Attended Datatel Users Group meetings Attended Educause national conference Educause Learning Initiative conference Attended HP Regional seminar Attended MS Reporting Services training Attended ediscovery training at MWN Attended PACOMP meeting Attended Resilient Leadership workshop Presented at Palmyra Middle School Career Day Presented at New Faculty Orientation Presented at New Employee Orientation Presented at CETL Workshop Participated in Senior Send-Off Participated in LVC Live Participated in Raiser s Edge training Participated in LVC mock interview program Participated in Emergency Plan Working Group Presented at New Student Advising Days Presented Portal at Board of Trustees meeting Presented at New Trustee Orientation Staffed Board Facilities Committee Led Web Redesign Working Group Co-chair of Retention Subcommittee Member of Board Marketing Task Force Member of CIT&S Member of Web Committee Member of Web/Portal Team Member Web Redesign Overview Group Member of Admission Marketing Team Member of Retention Committee Member of three search committees Facilities-Related Projects ITS OFFICE RENOVATION AND EXPANSION The Help Desk function and Client Services group moved into a newly renovated area in the northwest corner of the lower level of Lynch in mid-july. A few weeks later, six IT staff members temporarily re-located to the Library in May 2008 moved back into the newly renovated main office suite. LYNCH RENOVATIONS Assisted with the renovation of the lower level of Lynch, a project to provide classrooms, studios and other space for Education and Art & Art History; a new help desk and offices for IT; a general-purpose classroom; new bathrooms; and improved heating, ventilation and air conditioning. IT was responsible for the installation and testing of all communications wiring and equipment. The project was completed in August in time for the beginning of the Fall 2008 semester. BLAIR RENOVATIONS Participated in planning and reconstruction of classrooms and studios/offices on the lower level of Blair. One additional technology-enabled classroom and percussion studio were created. STANSON HALL Coordinated the installation of voice, data and cable television wiring by Morefield Communications / Fibertech Communications, and the installation of wireless access throughout the building and ID card readers on exterior doors. Nearly all of the work was complete by the end of June 2009 with occupancy by students scheduled for early August 2009.

3 Information Technology Services: Annual Report Page 2 Academic Computing TECHNOLOGY-ENHANCED CLASSROOMS The number of technology-enhanced classrooms increased by a net of 4 with the completion of the renovations in Lynch and Blair. This brings the total number of technology-enhanced classrooms as of Spring 2009 to 46 or 77% of all classrooms and teaching labs on campus (see Appendix B). FACULTY TECHNOLOGY ROOM Moved the faculty technology room to a new space adjacent to the new help desk that was constructed as part of the renovations of the lower level of Lynch. DIGITAL COMMUNICATIONS (DIGICOMM) In August of 2008, collected and returned laptops coming off lease, and distributed newly leased laptops to DigiComm students. In the spring of 2009, in concert with DigiComm faculty and others, decided that students should purchase their own laptops based on hardware and software recommendations from DigiComm faculty. In May 2009, assisted the DigiComm program and business office with the purchase of laptop computers coming off lease by students in the classes of 2009 and 2011 for $200. Added 2 computers to the Lynch 181 loaner pool. EDUCATION TECHNOLOGY CLASSROOMS Worked with Education to install a 15-unit Windows PC notebook cart with printer in Lynch 001 and a 15-unit, Macintosh, dual-boot notebook cart with printer in Lynch 010. In these two classrooms, tablet technologies were implemented in the podium systems to allow freehand annotation of displayed material. Desktop/Laptop Computing SUPPLIER OF DESKTOP / LAPTOP COMPUTERS Purchased tested and compared like notebook computers from three vendors: Dell, Hewlett-Packard, and Lenovo. Ratings were assigned for each vendor in six categories including pricing, service, hardware capabilities, quote process, and vendor website. Dell came out on top and it was decided to continue purchasing desktop and notebook computers from Dell. DESKTOP / LAPTOP COMPUTER STANDARDS Moved from Windows Vista Business to Windows Vista Ultimate as the standard operating system for PCs; MacOS X continued as the standard for Macintosh. (See Appendix C for a breakdown of college-owned computers by type and function.) At the end of the academic year, the following were campus standards for Windows and Macintosh computers: PC DESKTOP Optiplex 760 USFF, Core 2 Duo E8400/3.0GHz, 4.0GB RAM; 19 UltraSharp wide All-in-one monitor; integrated video; 160GB SATA hard disk drive; USB 2 Button optical mouse w/scroll, 8X DVD+/- RW; sound bar; 4-year NBD onsite warranty. PC NOTEBOOK (STAFF) Two options were provided because the price difference between the 15-inch notebook and the 14-inch notebook was less than $ inch Notebook - Latitude E5500, Intel Core 2 Duo P8400, 2.40GHz; 4.0GB SDRAM 2 DIMM; 15.4" Wide Screen WXGA+ TruLife; integrated graphics card; 160GB 7200rpm hard disk drive; touchpad; 90W AC Adapt; 8X DVD+/-RW; Intel 5100 WLAN (802.11a/g/n); Bluetooth module; Bluetooth mouse; 9-Cell/85 WHr Battery; 4-year NBD onsite warranty inch Notebook - Latitude E5400, Intel Core 2 Duo P8600, 2.40GHz; 4.0GB SDRAM 2 DIMM; 14.1" Wide Screen WXGA+ TruLife; integrated graphics card; 160GB 7200rpm hard disk drive; touchpad; 90W AC Adapt; 8X DVD+/-RW; Intel 5100 WLAN (802.11a/g/n); Bluetooth module; Bluetooth mouse; 9-Cell/85 WHr Battery; 4-year NBD onsite warranty. PC NOTEBOOK (RECOMMENDED FOR DIGITAL COMMUNICATIONS STUDENTS) Latitude E6500, Intel Core 2 Duo T9550, 2.66GHz, 1066MHz 6M L2 cache; 4.0GB SDRAM 2 DIMM; 15.4" Wide Screen WUXGA; 256MB NVIDIA Quadro NVS 160 graphics card; 160GB 7200rpm hard disk drive; touchpad; 90W AC Adapt, 8X

4 Information Technology Services: Annual Report Page 3 DVD+/-RW; Intel 5100 WLAN (802.11a/g/n); Bluetooth module; Bluetooth mouse; 9-Cell/85 WHr Battery; 4-year NBD onsite warranty. MACINTOSH DESKTOP imac, 20-inch, 2.66GHz Intel Core 2 Duo; 4GB 1066MHz DDR3 SDRAM - 2x2GB; 320GB Serial ATA Drive; SuperDrive 8X (DVD+R DL/DVD±RW/CD-RW); Apple Mighty Mouse and keyboard; 4-year return-to-depot warranty. MACINTOSH NOTEBOOK Two options were offered. 13-inch Notebook - MacBook 13-inch, 2.53GHz Intel Core 2 Duo; 4GB 1066MHz DDR3 SDRAM - 2x2GB; 250GB Serial 5400 rpm hard disk drive; Mini DisplayPort to VGA Adapter; Superdrive 8x (DVD±R DL/DVD, ±RW/CD-RW); 4-year return-to-depot warranty. 15-inch Notebook - MacBook Pro, 15-inch, 2.66GHz Intel Core 2 Duo; 4GB 1066MHz DDR3 SDRAM - 2x2GB; 320GB Serial ATA 5400 rpm hard disk drive; 15-inch Glossy, Widescreen Display; Mini DisplayPort to DVI Adapter; Mini DisplayPort to VGA Adapter; SuperDrive 8x (DVD±R DL/DVD, ±RW/CD-RW); 4-year return-to-depot warranty. PRINTER STANDARD Continued to use Dell s w5310n for monochrome laser printing, 5110cn for color laser printing and 3115cn for multifunction color printing/scanning/copying and faxing. APPLICATION SOFTWARE STANDARDS The College's standard suite of applications currently are Microsoft Office 2007 Professional for Windows and Microsoft Office 2008 for Macs. The College s standard web browsers are Microsoft Internet Explorer for Windows and Apple Safari for Macintosh. Other supported software includes Entourage for Macintosh and Microsoft Outlook Express, Publisher, Visio and TeraTerm Pro for Windows. VIRUS/MALWARE PROTECTION Replaced Sophos virus/malware protection software for personal computers with Microsoft s Forefront Client Security product. PERSONAL COMPUTER DATA SECURITY During the summer and fall of 2008, researched alternatives and decided to use Microsoft s BitLocker full-drive encryption tool for protecting data stored on hard drives. Began using BitLocker on the batch of administrative computers installed in January 2009; added a PIN on notebook computers that potentially could store confidential or private data. Research continues on encrypting files shared via or other non-secure modes of communications. Also tested Computrace, a product that reports a computer s location each time it connects to the Internet. The product worked well but the return on investment was not sufficient to justify its use given the College s low computer loss/theft history and the implementation of BitLocker to protect data on hard disk drives. COMPUTER WORKSHOPS Conducted 12 mini-workshops in which 79 employees participated. Topics included: intermediate and advanced sessions in Excel, Word and PowerPoint and a general session on computer tips and hints. HELP DESK IMPROVEMENTS The Client Services and Technical Services groups worked together to create the IT Services Help Desk and Solutions Center, a blog for posting solutions to common computer- and network-related problems. Worked with the ITS management team to create a short survey to be distributed to 10 randomly-selected users on a biweekly basis to measure satisfaction with the support provided by the Help Desk. NCOMPUTING PROJECT Researched and tested ncomputing s virtual desktop product which offers significant cost savings by replacing six desktop computers with a single computer (with a PCI card, five terminals, and six each of monitors, keyboards, and mice).

5 Information Technology Services: Annual Report Page 4 Information Management Services BENEFACTOR TO RAISER S EDGE CONVERSION The conversion to Raiser s Edge is the first time since 1992 that we have converted a major database application from one vendor to another. As such, it is the largest and most complicated project that Information Management Services has ever undertaken and was the major focus in Raiser s Edge is scheduled to go live in July Some of the conversion tasks were: Spent numerous, extensive meetings with the conversion consultant (JCA) to map Benefactor data to Raiser s Edge data. Some items were pretty straight-forward, but many mapping decisions had to be based both on how we had used Benefactor in the past and on how we planned to use Raiser s Edge going forward. Wrote programs to export the Benefactor data in a format that JCA could use for their conversion programs. This involved exporting data and data definitions for 250 tables. Tested converted data. There were three test conversions before the final production conversion. The Alumni/Development Office was responsible for testing a number of individual records for accuracy. Information Management Services was responsible for developing processes to test whole tables for accuracy wherever possible. Many of the tests had to be re-written from one test conversion to the next. Worked with Alumni/Development staff to do extensive data cleanup before the final conversion. Began the process of analyzing and re-creating reports. While Raiser s Edge has very good reporting tools, we need to replace 17 years worth of reports that were developed in Benefactor. Reports were prioritized both by how important they were and by how soon they would be needed. Much of will be spent in report development. ADMISSION Worked with Admission staff and Royall & Company to develop a process to import prospect data into Colleague. This greatly increased Admission s ability to process a large pool of quality prospects which in turn has helped to ensure the prosperity of the college. Helped with training of two new employees, one of whom replaced a long-time staff member responsible for processing applications since the time Admission began using Colleague in Created online demonstrations to instruct coaches on the use of Access LVC REGISTRAR S OFFICE Over the years we have made significant customizations to Datatel s web registration processes to meet the specific needs of our students, faculty and the Registrar s Office itself. Datatel made changes to many of its web registration processes during , causing us to spend several months doing a complete review of those processes to adjust and re-implement our customizations as needed. Created online demonstrations of registration procedures to prepare our students for the registration process. Technical Services SERVERS Replaced the following servers: LVC1card, LVC03 (domain controller/license manager), Webmail (Student ), Raisers Edge, Web and File. Upgraded to Exchange 2007 Service Pack 1. NETWORK Replaced connections to the following buildings with gigabit links: Blair, Laughlin, Humanities and Miller Chapel. WIRELESS NETWORK Completed the project to put wireless in the residence halls with installations in Funkhouser and Silver. Installed additional wireless coverage including a wireless to Lynch 001 and 010, and b/g wireless to the following outside locations: academic quad, social quad, Peace Garden, east residential Lawns, outdoor volleyball pit, grounds and streets around Stanson Hall, the McGill Baseball Park, and the athletic fields and parking lots from Route 934 east to the Freshman/Gold Lot.

6 Information Technology Services: Annual Report Page 5 TELECOMMUNICATIONS Assisted with repairs to over 400 pairs of telephone lines damaged between Funkhouser and Silver Halls. Upgraded to a new battery backup system for the College telephone and voic systems. Completed a major upgrade of the campus telephone system to the newest version of Nortel-supported software. Migrated to TMC Communications for calling cards, the Conference Group for voice conferencing, and D&E Communications for long distance calling. WEB / PORTAL (MYLVC) Created and deployed a Trustee portal using (MyLVC). Assisted with the launch of GoDutchmen.com. Assisted with a new scholarship calculator for Admissions. Built a blogging site for Athletics, IT Services, Alumni Weekend, LVC Music, Study Abroad, Student Internships, Continuing Education, and Graduate Studies. Summer 2008, began a complete overhaul of the College s main website. By the end of June 2009, work on the new website was nearing completion with a go live date of August Initiated a video contest to broaden LVC web content. VIRUS/SPAM PROTECTION Migrated from Sophos to Microsoft s Forefront anti-virus / anti-malware / anti-spam solutions. ONECARD SYSTEM Completed major upgrade to OneCard version 6.6. Launched the new Dutchman OneCard program, which resulted in new proximity readers on all main residence hall doors, new cell tags available for purchase, and debit card capabilities at merchants both on campus (Hallmark Dining Services) and off (at the Batdorf, J&S Pizza, etc.). OTHER Completed a successful external network vulnerability audit. Other SUSTAINABILITY EFFORTS Compiled a list of IT-related efforts to recycle equipment and to reduce energy and supplies usage. Met with interested parties (Student Affairs, the Sustainability Task Force, the SAFE organization, etc.) and developed a list of initiatives to be considered for implementation in

7 Information Technology Services: Annual Report Appendix A Information Technology Services Organization Chart Number of Staff (FTE) in IT Services Professional Staff Support Staff

8 Information Technology Services: Annual Report Appendix B Percent of Tech-Enhanced Classrooms 90% 80% 70% 60% 75% 77% 50% 40% 42% 43% 45% 30% 32% 20% 10% 0% Spring 2004 Spring 2005 Spring 2006 Spring 2007 Spring 2008 Spring 2009

9 Information Technology Services: Annual Report Appendix C Devices By Type (** Not including DigiComm laptops) June 2004 June 2005 June 2006 June 2007 June 2008 June 2009 IBM-Compatible Macintosh Total Desktop/Laptop Devices (** Not including DigiComm laptops) June 2004 June 2005 June 2006 June 2007 June 2008 June Devices By User Classification (** Not including DigiComm laptops) June 2004 June 2005 June 2006 June 2007 June 2008 June 2009 Student Academic Administrative