How To Manage The Online Campus At Baylor.Edu

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1 Integrating Disparate Systems to Support the Online Campus Becky King Associate Director for Information Systems & Services Baylor University P.O. Box Waco, Texas (254) Fax: (254) Baylor University Waco, Texas Enrollment 13,500 Private Four Year Baylor University runs administrative applications supplied by a variety of vendors using different database management systems. Consolidation of certain critical data about person entities maintained in these various operational systems is required to manage many important University information resource functions like directories, security, and access entitlements. These constituent entities must be identified with all the roles they play within the University admitted student, current student, former student, staff member, faculty member, auxiliary personnel. To this end, the Person Database was created to be a central integrated and active repository of essential information on principal University constituents. This centralization is required to insure data integrity, data non-duplication, and processing uniformity. This paper describes the philosophy, evolution, benefits and future of this Person Database.

2 Integrating Disparate Systems to Support the Online Campus Baylor University, founded in 1845, is the oldest university in continuing existence in Texas. It is located in Waco, a city with a metropolitan area population of 150,000 situated ninety miles from Dallas and from Austin. The school has approximately 13,500 students and over 1700 faculty and staff. The University includes a Law School considered one of the best in the state, a Seminary, and a Nursing School housed in Dallas. Baylor primarily emphasizes the undergraduate learning experience as opposed to graduate programs and faculty research. Also, Baylor maintains a close affiliation with the Baptist General Convention of Texas and is committed to providing the finest possible education within a Christian environment. The students are mostly from Texas, about fifty-five percent female, and now just under fifty percent Baptist. The annual university education and general budget is currently about $237 million. In the extracurricular area, Baylor is the only private school member of the Big Twelve athletic conference and has captured conference championships in soccer, track, and baseball. Building on campus has been fast and furious over the last few years with a new Student Life Center and baseball and soccer stadiums recently completed and with new Law School and Seminary buildings and a tennis complex in progress. Baylor is a respected, medium-sized, private institution with a denominational affiliation, a loyal alumni body, a dedicated faculty and staff. The University is working to strike a balance between a legacy environment of personalized attention to the individual where students have access to real people in critical situations and the self-service environment expected by most of today s young adults. University Technology Organization and Environment Change is in the air at Baylor with regards to technology. After many years of stability in the technology organization, a major shakeup took place in the late fall of A Chief Information Officer was named for the first time and the previous director of the Information Technology Center returned to a tenured professorship in the Physics Department. The person named to the CIO position was previously Associate Dean for Technology in the School of Business. The new CIO has responsibility for all technology on campus, including through a type of dotted line relationship that which is distributed in academic and administrative departments like Public Relations, the School of Engineering and Computer Science, and the Office of Student Financial Aid. Also, the Office of Institutional Research is now within the CIO organization. As a part of the reorganization, a new Academic Technology Center was created with the primary goal of building a closer relationship with the faculty and facilitating their use of technology in the teaching and learning arena. Besides organizational structure updates, the CIO has initiated a major change in campus technology architecture, choosing to move in an almost total Microsoft direction. Conversion to Windows 2000 on desktops and on Windows 95 and NT servers has begun and will continue for many months. The University s main Web server will be transitioned from Netscape running in a Tru64 Unix environment to IIS on Windows Internet Explorer will be the primary browser. Microsoft Exchange will be the faculty/staff , calendaring, and collaboration system. The new Microsoft.NET product line will become the new application development environment. Larger FileMaker Pro and Access databases will be moved to SQL Server, as will some of the smaller DB2 and Oracle systems. Additionally, renewed emphasis is being placed on the transition from the Macintosh to the PC, which began two years ago when the Mac was the predominant desktop unit on campus. Currently, all dormitories on campus are wired for one network connection per pillow and one cable television connection per room. The new AirBear wireless network is now active in limited parts of campus. Wireless laptops may be checked out of the library for use within that building. The library also houses the main student computer lab with over 120 workstations. This lab is open 24 hours per day during the week. The University this year began running an Internet 2

3 filtering software that is used to filter access to pornographic sites only. Older desktop workstations are recycled as kiosk units located in many strategic areas of campus to enable students to check and use various Web-based services. The Information Systems & Services section of the technology organization has responsibility for the administrative information systems and data and database administration. These information systems are primarily ERP packages purchased from well-known vendors of higher education software that run in either the IBM OS/390 environment using DB2 or the IBM AIX environment using Oracle. The programming languages used are COBOL, C, and SQL scripts as well as Crystal Reports and FOCUS reporting languages. Web access to these information systems is provided both by vendor-supplied software that integrates with their application packages and by Baylor-developed code written in Java, Perl, Tango and an older technology called Project Mandarin that originated at Cornell University in the early 1990 s. Students have Web access to their personal information, degree audit, and transcript and to other services like registration and forwarding. Many Web-based services are available for faculty and staff as well and continuing efforts are being directed toward development of additional Web-based services for all University constituents. A Little History In the late 1980 s, when the University s student information was stored in VSAM files on an IBM mainframe and the employee information was stored in a CODASYL database on a Honeywell mainframe, a need arose to combine the data from those two sources to provide an online directory, primarily for use by the University telephone operators. At that time, extract programs were written and set up to run daily to pull basic directory information on current students and employees from the production systems over to an indexed file on a Digital VAX computer. This environment was selected because the technology staff dedicated to that server had time available to work on the directory application. Soon after this, University computing staff began work on writing a campus ID card system to replace the current vendor-supplied system that had been deemed unsatisfactory to meet expected future needs. Because the ID system would serve both students and employees and because the indexed files being used for the new VAX telephone directory included most of the information needed for the ID system, the indexed directory file became with minor additions the source for data loads to the new ID system. Additional needs for this kind of data continued to arise and in 1991, the directory file was converted to an Rdb database, still on the same VAX server, and renamed the Person Database. As the administrative systems were converted to DB2 and Oracle based applications, the Person Database load programs were also converted and modified as needed. Over the following years, this database was often enhanced and became the basis for many critical University processes as first online systems, then graphical user interface applications and, most recently, Web-based systems required user identity and demographic information. In recent years, the University began to standardize database management systems and to move all possible applications to Oracle. In 1999, a conversion of the Person Database from Rdb to Oracle was begun. It was completed in the spring of The Database The Baylor University Person Database is stored in Oracle (currently version 7.3.4) in the AIX Unix environment on an IBM RS/6000 eight processor model J50. The SCT Banner Human Resources and Alumni/Development Systems database also resides on this server. The Person Database schema includes tables that store the following categories of data: Personal Information address id_old special_person admittee_info info_release student education job_position stu_activity employee person_name stu_major 3

4 id property stu_ministry Class enrollment Information course course_instructor course_note_special course_classroll course_note course_syllabus_url course_time_place Validation/Rule Information valid_address_type valid_crs_term valid_property valid_building valid_degree valid_reg_status valid_classification valid_department valid_site valid_college valid_dorm valid_sp_service valid_country valid_emphasis valid_sp_type valid_crs_activity valid_major valid_stu_activity valid_crs_prefix valid_major_type valid_term valid_crs_session valid_note A short description of each table is found in Appendix A. Additional tables within the Person Database, not listed here, are the basis for providing user authorization access data for faculty evaluation and advising applications. The Update Process A flowchart of Person Database processing is shown in Appendix B. The database is updated nightly from four sources: - JCL files that run on the OS/390 IBM mainframe pulling data from the Student Information System (SCT Plus2000 SIS, DB2 version). - JCL files that run on the OS/390 IBM mainframe pulling data from the Housing System (Baylor-written DB2/CICS system). - cron script that runs in AIX Unix on an IBM RS/6000 model F50 pulling data from the Human Resources System (SCT Banner HRS). - cron script that runs in AIX Unix on the same IBM RS/6000 model F50 that updates ID card sequence numbers from a file generated by the campus ID card system (Diebold Card One system). From the SIS, information about current students (undergraduate, graduate, and professional) and admitted students is loaded. Also from SIS, current class enrollment information is retrieved and loaded. From Housing, information about room assignments in University residence facilities is loaded. From the HRS, information about valid University departments and current employees and auxiliary personnel (regents, retirees, other specially affiliated groups) is loaded. These loads all occur on a nightly basis, running at various times from 5:30 p.m. until around 7:00 a.m. At the time a record for a new person of some type is added to the database, a PID, or person ID, is created. This unique nine-digit number is the key to all personal data tables. The person s network ID, called the Bear ID at Baylor, is created and stored. This network ID becomes the account name and the LDAP/Kerberos username. Also, when a record is added, an initial setting of directory information release flags is loaded for that person. The database stores access indicators for multiple individual data fields per person. Examples are home street address, home telephone, address, local telephone, campus telephone, and local address. An access indicator is associated with each field. These indicators are honored by the Web directory and Web White Pages and by download files created from the database. The possible values for the indicators, from most restrictive to least restrictive, are: N: No access. B: Baylor business (employee) access only. C: Campus (employee and student) access only. I: Open Internet access. Not all values are available for every field. For example, an employee cannot set their campus address and telephone information to N. When a person is added to the Person Database, 4

5 assuming no restrictions have been indicated in the source systems (SIS and HRS), their access indicators are set to C. Individuals must proactively use a Web application to set their information release indicators to I to allow their information to be seen over the Internet. As a person s records are updated in the database, indicators within the ID table row are updated to reflect the person s changing relationship with the University. These indicators denote whether the person is a current or previous admittee, student, faculty member, staff member, auxiliary personnel, alumni (future), or special (exception) case. This information is used repeatedly in the applications and programs that access this database. Specific data for each scheduled class for each term is included in this database. This supports the creation of the printed and Web course schedule with all the required notes, meeting times, instructors and room assignments. Class enrollments for all current terms and terms in registration status are loaded each night as well. During the early registration period, these updates are run at midday in addition to nightly. This class enrollment information was at one time used to provide class rosters and is now used in an application that tracks attendance at a required class in a large arena-type hall. Functionality Supported The Person Database provides a centralized point of creation of a unique Baylor network ID. This becomes the client s address (@baylor.edu) and their username for calendaring, , and most Web applications. A batch program runs nightly to create new network IDs and store them in the database. Also, nightly batch jobs, running programs written in C and COBOL, create files that are dispensed to the following applications: LabLog Baylor-written application used in campus computer labs to authenticate workstation users. Kerberos Kerberos 4 database used to authenticate access. Faculty/Staff Kerberos Kerberos 4 database used for authentication in faculty/staff dial-in application. ID System Campus ID card system used for identification, attendance checking, door access, and debit card functions. Library System University library system (Innovative Interfaces, Inc.) patron file update. Student Life Center System System used to meter access to new campus recreational facility and track checkout of equipment. Campus system interface in form of a transaction file of all who have set an forwarding address and all new accounts. This file is used to associate addresses with a specific host server. IBM mainframe security database DB2 database used to authorize faculty and staff by network ID for access to Baylor-written student system Web applications (ex. class rolls, entry of permits and waivers, setting of advisement flags, updating of class size and instructor). LDAP for LDAP file supporting directory services for campus . LDAP for authentication LDAP file supporting authentication for Web applications. Many other batch jobs are run on an ad hoc basis. These include creation of the course catalog print file, creation of files to create and maintain campus listservs (like the listserv of all fulltime faculty used by the Provost s Office), creation of a transaction file used to update the campus telephone system to provide the ability to lookup phone numbers by entering name into the telephone keypad, creation of file of faculty for Institutional Research and Testing to support the faculty evaluation process, and creation of various downloads of different populations of constituents, as requested. The Person Database supports many University Web applications. Here are some examples: 5

6 Web Directory Provides lookup of faculty, staff, and/or students by name. Web White Pages Provides lookup of faculty, staff, and/or students by name. Also provides custom lookup capabilities (by department, major, etc.) and ability to create download files from the output set. Information Release Allows current students, faculty and staff to update their information release indicators that affect how their personal data is shown in the Web Directory and Web White Pages. Resnet Signup Application that allows students to sign up for network access, cable television, and/or an additional telephone line in their dorm room. Forwarding Allows those addresses to forward mail from that address to another address. BearAdvice Provides faculty advisors with access to degree audits and transcripts of students in their major area(s). Chapel Attendance Allows students enrolled in the required Chapel class to check the number and dates of their recorded absences for a semester. Electronic forms Supports various Web forms applications that have been created. IT Seminars Provides the ability to sign up for any of the slate of scheduled seminars taught each semester by University technology staff. Web for Employees Provides employees with access to and some update of their personal demographic, payroll, and benefits information. Set PIN Allows students and employees to see and set their personal ID number required for access to Web for Employees and BearWeb (students). Faculty Evaluations Provides access to faculty, and department chairs as approved, to student evaluations of their classes from previous semesters. Course Listings Gives students the ability to look up scheduled classes for a term by college, course prefix, instructor, days and status (open, closed, cancelled). In addition to the above batch processes and Web applications, the Person Database is accessed by a number of PL/SQL routines that are called by programs and applications that need to check a student or employee ID number, verify a network ID, get an address, get the person s home page url, verify that a person is a current student or employee, etc. Plans for the Future The Person Database is still evolving. One important strategy for the achievement of University goals is to expand the online Baylor community to alumni. Planning has begun for provision of network IDs to all alumni who desire one. This will require that alumni information be loaded from the Alumni/Development System (SCT Banner ADS) into the Person Database. Any process established to allow alumni to claim these network IDs would involve storage and retrieval of the IDs in the database. This would in turn feed authentication and authorization for Web applications available to alumni. As the University moves towards implementation of the Microsoft Windows 2000 environment, Active Directory support will be a critical task in the project. Work is in progress to build the University s organization structure into the Active Directory LDAP structure. The Person Database will be the source for the loads to Active Directory to enable use of it for directory services, authentication, etc. Development of new e-business and Web applications will continue to be important as Baylor technology support moves forward. Applicants can now pay their application fee via credit card as of spring Work has begun to accept gifts to the University over the Web via credit card payment. The Person Database will continue to under gird programming to relay required information about these transactions back to the core administrative systems. Most new program development is expected to be Web application development. The Person Database will provide constituent data and security authorization information to support this new development. 6

7 Within the next two years, the University will begin a move of the Student Information System to a yet-to-be-determined new ERP package and a new platform. All services provided by the Person Database will be unaffected by this major information systems disruption. Only the batch load program that pulls student data from SIS will have to be converted for the new system. Finally Many University systems and services need to access data from a single, unified source that identifies constituents in all their roles with the institution and provides critical data about those constituents. At Baylor, this information originates in various diverse core administrative systems that are both purchased and home grown. In recent years, it became imperative to centralize these information resources to insure data integrity, data completeness and processing uniformity and to provide for application security for critical services. Through the creation of the Person Database as both a data repository and an active, production system, support for these services has been achieved. This centralization eases maintenance of directories and security and access records, provides data currency in auxiliary systems dependent on University constituent information, and allows Web development to enhance administrative processes without modifying vendor software. 7

8 Appendix A Person Database Tables address includes address type field and normal address data fields. admittee_info stores admitted term, classification, and planned major for admitted students. course information about a specific class section for a term. course_classroll stores PID for students enrolled in a class section. course_instructor stores PID for an instructor of a class section. course_note codes for standard notes included in the display or printing of the class schedule for a term. course_note_special text for non-standard notes for the class schedule. course_syllabus_url url for additional information about a class section. course_time_place includes building, room, days, and time for class section. education includes degree, major, year, and school information from person education records. employee information specific to employees like type and status. id key identification information for all person entities; includes PID, employee or student ID number, network ID, indicators of type of person, and forwarding information. id_old stores previous PID, network ID, or student/employee ID. info_release level of access indicators for individual personal data fields as noted above. job_position department and position information for each of an employee s jobs. last_download stores type code and date of last download for each process tracked. person_name includes name fields, gender, and birth date. property allows for storing of miscellaneous information about persons. special_person non-students, non-employees who must be stored to provide certain campus services. special_person_service information about services provided to a special_person. student information specific to students like classification, status and meal plan. stu_activity stores activity codes and offices held by term for students. stu_major stores student program information including minors. stu_ministry indicator fields denoting in which areas of ministry a student has indicated interest. valid_address_type valid types of addresses and descriptions (duh). valid_building valid building codes and descriptions. valid_classification valid classification codes and descriptions. valid_college valid internal Baylor college codes and descriptions. valid_country valid country codes and descriptions. valid_crs_activity valid course activity codes and descriptions. valid_crs_prefix valid course prefixes, related college codes and descriptions. valid_crs_session valid course session codes and descriptions. valid_crs_term valid term codes and descriptions. valid_degree valid degree codes and descriptions. valid_department valid Human Resources department codes and descriptions. valid_dorm valid dormitory codes and descriptions. valid_emphasis valid academic program emphases and descriptions. valid_major valid major, minor, pre-professional codes and descriptions. valid_major_type valid types of majors codes and descriptions. valid_note valid course schedule note codes and descriptions. valid_property valid property codes and descriptions. valid_reg_status valid course registration status codes and descriptions. valid_site valid course site codes and descriptions. valid_sp_service valid special person service codes and descriptions. valid_sp_type valid special person type codes and descriptions. 8

9 valid_stu_activity valid_term valid student activity codes and descriptions. valid term codes, their academic units, and currency indicators. 9

10 Appendix B SIS ADS (DB2) Housing HRS (Oracle) (DB2) (Oracle) Campus ID System FUTURE Web Apps White Pages Web Directory Accounts Library BearAdvice Patron Faculty Evaluations File Forwarding Directory Info. Rlse. Course Schedule Student Life Ctr File FUTURE Ad hoc address books LDAP load Authentication LDAP load Network ID creation Kerberos load Course catalog file Active Directory load E-business support Additional Web applications Person Database Processing Flowchart 10