Office of Learning and Information Technology
FY13 UW-Green Bay Institutional IT Plan
How was the plan developed?
The University of Wisconsin-Green Bay has a common technology planning cycle. The first comprehensive technology plan, Technology for the 21st Century: a Framework for Planning was developed by the institutional Technology Council with input from faculty, staff and students through surveys and open forums. This comprehensive plan was approved by the Chancellor’s Resource and Planning Council in April 1998. Subsequently, the Information Services Division developed the IT 2000 Action Plan with specific objectives for the period 1998 through 2000 focusing on four strategic directions:
· Replacing and reconfiguring the campus network system
· Replacing the library management system
· Upgrading the database management system for student information
· Automating critical business functions
All the objectives of IT 2000 were completed by fall 2000 and a new plan, IT 2005 Action Plan was developed for 2001-2005 with the following strategic directions:
· Supporting the use of technology in teaching
· Keeping current on server and desktop hardware, software and operating systems
· Implementing PeopleSoft Student Information and Shared Financial Systems
· Planning for web services, distance education, networking and document imaging
As the 2005 IT plan was nearing completion the Technology Council began to focus on creating the next comprehensive IT plan to guide future technology development. The Council gathered input on current and future technology needs from all constituent groups through web surveys, focus groups, governance groups and university-wide forums. This process produced: UWGB Technology Plan 2010, which included 40 objectives organized under three broad themes:
· Faculty/Staff Investment: helping people make better use of technology
· Technology Investment: maintaining and enhancing usability of current systems
· Technology Investment: new initiatives
During the 2008/2009 academic year the Technology Council recognized that many of the objectives of the 2010 plan had been accomplished and began to prepare for developing the next comprehensive technology plan. The Council gathered input through web surveys of the students, faculty, and staff; and, the CIO visited with faculty units, student governance groups and administrative units to gather additional information. The meetings with departments proved to be extremely valuable in understanding the current and future technology needs. Many of the ideas gathered during this process have been incorporated into Tech Plan 2015, which includes 56 objectives organized under four broad themes: Enhancing Learning, Keeping Up, Staying Safe, and Going Green.
List the planning principles:
Adherence to standards. UW-Green Bay is committed to adopting common tools that ensure resources are used wisely to achieve equitable access to information technology for all students, faculty and staff. Adherence to these standards benefits the university community in the following ways:
· Reduces the complexity of support and improves service to users;
· Enables a shared institutional knowledge base that facilitates collaboration;
· Allows users to access their content and applications from anywhere at anytime
· Reduces overhead costs and minimizes down-time for repair;
· Improves the overall reliability, security and availability of software and data;
· Reduces the total cost of ownership
Security of data, applications and systems. The University is committed to safeguarding all personally identifiable information we obtain about individuals. Whether computer applications are hosted on campus or hosted externally, the data must be secure from unauthorized access.
Use of a central core database. A central core database managed by data custodians ensures data integrity, data security and protection of privacy. The core database shares data appropriately and securely with other systems to ensure efficiency and reliability, improve services, reduce staff workload and enhance communication within the university community.
Lifecycle planning and cost savings. When considering acquisition or implementation of a new technology the university evaluates the benefits in relation to the total cost of ownership. Technology should be used to reduce costs and improve services wherever possible. Start-up costs associated with a particular information technology as well as continuing costs, including upgrades and technology replacement costs, should be incorporated into the planning and budgeting for technology projects. Retiring IT systems that no longer produce value for the university is as important as adding new technologies.
Green IT. When considering acquisition or implementation of new technology it is important to evaluate the carbon impact on the campus. Technologies that reduce energy consumption and conserve resources should be deployed whenever possible.
How is the plan being measured?
Bi-annual technology surveys to faculty, staff, and students are used to assess and update the IT action plans. The progress is reported in the Academic Affairs scorecard to maintain congruence with the University strategic plan. The plan reviewed by the Technology Council annually.
How is the plan tied to the university’s strategic objectives?
The Plan is reviewed and approved by the Chancellor’s Cabinet to ensure that the plan is supporting University strategic objectives. Whenever new technologies are considered, they are evaluated relative to how they support the campus mission and strategic directions.
How is the plan written (format, accessibility)?
The plan is written in a report format and made available to anyone through the Technology Council web site at http://www.uwgb.edu/techcouncil.
Are critical objectives identified? Is there an implementation plan for them?
Yes, the technology objectives are designed to serve student learning and university strategic directions. The action plan lists the implementation timeline and resources required.
Timeline
The objectives establish campus technology priorities through the year 2015.
Description of IT Plan governance on the campus
The Technology Council is responsible for the development and oversight of policies relative to the use of technology by faculty, staff and students. Policies developed by the Technology Council are made available to the campus community for review during the development phase and are reviewed by campus governance and advisory groups prior to final approval by the Chancellor.
Major themes of the plan Tech Plan 2015 includes 56 objectives which are organized under four broad themes: Enhancing Learning, Keeping Up, Staying Safe, and Going Green. The first theme focuses on supporting the core educational mission of the university through the use of technology. The second theme focuses on maintaining the UWGB technology environment and keeping up with advancing technology in higher education to remain competitive. The third theme focuses on maintaining a safe and secure technology environment for students, faculty and staff to engage in their studies and work. The fourth theme follows the lead of the university in its efforts to be more environmentally respectful and energy efficient and to use resources wisely.
IT Projects for FY13
The University of Wisconsin-Green Bay does not have any IT projects that exceed $1 million. Listed below are FY 13 projects that are important to carrying out the institutional mission.
1. Replacement of Virtualized Servers and Upgrade of Storage Area Network.
Project Description – Our current server environment comprises approximately 120 server instances, of which 75% are virtualized on six physical servers which are over four years old. Current storage area network capacity is sixteen terabytes of enterprise storage. This project will replace the six physical servers with new technology and add eighteen terabytes of midline storage to handle expected expansion of server and storage needs for the next several years. This project will also add server and storage capacity for disaster recovery needs.
Completion: Completed August, 2012
2. Replacement of Data Center UPS (Uninterruptable Power Supply) Equipment.
Project Description – Uninterruptable power supply (UPS) equipment in the campus primary data center ranges in age from seven to ten years old. The vendor is no longer providing warranty/support coverage for this equipment as of February, 2013. This project will replace thirteen smaller units with three larger, more power efficient units.
Completion: Projected completion February, 2013
3. Outside Building Wireless Data Network Improvements.
Project Description – The campus installed a comprehensive wireless data network inside all campus and Residence Life buildings in 2011/2012. This project will improve on the availability and quality of the wireless data network outside of campus buildings along heavily used sidewalks.
Completion: Projected completion August, 2013
4. Workstation replacement for employees and classrooms.
Project Description -- Employee and teaching workstations are centrally funded and managed through Information Services. About 1/3 of faculty/staff workstations are replaced each year. Displaced machines are recycled to student employees, graduate assistants, temporary employees, and ad hoc instructors. Approximately 700 workstations will be installed or relocated. A standard image is developed for these workstations which significantly reduces support costs.
Completion: Projected completion August, 2013
5. Workstation replacement for general access and specialty student computer labs.
Project Description – Funding and management of student computer labs are centralized through Information Services. About 1/3 of primary lab workstations are replaced each year. Displaced machines are recycled to labs running low-end software and lab instruments. Approximately 250 workstations will be installed or relocated. A standard image is developed for these workstations which significantly reduces support costs.
Completion: Projected completion July, 2013
6. Data Center File Backup Upgrade.
Project Description – The information contained with the campus data center is backed up on an hourly, daily, weekly, and monthly basis to a combination of physical servers, local storage devices, and magnetic tape. The basic method for performing this backup is the same for the current 120 servers and 25 terabytes of data in the data center as was designed ten years previous when the data center had less than ten servers and less than one terabyte of storage. This project will replace the hardware and software systems used to perform backup of data center information with products and methods that are appropriate for the current and projected needs of the UW-Green Bay data center.
Completion: Projected completion August, 2013