What Presidents Need to Know About the Payoff on the Information Technology Investment - Complete Set of Background Papers Background papers for HEIRAlliance Executive Strategies Report #4 "What Presidents Need to Know ... about Payoff the on the Information Technology Investment" ------------------------------------------------------------- prepared by representatives of Brigham Young University Dalhousie University Kenyon College Sinclair Community College University of Maine at Augusta ------------------------------------------------------------- Copyright 1994 by HEIRA. The Executive Strategies reports are published by the Higher Education Information Resources Alliance (HEIRAlliance), a vehicle for cooperative projects between the Association of Research Libraries, CAUSE, and EDUCOM. This material may be reproduced for noncommercial purposes with appropriate credit to the HEIRAlliance. For information about ordering this material or the , contact CAUSE at 303-449-4430, info@CAUSE.colorado.edu ============================================================= ============================================================= Background paper for HEIRAlliance Executive Strategies Report #4 prepared by representatives of BRIGHAM YOUNG UNIVERSITY Rex E. Lee President Sterling J. Albrecht University Librarian Douglas M. Chabries Assistant Academic Vice-President, Computing ------------------------------------------------------------- ============================================================= WHAT PRESIDENTS NEED TO KNOW ABOUT THE PAYOFF ON THE INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY INVESTMENT: THE VIEW FROM BRIGHAM YOUNG UNIVERSITY THE HUMAN COMPONENT The User Community Information "bites" are of little value in and of themselves. It is only when these building blocks of knowledge are introduced to the intellect that they can produce further understanding of the cosmos and thus promote the elevation of humanity. It is important, therefore that we understand the nature of the community for which we seek access to this commodity called information. This community has multiple subsets whose numbers are growing. Our scholars--the professor, graduate student or deeply inquiring undergraduate--are of paramount concern because no one single depository of data/information/knowledge is capable of satisfying their cravings and needs for mental nourishment. Of the faculty it can truly be said that the World is their campus. We know that our local universities and colleges only provide a foundation for their endeavors-- formal organization, administrative support and resources. Their true colleagues, however, are often found hundreds or even thousands of miles from their own academic institution; their scholarly interests span the universe. This situation also applies to a multitude of graduate students who find themselves participating in the great experience of discovery in very remote and foreign locations. Technology that facilitates access to information, whether it is located in their institutions' libraries or on the other side of the globe, increases our scholars' productivity. Properly managed and fully taken advantage of, electronic access can also prove to be an economizing factor for research budgets. How many faculty have traveled to distant libraries and archives to spend days and even weeks developing bibliographies before they began any profitable research? Full text retrieval of significant journal literature, much that is significant in published monographs, and even unique research materials will soon reduce distant research excursions. Undergraduates whose learning is assisted with user friendly, electronic avenues to more extensive information will be better educated individuals with a better grasp of their subjects of expertise. Their ability to seek out needed information and knowledge will serve them well as they maintain currency in their profession or occupation throughout the productive years. More undergraduates may develop the skills and inclination to continue their education with graduate work. Mention was made of multiplying subsets to the community seeking access to information. Newspapers in even the smaller cities and towns of our nation have begun to educate their readership to the benefits of the developing "electronic super highway." In both rural and urban America, secondary schools and public libraries are hooking up to the Internet. (This current "network of information networks" never really belonged to Academia; it was spawned and promoted by government to link itself with both the research community and industry.) These new information technology players want access to many of the sources that our campuses do. In fact, they want access to our information resources. Before we thwart their desires with passwords, account codes, and fees, we need to review some of the pluses and minuses in expanding our select community. The democratization of information can bring a new and powerful meaning to the founding fathers' declaration that, "all men are created equal." Common access to information resources will go a long way in providing equality of opportunity to each and every individual who desires to develop to his or her full potential. The opportunity to assist in the nurturing of intellect in its infancy is both a noble and, at the same time, a practical cause for our institutions to adopt. How many potential giants of learning and scholarship have America and its institutions of higher education lost because they were raised in localities poor in the information resources that would have stimulated and expanded their mental processes? How many scholars never blossomed under a sage professor's tutelage because their intellects withered in infancy? A fully educated and informed America will be both a politically and an economically strong America. Our country's vigor and health will be transmitted to its colleges and universities. Measures can be taken to ensure that the primary users of our institutional information resources retain appropriate access to these assets. We must work with traditional publishers to ensure conformance to copyright laws while making resources more readily available through imaging and digitizing technology. Shared Responsibilities Sharing of information resources within an enlarged community of scholars and students isn't just the responsibility of the public institutions of higher education. Private colleges and universities have unique contributions to make to scholarship and learning. The public universities and colleges receive support from the private sector of higher education and visa versa, and both have a shared responsibility to the newer members of the information technology community. A private institution providing its information resources to the public sector may, under certain circumstances, rightfully expect some public monies to provide support for such services. This may particularly be the case when public monies are specifically earmarked for the support of universal access to information resources within given political boundaries. The need also exists for increased cooperation among sister institutions. Because of the electronic highway, electronic journals, and client servers ownership of electronic resources is now shared. Decisions regarding what resources to acquire (or purge), what means of access will be available to the library patron, and how the system will be maintained and financed are now responsibilities shared by institutions that previously may have been autonomous. University presidents should ensure that the level of cooperation needed among their library directors is sufficient to accomplish the information requirements of their institutional goals. Training Issues Training of librarians and archivists to guide scholars and students to the information they require demands a new mind- set among these individuals--access to information in tomorrow's universal collection of information is of equal importance to the acquisitions of materials for their local libraries. (Funding for electronic information must also share equal importance.) Bibliographic Instruction, a term applied to training the library patron in locating books, journals, media materials, etc., must now include extensive directions for traversing the "electronic super highway" for its exhaustive resources. Some automation software advances will ease this task with previously mentioned, user friendly approaches to exploring tomorrow's information network. Still, only effective training of information users will result in worthwhile use of the new information technology. Our stewardship responsibilities will also necessitate a monitoring of the effectiveness of this training and the new technology itself have on the productivity of our scholars and students. ACCESS ISSUES The Virtual library One of the true benefits of technology in libraries is expanding the walls of the library beyond physical boundaries, while at the same time better utilizing the university's investment in technology. Traditionally, anyone who wished to use the library's facilities had to come in person to the building to use the card catalog, print indexing sources, and to retrieve materials. With the advent of automation the information in the card catalog was suddenly transportable. Soon to follow were some indexing sources, then full text articles, electronic mail, interlibrary loan and document delivery services. Faculty members can now sit at their personal computers and have full library service without ever coming to the physical library building. As library services via computer links are extended to numerous personal computers throughout campus and from homes, the university's investment in PC's for faculty and students is better utilized. That PC on the faculty members desk doubles as a PC for his or her word processing and academic pursuits as well as serving as access to the library. University libraries actually support far more ports to access the library system to users from outside the library than it supports PC's within the walls of the library. As services have expanded the library has added access to all faculty offices and via phone to all students having personal computers. As our universities become increasingly virtual, they will be based on a multitude of ad hoc associations of people, instruments, and knowledge. Thus, scholarly collaboration will happen anywhere in the world at any time of the day or night. It will happen when the scholar wants to work. With respect to our scholars' informational needs, the challenge is to provide transparent information navigation tools that will assist them in accessing to information. Finally, the virtual library needs the kinds of electronic resources that will provide the scholar with information delivery--including document delivery. Timeliness In today's fast-paced world, information changes and becomes available at rapid speeds. Technology has provided the means for more timely communication of information. Typically, periodical indexing services from publishers are provided in shorter intervals than the same index in print versions. Automated library catalogs provide access to materials the moment they are cataloged instead of waiting for cards to be filed in the card catalog. Often information is available for public access the moment materials are ordered or considered for purchase. Many online databases and news services are updated in real time, as the event happens. Electronic bulletin boards and electronic mail allow access to ideas and information as they are forming, prior to the publication process. Through today's technology, access to information does not lag far behind the event or creation of information, and the timeliness of access to information is continually increasing. Shared Resources There are benefits that can be reaped in the areas of collection sharing among libraries and speed with which information can be made available. The state of Utah has joined in a cooperative venture to make periodical indexing available. Indexing is mounted at a host site in the state, but access to the indexing via the internet is available to all of the partners within the state. In many cases this provides indexing services to small, rural colleges that would be unable to purchase and mount such services on their own, and at a price they can afford because everyone is sharing some portion of the cost on one instead of multiple licensing agreements. As technology continues to improve, digitization will allow libraries to preserve and make available their unique collections to everyone. Imagine a special collections or archive collection entirely digitized. Many items are one-of- a-kind, currently only available onsite at a specific location only to authorized researchers. With digitization entire collections could be available online for perusal from your office or home. Search Protocols As common searching strategies are made available via national and international translations standards (such as the Z39.50 protocols), patrons can access disparate databases with the command language of their local system. It may no longer be necessary to actually travel to a library to research. Research can occur from the comfort of one's home. Indeed, a democratization of information access will become possible. TECHNOLOGY FOR ELECTRONIC ACCESS TO INFORMATION The convergence of three technologies has changed the way our culture acts--the entrance of high-speed, low cost computing; the availability of high-capacity, low cost mass storage; the development of high-capacity, low cost telecommunications. Adding to this the extraordinary developments in computer software and expert systems offers the promise that users will be able to focus on their task rather than the technology as they access information and knowledge. University libraries should begin to take advantage of the rapid increases in computing hardware performance that has already influenced other industries. In addition, cost savings in hardware should be realized as libraries begin to utilize "open" systems, built on competitive standards. Although libraries with smaller collections have utilized open-systems technology for a number of years, even the largest automated collections will now be able to take advantage of the computer industry's rapid advances that are occurring in the open-systems marketplace. The cost to store information is decreasing rapidly as technology improves the density that data can be stored on magnetic and optical media. However, the real advantage to effective use of storage will be the utilization of software that determines the appropriate media for a given collection of information. In addition, data is automatically migrated from one media to another, depending on the requirements for access. This will allow the vast storage potential of optical media and other technologies to be effectively utilized. Although a good deal of "mis-information" has been circulated concerning the future Information Super-highway, one fact is clear; the relative cost per unit of networking bandwidth will continue to decline. This fact will spawn the increased sharing of information resources as the information super- highway becomes more of a reality. Less data will need to be stored locally at individual library locations, if it is accessible to the scholar via the network. Conversion to Electronic Format: Textual Versus Image. If the records of the past are to be included, several challenges must be surmounted to fully realize the benefit of these technologies. First, data must be converted to machine readable (MR) form--a labor intensive process. Modern electronic methods used to publish materials yield as a byproduct MR text. But where electronic text does not exist either manual rekeying or optical scanning is required. But significant errors result when attempting to optically scan. One company that has extensively studied optical scanning and document structure analysis is OCLC (Online Computer Library Center). Their analysis concluded that when the optical character recognition error rate exceeded five percent, it was more cost effective to rekey the entire document.[From Stuart Weibel, "Tutorial on Text Recognition," Paper delivered at the 55th Annual Conference of the American Society for Information Science held October 26-29, 1992, at Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. Recorded by InfoMedix, tape E268- 44.] Of course, if the text is handwritten, or contains graphs, figures, pictures, etc., any automatic recognition procedures are non-existent, or, at best, still at the experimental stage. In contrast to text, the only electronic form available for visual images is digitization into "bit- mapped" form--an electronic format requiring about 1000 times more storage space than that required for text. Even when the text is converted to MR form, the challenge still exists to determine what the strings of characters and words are "about." One aid in minimizing miscommunication is to build structure in a textual record by appropriately labelling each of the words or terms with its field type, that is, if the record's author, title, source, publication year, etc., can be identified, then a name, for example, could then be differentiated from being an author, a title, or a subject. A higher quality retrieval will result. On the other hand, since no standard language of description exists for digitized visual images, only adhoc methods exist for retrieving these. Transmitting Data in Electronic Format: CHUI Versus GUI Once in electronic form (MR text or bit-mapped) the data can be transmitted over telecommunication networks. Another distinction is necessary. Most information transfer is in character mode. Thus, the most common interfaces on computer terminals for these textual displays are "character user interfaces", or CHUI's. On the other hand, in order to display bit-mapped images a "graphical user interface", GUI, must exist. ("Windows", created by Microsoft Corporation, is an example of a GUI.) CHUI's cannot display images, but GUI's can display both images and characters when those characters have been converted to a bit-mapped format. Since GUI accommodates both worlds why not use it as the standard interface? Eventually it will be. But remember that the bit-mapped format requires about 1000 times more storage space and transmission capacity. However, some very efficient compression techniques are being developed to reduce storage requirements for visual images. Thus, in time, libraries may expect to display their unique, special collections to users in digitized format. High resolution images of art, pictures, manuscripts, etc., could then be studied by scholars on visual display terminals (VDT's) without endangering the original. (The JANUS project at Columbia University is a pilot project to demonstrate, among other goals, this possibility.) Increasing User Needs and Telecommunication Capacities Increased telecommunication capacities will be needed not only because of the shift from CHUI to GUI interfaces, but also to accommodate the increased volume of usage. Because of increasing numbers of full-text databases, individual users are spending more time at terminals. In addition, the numbers of journals that exist only in electronic format is increasing. Thus, we may expect both the numbers of patrons and the duration of time they spend using VDT's to continually increase. New Patterns for Using Electronic Journals and Databases We expect that additional read-only ports connected to our electronic databases will be available throughout the campus- - including faculty offices. These will permit patrons, having their own computers, to connect into the information network. Several economies will be achieved by the library. First, the library's terminals will be free for use by other patrons. Additionally, the on-campus patrons will be downloading to their own media rather than using the library's printers. The read-only nature of these connections is essential to protect the library's system from viruses and both accidental and intentional sabotage. Preparing for the Information Networks Current technology could accommodate pods of "wireless" terminals located throughout the library. But the current capacity of this type of technology (without encountering exorbitant costs) is limited when displaying bit-mapped images. Laser optical fibers, on the other hand, would provide 100 million times the capacity at reasonable cost to performance ratios. Given that the numbers of terminals will increase and the need for displaying visual images exists, the best advice is to select communication channels providing the highest capacity. Remote Access Remote access will be constrained by the institutional networking infrastructure. What is the network's capacity? What is the breadth of access to the library and institutional network? To what extent are network connections distributed within buildings? Do each of these connection points support access to regional and national networks? Modem access does provide a short-term solution. However, telecommunication use will increase rapidly and BAUD rates (the amount of information per second) of these lines may not support future user needs. Other Considerations The information system must accommodate multiple communication protocols, platforms, and applications. In the emerging open systems environment it will be possible to mix and match both software and hardware. It would not be uncommon to see a MacIntosh computer, a PC with Windows, a PC with text, and a UNIX platform--operating in character mode-- all connected directly to the network. The university's strategic information technology plan must include a diverse collection of information services and host computers and ensure that a broad suite of network communications protocols (eg., Novell's IPX and TCP/IP), and workstation hardware and software will be present. SOURCE CONSULTED Douglas E. Van Houweling, "Knowledge Services in the Digitized World: Possibilities and Strategies," In: Electronic Access to Information: A New Service Paradigm. Proceedings from a symposium held July 23 through 24, 1993, Palo Alto, California: 5-16., eds. Win-Shin S. Chiang and Nancy E. Elkington (Mountain View, CA: The Research Libraries Group, Inc.) ============================================================= ============================================================= Background paper for HEIRAlliance Executive Strategies Report #4 prepared by representatives of DALHOUSIE UNIVERSITY Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada Howard C. Clark President William F. Birdsall University Librarian H. S. Peter Jones Executive Director, University Computing & Information Services Ken R. Maharaj Director, Administrative Computing Services ============================================================= WHAT PRESIDENTS NEED TO KNOW ABOUT THE PAYOFF ON THE INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY INVESTMENT: THE VIEW FROM DALHOUSIE UNIVERSITY 1 Introduction ------------------- 1.1 Information is the life-blood of universities; thus it is evident that I.T. should be of major benefit to universities. In fact, Dalhousie like other universities has become dependent on I.T. in most areas and can no longer function without the technology. 1.2 But not all benefits have been realized and not all as efficiently as they might have been. So an important question is whether universities are getting good or optimum value from their I.T. investment. It is a very difficult one to answer because of the difficulties of measuring payoff in most cases. 1.3 Initial use of I.T. investment enabled universities to automate processes that were formerly manual and hence to do them faster and with less human labour. The situation has now evolved and I.T. enables researchers to undertake problems that they could not even contemplate before, enables universities to provide a much higher quality of service to its students, and is changing the way students learn, faculty teach and do research, administrators manage etc. In fact, it is likely to change the nature of universities. Effective use of I.T. is essential for survival in the increasingly competitive and fiscally restrained world of higher education. 2 Specific examples of payoff -------------------------------------- 2.1 I.T. is enabling Dalhousie and other universities to better serve their prime clients: the students. For example: - A good student information system can streamline the process of registration and provide students with accurate information on their progress to date and what they need to complete their degree program. Dalhousie students and faculty have been given increasing access to such information and we are in the process of rewriting our student information system to improve such access further. - Dalhousie offers on-line access to university calendar and other information providing quick up-to- date information to prospective and existing students. - Students in widely separated regional towns can interact with several local universities, using access from high schools, libraries and their own homes. They can receive general or specific academic information about these universities, from calendar description to course registration, from fee-paying to how the basketball team fared at its last game. - Automated systems assist students in acquiring residence or other accommodation that suits their individual needs. - Computer technology has become an essential and integrated part of many courses for such purposes as simulation, statistical and mathematical analysis, information searches, document preparation etc. When used effectively the technology gives students better insight into their subjects and enables them to undertake more realistic assignments. Faculty at Dalhousie have noticed an improvement in the quality and breadth of term papers since students have had access to electronic data bases. - The technology offers an effective means of delivering course material (text, graphics, sound and video). This together with its two- way communications capability provides excellent tools for distance education. Several universities are already offering courses via the Internet. In this way specialists at a university can make their expertise available to a world-wide audience which has the potential of major payoff for them, their university and those they serve. - Local and wide-area networks, and the Internet in particular, are opening up a whole new world of information for students facilitating much more self generated learning. In Nova Scotia nine degree awarding institutions share a common electronic data base of library holdings. This joint catalogue is available via the Internet and students may borrow from any of the libraries. This has greatly extended the library resources available to students. - Many Dalhousie students keep in regular touch with their teachers and peers using e-mail and participate in asynchronous discussions on topics of interest using e-mail lists and/or electronic conferencing. These discussions are sometimes between small groups belonging to the same class and some are open to world- wide groups over the Internet. Some courses make significant use of the campus network. Students who might be shy to contribute in class sometimes find it easier to do so in an electronic discussion group. - The technology is also becoming of great benefit to physically challenged students, enabling them to undertake courses of study that would have been virtually impossible without the technology. - Computer networks also have significant social benefits for students; particularly those whose physical movements are restricted. Taken together the above examples provide a much richer learning environment for students. Although almost impossible to quantify, these payoffs are probably the most important ones. 2.2 Faculty and researchers are also major beneficiaries of I.T. - Computers have long been essential tools for researchers in the physical and social sciences. In some disciplines progress is directly related to the power of available computers as researchers explore larger and more accurate models. This is the case for several research groups at Dalhousie in Chemistry, Medicine, Oceanography and Physics who make extensive use of local and remote high performance computers. - Of benefit to all researchers is the ability to communicate easily and cheaply with colleagues around the world, and to be able to access from their studies or labs library catalogues and other data bases wherever they may be located. For example, Professor Deborah Hobson of Dalhousie University is a classics scholar and a papyrologist who is also an enthusiastic user of the technology. Recently she was unable to locate a copy from local university libraries of a rare book from which she needed vital information. She sent e-mail messages to fellow papyrologists around the world asking for help and twenty minutes later the two pages of the book she needed were faxed to her by a fellow researcher in Amsterdam. Researchers and others are realizing similar benefits on a regular basis and together they constitute a significant payoff. - Although computer assisted instruction took much longer than many predicted to realize its potential, its effective use is now more widespread. It can allow teachers to give students more individual attention and allows students to self-pace their learning. In fact, "computer assisted learning" is a better description of the way I.T. is used effectively to supplement classroom teaching. However, to realize these benefits the curriculum and teaching methods need to be revised and significant preparatory work is necessary. Thus it is important for universities to encourage this by giving credit for such work in promotion and tenure decisions; something that many have been reluctant to do. At Dalhousie, one of the most successful such uses of I.T. has been in the School of Business Administration. This school gave a high priority to integrating I.T. into its curriculum and produced a multi-year plan known as the "Courseware Development Project". All faculty and all students now use the technology as part of their everyday teaching and learning. Other areas at Dalhousie where I.T. is playing a major role in teaching and learning include Medicine and Law. 2.3 Prudent use of I.T. can enable university administrators to manage more effectively and efficiently, thus providing better services to their clients in a cost effective manner. Fully realizing these benefits has been elusive and in many universities there is still significant potential for improving administrative systems and reducing costs. Some examples of the benefits of I.T. to university administration follow: - Ability to communicate in a timely manner with faculty, staff and students dispersed across one or more campuses. At Dalhousie electronic communication is being used increasingly to better prepare members for committee meetings through asynchronous exchanges of views using e- mail prior to meetings, to setup meeting times and to distribute information. The latter saves paper, reduces the load on the campus "snail mail" and is quicker than traditional methods. Some committees now do most of their work in this manner. In fact the technology can significantly reduce the number of necessary meetings and could even eliminate the need for them altogether in some cases. This surely would be a major payoff for universities! - I.T. can improve the efficiency of physical plant and its maintenance. Dalhousie has reduced its oil bills through the use of an electronic monitoring systems and has reduced maintenance costs by automating schedules and records. - Improved and more cost effective campus security is possible using monitoring devices networked to a central security service. Members of Dalhousie University are now alerted to security dangers using the campus computer network. - I.T. has enabled some Dalhousie departments to reduce staffing costs and/or to divert staff to more productive activities thus improving services. For example, the university libraries have been able to reduce staffing costs as they have automated many of their record keeping activities (cataloguing, ordering, circulation, etc). The payoff of this type of automation is measurable. More recent and future potential benefits of I.T. in libraries are more difficult to measure. Library technical services are now able to communicate directly with binders, books and journal vendors, bibliographic utilities, and providers of electronic information sources. This is allowing libraries to shift staff to public service units to provide direct service to users. This is a critical need at this time because the impact of I.T. has really hit the public service areas due to the development of CD-ROM technology and the Internet. A Dalhousie student recently submitted the following comment: "Whoo-hoo! Love those CD-ROMs! They save me a lot of time and give me an enormous amount of timely info (pass the firehose, Verne, I'm thirsty)". This captures the attitude of most students, and faculty have commented that they are getting better researched papers from students because of their use of CD-ROM data bases and the Internet. - One major benefit of I.T. which has yet to be fully realized at Dalhousie and many other universities, is the timely provision of good university management information. To achieve this requires a major commitment by the university to coordinate its administrative data and to implement the necessary data management technology. Technology alone is not sufficient; it is important to have agreed policies and procedures for handling university data. Dalhousie has created a Committee On Data Administration (CODA) to develop and oversee these policies and procedures. It reports to the president. We feel there are major payoffs to be gained from treating university data as an important resource and this is therefore a central part of our strategy for administrative computing. We realize that it is impossible to determine completely in advance what specific information senior management will need so we are aiming to establish an integrated data base of all important university data, the meanings of which are clearly defined. By providing good secure access to this data base and appropriate search and reporting tools managers should be able to extract the information they require in future, whatever it may be. 2.4 Finally, other benefits of I.T. can be grouped under the heading of "outreach." Some examples at Dalhousie University follow: - As the area of university advancement continues to expand and becomes more vital to the future of Dalhousie the role of information technology becomes increasingly important to its success. Dalhousie Development Office relies on easy access of information to cost effectively raise an ever increasing amount of funds from private sources. Much of their solicitation is faculty based, or segmented in some other way. The ability to draw down prospects by faculty of graduation, age, etc and produce and address personalized solicitation letters is vital in the effective use of this approach to fund raising. Maintaining appropriate data on prospects is crucial to the success of major gift or capital campaign solicitations. Manipulation of data to provide a variety of reports for internal usage as well as to volunteers is another effective use of our computer systems. The use of computers to generate pledge reminders, tax receipts, and thank you letters enables the office to efficiently utilize staff resources. The Alumni Office utilizes I.T. in much the same way. Dalhousie's alumni data base is extremely useful in maintaining contact with alumni around the world, and in providing them with current information about the university. Alumni events can be more quickly and efficiently organized with ready access to graphical information. Information regarding the interests of alumni helps to ensure that the talents of individuals are utilized to benefit the university. - Providing services for the local community and participating in community affairs: Dalhousie is a major player in the local community "freenet", is an active participant in a Nova Scotia movement to use I.T. as an economic stimulant (known as NovaKnowledge), and provides and manages the technology for some fund- raising activities such as the Christmas Daddies Phonathon. These all promote and benefit university- community relations. - Dalhousie collaborates with other institutions in the use of I.T. Two notable examples are Novanet ( a cooperative project involving the libraries of nine Nova Scotia institutions referred to earlier) and the computer store known as PCPC (Personal Computer Purchasing Centre). PCPC is run by Dalhousie but is used by several other higher educational institutions in the area. These cooperative ventures save and generate money, and promote good inter- institutional relations. - Dalhousie takes advantage of its I.T. expertise and resources to provide services for private companies, government departments and other universities. For example, Dalhousie operates the Nova Scotia regional network on contract from NSTN Inc and provides high performance computer services to external organizations. These services generate income without seriously impacting services to internal clients. 3. Concluding Remarks. ------------------------------ 3.1 The payoff of I.T. is very real and extensive but, in most cases, difficult to measure. It is clear that universities must make effective use of I.T. to remain competitive and maybe to survive. But with decreasing budgets, increasing emphasis will have to be put on the "effective" use: getting close to optimum return for the investment. This means, that despite the difficulties, better ways will have to be found to measure the payoff. This might mean more fees for specific I.T. related services and allowing "market forces" to determine the value of the services. 3.2 I.T. is increasingly changing the way we teach, learn, research and administer, and current developments in communications technology might change the very nature of universities. Ultimately, the ability of computer technology to place a wide range of information processing capabilities and decision-making advice on the desktop of every member of the student body, staff and faculty, provides the capability for enhanced individual productivity at every stage of the various work being addressed by these individuals. Such enhanced capacity throughout an organization must result in a general qualitative improvement, whose long-term effects can only be salutary for our institutions, and for the societies which they serve. ============================================================= ============================================================= Background paper for HEIRAlliance Executive Strategies Report #4 prepared by representatives of KENYON COLLEGE Gambier, Ohio Philip H. Jordan,Jr. President Paul Gherman Director of the Library Thomas F. Moberg Vice President, Information & Computer Services ============================================================= WHAT PRESIDENTS NEED TO KNOW ABOUT THE PAYOFF ON THE INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY INVESTMENT: THE VIEW FROM KENYON COLLEGE OUTLINE I. INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY AT KENYON COLLEGE: 1986 - 1994 A. The Development of Kenyon College's IT Environment from 1986 to 1994 B. IT Services and Resources Currently Available at Kenyon College C. Some Budget Information Related to IT at Kenyon College D. Some Staffing Information Related to IT at Kenyon College II. SUMMARY STATEMENT ABOUT IT PAYOFFS A. Communication B. Educational Mission and Empowerment C. Quality of Instruction and Research D. Productivity, Efficiency, and Effectiveness E. Informed Planning and Management of Resources F. Issues of Status and Competition G. Community and Collegiality H. Connectivity and Service to the Local Community III. CONTRIBUTED STATEMENTS A. Philip Jordan, Jr.; President B. Reed Browning; Provost C. Paul Gherman; Director of the Library D. Scott Siddall; Director of Academic Computing E. Michael Fox; Assistant Director of Academic Computing F. Bill Quimby; Manager of Library Automation G. Bev Actis; Office Operations Manager/User Services Specialist H. Ron Griggs; Director of Networks, Systems, and Technical Services I. Glen Turney; Director of Administrative Computing Applications J. Joseph Nelson; Vice President for Finance K. Teri Leonard; Comptroller L. Jack Finefrock; Manager of the Bookstore M. John Kurella; Manager of Business Services N. Karen Frasca; Director of Fringe Benefits and Staff Relations O. Tom Stamp; Director of Public Affairs The material in this document was compiled, edited, and summarized by Bev Actis (Office Operations Manager/User Services Specialist) and Tom Moberg (Vice President for Information & Computing Services). I. INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY AT KENYON COLLEGE: 1986-1994 Kenyon College was a late follower in developing a comprehensive campus Information Technology (IT) program. While computing was used for academic and administrative applications as far back as the early 1970's, it wasn't until the mid-1980's that a significant emphasis was placed on this area. In the past seven years or so, the Kenyon IT environment has changed from mediocre to being comparable with those of the high-quality, selective institutions in Kenyon's peer group. This section provides information about the development and current status of information resources, services, and technology at Kenyon. A. The Development of Kenyon College's IT Environment Between 1986-1994 1. Strategic Planning In 1986-87, the College had no coherent long-range plans for computing or networking. A set of basic goals for developing a campus network and substantially improving access to computing resources for faculty, staff, and students was defined in 1987-88. Those goals were basically completed by 1991-92. The College recently developed an institutional Strategic Plan which treats information as a strategic asset. The Plan has goals and objectives related to information access, management, and technology integrated throughout. 2. Organization and Management of IT Prior to 1988, the College had separate academic and administrative computing departments, reporting to different senior administrators. Cooperation between the two departments was minimal. Computing services and resources were very limited, with various campus constituencies completely ignored. Network development was primitive. Use of computing as an instructional and administrative resource was minimal. Discontent among faculty and staff was high. In November, 1988, the College created a new division, Information and Computing Services, to oversee information technologies on the campus. A Vice Presidential position, reporting to the President, was created. A new staff structure was created with three departments: Academic Computing; Administrative Computing; Networks, Systems, and Technical Services. These departments support all central computing, microcomputing, library automation, networking, campus information systems, media delivery systems, and equipment installation, maintenance and repair. 3. Network Development The campus "network" consisted of a few low-speed, unreliable, leased phone lines providing terminal connections to the VAXes in 1986-87. Now, the campus network, built on fiber optic cable between buildings and twisted-pair copper cable within buildings, covers almost every building on campus, with a network architecture which includes Ethernet and FDDI components. Network resources include central VAX systems, library resources, a microcomputer LAN, optional network connections from student residence rooms, and full Internet access for everyone. 4. Central Computing Facilities Since the mid 1980's, the central computing facilities have grown from two small VAXes, with no communication link between them, to the current complement of five VAX systems (3100, 4100, 4200, 4300, 4500) with about 22 gigabytes of storage arranged in a single cluster. The total VAX processing power has increased nearly 900% (from 6.[5] "VAX Processor Units" to the current 63 units.) 5. Access to Computing and Network Resources Access to the network and computing resources for students has increased from about one access device (terminal, microcomputer) for every 30 students to about one access device for every 8 or 9 students, with access locations in classrooms, laboratories, studios, the Library, and residence halls. In 1986-87, only a handful of faculty and staff had office computing resources. Now, essentially all faculty and staff have desktop computing resources and full network access. The College currently has about 250 terminals and 350 microcomputers deployed, compared to roughly 50 terminals and perhaps 30 microcomputers in 1986-87. About 300 students currently have subscribed to the optional Student Network Access Program, which gives them dedicated network ports in their living quarters. Four technological instructional areas have been developed, with several more in the planning stage. 6. Use and Applications of IT Resources In 1986-87, less than 10% of Kenyon's faculty, staff and students made any regular use of College supplied computing resources. Now, almost everyone on campus uses the central systems every week and hundreds of people use microcomputers. Faculty use of IT for instructional support is accelerating. In the past six years, the Academic Computing Awards Program has allocated about $130,000 to fund curricular development projects using technology, with about 50% going to the Natural Sciences, 40% to the Fine Arts, and the rest to other areas. Virtually all faculty, students, and staff use electronic mail, word processing, and other on-line information resources. Internet use is growing rapidly. The basic library automation system has been completed, and new initiatives to provide access to information are continually underway. The early ICS staff emphasis on simple data processing support for administrative departments has changed to a much more comprehensive perspective involving development of campus information systems and reengineering of major administrative operations. 7. Development and Operating Costs Funding for the major information technology developments has come primarily from off-budget sources: campaign gifts, reserves, operating budget surpluses. Between 1986-87 and 1991-92, Kenyon spent an average of about $600,000 per year on information technology development, including network construction, installation of access devices, VAX systems, library automation, and facilities. The ICS operating budget for 1993-94 is $1,265,000, about 4% of the College E&G budget. B. IT SERVICES AND RESOURCES CURRENTLY AVAILABLE AT KENYON COLLEGE This section describes the information technology services and resources currently available to the Kenyon College community under the auspices of the division of Information & Computing Services (ICS). Most of these services were added since 1986-87. 1. General support for campus community * Fully supported, standardized word processing available for everyone. * Electronic mail available to everyone. * Full Internet access available to everyone. * Wide range of information resources available via KCInfo, a campus-wide electronic information system. * Telephone HelpLine to provide a single call-in point for all questions related to computing, networking, and audio-visual services. * Training in computing and networking provided through individual helpand dozens of workshops per year. * Discount purchase program for personal microcomputers. * Supported standards in place for major software and hardware tools. 2. Services and resources to support student work * One computing device (and network access point) for every 9 students, with locations in residence halls, classroom buildings, laboratories, and the library. * Staff of well trained student computing assistants to provide problem solving support at various locations. * Widely available laser printing at no extra charge. * Student Network Access Program to provide optional network connections from student residences. 3. Services and resources to support faculty and staff * Fully supported desktop computing stations, with network access, in every faculty and staff office. * Laser printers in all academic and administrative departments. * Individual printers in about half of all faculty offices and many staff offices. * Fully configured, standardized software loads installed in all faculty and staff microcomputers. * Regular upgrades for faculty and staff office computing equipment to support changing needs. * Standard office productivity tools, including microcomputers, terminals, software, and laser printers, for all academic and administrative clerical staff. * On-going program of training and support for support and administrative staff. 4. Services and resources to support instruction and research * Management and support of all campus media delivery systems. * Four computer-equipped instructional areas. * Academic Computing Awards Program to provide funding for innovative projects using instructional computing. * Planning and implementation support for grants. * Individual consulting with faculty on curricular uses of information technology, start-up equipment, etc. * Access to all Internet resources, including supercomputing, through OARNET membership. * Assistance with installation of microcomputer software. 5. Library automation * On-line catalog for Kenyon collection. * On-line searching of catalogs at hundreds of other institutions. * Large collection of CD-ROM databases. * On-line interlibrary loan services. 6. Technical and management services and resources * Extensive collection of supported VAX resources. * Continuing development and support of the campus network, including the fiber optic cable based Ethernet backbone and a Novell Netware microcomputer network system. * Installations and relocations for all faculty and staff computing equipment. * Full diagnostic and repair service for all College IT equipment. * Central purchasing and management for all College IT equipment. * Central purchasing for all printing supplies. * Consultation and advice on IT purchases related to grants, start-up funds, departmental needs, etc. * Regular program of planning and funding upgrades to all computing and networking equipment. C. SOME BUDGET INFORMATION RELATED TO IT AT KENYON COLLEGE The comments in this section are related to trends in Kenyon's enrollment, E&G budget, faculty salaries, student aid, library budget, and information technology (IT) budget. 1. During the five fiscal years from 1989-90 to 1993-94, Kenyon's enrollment decreased by about 5%, the College's E&G budget grew 38%, the faculty salary pool grew 40%, and student aid grew 110%. 2. During the five fiscal years from 1989-90 to 1993-94, library expenditures grew by about 4% in dollars, but as a percentage of the College E&G budget, dropped from 5.7% to 4.3%. Note: The staff line associated with the library automation position was transferred from the library to ICS in 1988-89, and the staff line and budget associated with the audio-visual hardware services were transferred from the library to ICS in 1992-93; these transfers of responsibility account for some of the changes in the associated budgets. 3. During the five fiscal years from 1989-90 to 1993-94, information technology expenditures grew by about 38%, the same as the growth rate in the College E&G budget during that period. Thus, as a percentage of E&G, the IT budget stayed constant at about 4.1% during that period. 4. The growth areas in the information technology budgets in the past five years have been desktop computing hardware, the Academic Computing Awards Program, equipment repair and maintenance, and networking costs. The major area of shrinkage, and the one which has provided for growth in other areas, has been in hardware maintenance contracts with vendors. This large decrease in maintenance contract costs parallels the rapid decrease in the cost of VAX equipment. D. SOME STAFFING INFORMATION RELATED TO IT AT KENYON COLLEGE The comments in this section are related to the use of Kenyon's VAX systems and ICS staffing and load trends. 1. Since 1986-87, the number of individuals using Kenyon's VAX systems per week has grown from about 100 to nearly 2000, a rough increase of about 1900%. 2. Over the past 8 years, the total number of College staff committed to information technology has grown from 14 FTE's (not counting A/V staff) to 22.[6] FTE's (including AV hardware staff), about a 60% increase. During that same period, the number of VAX users per IT staff member (a rough measure of "load") has grown from 11 to 87, an increase of nearly 700%. 3. Notes about the ICS staff composition: a. Prior to 1988-89, Kenyon had separate academic and administrative computing operations, with no networking staff and no library automation staff. The composition of the ICS staff since the new organization was created has been in state of continual evolution as positions have been added, eliminated, and modified to reflect the changing support needs of the user community and the addition of major new service areas (e.g., library automation, networking, media technology). b. The ICS staff includes 1 FTE to support library automation and 1 FTE to handle media technology; at many colleges, these positions would be counted as part of the library staff. c. The ICS staff includes 2.[5] FTE to handle data entry and accounting functions; at many colleges, these positions would be counted as part of the Accounting staff. d. The ICS staff has about 2 FTE's committed to direct support of microcomputer use by faculty and staff; at many colleges, these support tasks are handled by staff members in individual departments. e. ICS handles all information technology purchasing for the College, which requires about .[5] FTE.; at many colleges, this work would be done in a purchasing department, by academic departments, or by individual faculty and staff. f. The ICS staff has 3 FTE's to handle all the College's IT equipment installation, repair, and maintenance. Two of these positions were originally funded by savings from canceled maintenance contracts on peripheral equipment, while the third position is funded by revenues generated from the Student Network Access Program. g. ICS has one vice presidential position to head the division; these leadership and management tasks are handled by the chief academic officer or chief finance officer at many other colleges. II. SUMMARY STATEMENT ABOUT IT PAYOFFS One of the greatest benefits from Kenyon's IT investment is that the College is now ready to fully take advantage of the rapidly developing world of information resources provided by international networking. The College has essentially completed the basic work of building a network infrastructure, providing wide access to computing resources for students, installing desktop computing devices for all faculty and staff, and nurturing a campus culture which embraces electronic communication as an essential tool of scholarly and administrative work. We are now in a period of integration and transformation, where we are using our IT resources to develop new paradigms for teaching, learning, and working. We believe that the payoffs which the College has already realized from our IT investment will multiply and compound rapidly in the coming years. This section of the report describes a number of specific areas in which Kenyon's investment in information technology has yielded payoffs for the institution. Most of the claims about payoffs are based on anecdotal and qualitative observations. Nevertheless, in the aggregate, there have been substantial positive changes in Kenyon's teaching, learning, and administrative environment as a result of the IT investment. A. Communication Nearly everyone at Kenyon would agree that the area where IT has made the largest impact is in communication, both on and off campus. Campus communication patterns have changed significantly since e-mail became a standard mode of communicating. As President Philip Jordan, Jr., said "Kenyon's connectivity through our fully-integrated campus network, with virtually all students, faculty, administrators and staff as users, has created a sense of interconnectedness among all of us. We can reach each other easily, converse with several people about the same topic, get out messages to all hands or just to one group of people, carry on an exchange of views, review texts in composition and much else -- all by electronic mail." The presence of a full campus network, desktop access for all faculty and staff, and a very large number of public access points available for students provided the necessary infrastructure to make universal electronic mail a reality. Most people on campus saw the virtue and utility of e-mail on their own, and endorsement of the use of e-mail by the President helped push the skeptical members of the community to become users. Full access to the Internet for all members of the campus community has also been a significant factor in the ubiquitous use of e-mail. The installation of a campus-wide information system based on a gopher server (KCInfo) has also been very useful for centralizing, simplifying, and distributing College information of all types. Between e-mail and KCInfo, the volume of phone calls, paper memos, and business forms around campus have decreased dramatically. Some of the examples about the value of electronic communications cited by members of the community are: * E-mail provides access to College personnel that students may not otherwise get to see or know. It also plays a critical role in better, more efficient communication among student organizations. * Automatic generation and updating of e-mail distribution lists facilitates distribution of announcements to special interest groups, broadcasting of critical messages to the entire campus, and advertising for campus events. * The Internet allows communications around the world to be almost instantaneous, and it's simpler than mail or phone. This has greatly facilitated communications with Kenyon students studying abroad, which has aided in advising, retention, etc. * KCInfo allows campus information to be posted in one convenient location, updated quickly and easily, and available 24 hours a day. * The Student Affairs division finds communication to be the principal benefit of IT. It is easier to reach students for meetings, to respond to questions, to "post" information in KCInfo, to announce residence hall programs, and to send out quick notices about Maintenance issues (cold weather notices, heating concerns, shutting off water or power). B. Educational Mission and Empowerment Kenyon's mission is to empower students with knowledge, through the right use of information, so that they can function successfully in the world that they are about to enter. IT serves the educational mission of Kenyon because it provides students, in their pursuit of knowledge, with the resources and tools to access and use information effectively, which is crucial in an increasingly technological world. In commenting on the capacity of the Internet to support the College's mission, Provost Reed Browning notes that "The product of this attention to the instructional implications of the Internet will be an alumni body that is comfortable in the new world of digitized information and instantaneous linkages." C. Quality of Instruction and Research Kenyon's IT investment has already had a significant impact on the style and quality of instruction at the College. While the range of technological expertise in the faculty is still fairly large, nearly every faculty member makes use of information technology in some form to enhance, simplify, and facilitate teaching and research activities. This was not even remotely true five years ago. Kenyon has several programs designed to incorporate information technologies and resources into the curriculum. The Academic Computing Awards Program, basically an in-house, peer-reviewed grant program, provides funding to help faculty members develop new curricular applications using technology. Under a three year grant from the Pew Charitable Trusts, staff members from ICS and the Library are leading faculty development and course development activities which are designed to incorporate new information resources and technologies into the first and second year curricula. These two programs are having a significant impact on the use of IT at Kenyon, and increasingly, are focusing attention on major issues of pedagogy and scholarship. Attempts to incorporate IT into the instructional program prompt personal and institutional self-evaluations and discussions about teaching. For example, in the Summer Institute on Academic Information Resources funded by the Pew Foundation grant, faculty discuss ways to use new technology in teaching, and thus confront the old paradigms of instruction. The role of faculty members is changing as technology facilitates and requires new teaching methodologies. The immense access to information via the Internet obliges faculty members to teach new skills of source discrimination to students. President Philip Jordan, Jr. notes "IT makes possible a new focus on pedagogy, since it provides new ways to teach, and on student learning, since much more self-directed, on-your- own-time learning is possible... Faculty are more guides and critics than information-delivering authorities." At Kenyon, everyone has full access to the Internet, a resource which Provost Reed Browning describes as "... an almost inexpressibly grand tool for learning and instruction." This obviously gives both students and faculty access to rich information resources around the globe. News groups offer "hot off the press" information resources that change daily, giving greater exposure to the dynamic world we live in. A number of faculty members encourage or require their students to participate in discussion groups to enhance their understanding of the discipline area. In the area of pedagogical impact, the use of IT has had perhaps the greatest payoffs in teaching mathematics and science. For example, by using tools of computational science and visualization, faculty members can explain very complex concepts which were previously almost impossible to illustrate clearly. Faculty and students can do quantum mechanics calculations right in the classroom or laboratory, instead of having to use a super-computer somewhere off- campus. In chemistry, the use of sophisticated software packages like HyperChem makes it possible for students to study molecular modeling concepts. Visualization has also been used effectively for such diverse applications as models of population growth and tutorials on laboratory instrumentation. In biology, teachers are able to focus on statistical design issues, and use graphs more in teaching. Some faculty members note that, by exploiting the computational power available to them in classrooms and labs, they can work with real, "messy" problems, not just unrealistic ones that have tidy, analytic solutions. Electronic communication and use of new IT resources have a positive impact on faculty/student interactions. Using e- mail, students ask "little" questions they wouldn't ask otherwise. Faculty members can ensure better communication about class business, assignments, exams, etc. using e-mail. Faculty-student contact can be increased through on-line conferences, which can take place outside the normal constraints of time and place. These out-of-class electronic discussions extend and expand the in-class discussions and allow participation by ALL students. The use of multimedia materials enables instructors to convey knowledge more effectively. One faculty member has developed an extensive 3-D animation of synapse activity to illustrate this complex concept. With these materials, which the students can use at their own pace and on their own time, learning is more customized and student-centered. Students are able to construct their own bases of knowledge in new ways using IT. For example, seniors in the Asian Studies class collaboratively developed a multimedia publication on political, economic, and religious systems. This IT- facilitated activity provides an expanded and richer learning environment for students, outside the traditional classroom mode. Writing has always been a key part of the instructional process at Kenyon. Students typically write dozens of papers of all sorts each year. Since virtually all writing now takes place in some electronic format, it is easier for faculty members to require rewriting of student research papers to improve the quality of both the writing and the research. Also, e-mail and on-line discussion groups each require unique writing styles which are different from the more formal writing expected in research papers, so students are developing more comprehensive writing skills appropriate for particular contexts. These skills will be very useful for our graduates who will live and work in a world where electronic communications are increasingly important. A key feature of scholarly work at Kenyon is that the research activities of the faculty are closely intertwined with the instructional program. Students in all discipline areas participate collaboratively with the faculty as real partners in research activities. Through electronic communication, use of Internet resources, expanded access to scholarly information, and use of data in new forms, the College's IT resources have enhanced the research environment for faculty and students. Some examples: * IT improves access to research tools and resources for both students and faculty. The on-line library catalog is available from all classrooms, labs, offices, and student residence rooms with network connections. Also, access to electronic databases and on-line catalogs from other institutions via the Internet improves researchers' options. \As Provost Reed Browning say: "(The Internet) is an avenue to a world of unexampled bibliographic richness, and, increasingly, to a world of centrally important full-text documents." * Students and faculty are able to communicate with other scholars around the world by using Internet e-mail and by participation in scholarly discussion groups. Faculty can track the latest developments in their fields and have almost immediate response to queries that used to take weeks. Students can contact and share ideas with students engaged in similar research activities and who are enrolled in similar courses at other academic institutions. * In the Library, IT has had a great impact on the qualitative and quantitative access to information by library users. Students can quickly and easily locate information from sources such as specialized CD-ROM databases of bibliographic information, on-line commercial databases, and Internet-accessible library catalogs around the world. This has led to increased borrowing through the inter-library loan service. * A wide variety of new information services are available to faculty and students. A subscription to Lexis/Nexis gives access to major law journals and newspapers for $325/month. FirstSearch allows users to search a 28 million item database, articles of which are available by FAX within hours. Faculty and students have fast access to the full text of federal government reports which are increasingly available on-line, directly from the point of creation, without waiting weeks or months for the printed version. D. Productivity, Efficiency, and Effectiveness One of the common areas where the use of IT provides payoffs for an organization is in administrative operations. Almost all administrative processes can benefit from some application of technology, ranging from the basic "paving the cowpaths" to complete reengineering of entire systems of operation. The payoffs are generally in productivity, efficiency and effectiveness. Kenyon is probably typical of small institutions which have proceeded in a generally piecemeal fashion to use technology to change administrative processes. The examples range from the earliest computer applications for managing financial data to the current efforts to reengineer the purchasing system. In addition to business and administrative applications, all staff members at Kenyon profit from the use of e-mail and other electronic information resources. In many ways, the benefits from using IT can be measured by realizing what couldn't be accomplished without it. Every department of the College has come to depend upon technology as an essential tool. Without the use of IT tools, the routine work people do would take much longer, be done much less efficiently, or simply couldn't be done at all. Following are some specific examples of the payoffs from IT in the administrative areas: * The College Bookstore manager, Jack Finefrock, says IT does the "drudge" jobs. The use of the TOMTRACS software saves 8 person- weeks of work in ordering and processing textbooks. The on-line Books- In-Print and PUBNET service reduce ordering and shipping time, provide instant stock confirmation, and yield higher discounts. Book orders are placed directly with the publishers, rather than through a distributor, and the Bookstore can keep less inventory because of quick delivery. * The administration of staff contracts is done on-line, including information gathering and record keeping on spreadsheets by the Staff Relations office, preparation of contract materials and payroll revisions by Accounting, and issuance of renewal contract letters by the President's office. The degree of coordination among departments would be impossible without IT tools. This procedures saves countless hours of staff work and provides better data more quickly to the senior management staff to use in their decision-making. * Kenyon's Comptroller, Teri Leonard, notes that IT has helped the Accounting office work more efficiently in handling the College payroll, processing student loan materials, planning the College budget, paying bills electronically, doing bulk mailings, printing forms and reports, etc. * The College Relations office maintains databases of external contacts which include information on alumni, parents, donors, businesses, and foundations. This data supports the targeting and development of potential donors to Kenyon, and is also used for other applications such as developing career advising contacts for graduating seniors. * On a residential campus, allocation of student housing is a significant issue. An on-line housing lottery system enables the Student Housing office to administer this complex process fairly and non-politically. * The Registrar's office has a number of on-line systems that includes both the usual ones related to student records and registration and others that are less typical, such as a very popular course enrollment system which provides early warning of full classes. The Registrar also uses a room assignment package (Schedule25) which assigns classes to classrooms in an optimal manner. Use of this package has reduced the complex room assignment process from three weeks to a few minutes, and also allows the Registrar to investigate a variety of "what if" scenarios involving class size, room capacities, etc. which would be impossible without an on-line system. * Kenyon's Admissions staff have become heavy users of computing and networking tools to help them in their crucial task of recruiting excellent students. While most of the work involves fairly standard applications such as tracking prospectives, managing lists, producing mailings, and evaluating data, the use of IT has made it possible for the Admissions staff to work more effectively and efficiently. * The administration of the student aid program is being increasingly streamlined by the use of IT systems. The MicroFaids software, running on a Novell network linking the Financial Aid staff, is used to compute allowable aid from FAF information, do follow up on paperwork received, and report on aid awarded. This improves the accuracy of the process and reduces clerical and management time. * The Kenyon library has a wide array of on-line systems to handle its administrative processes and information collections. Examples include the on-line catalog, inter- library loan, circulation, budget management, government documents, etc. Use of these systems has had many payoffs including reduction in staff time, more efficient use of staff time, better budget management, and faster service to patrons. The availability of a mature on-line catalog system was one reason why the library embarked on an extensive project to convert the catalog system from Dewey to Library of Congress. * The implementation of microcomputers and desktop publishing software, along with access to the campus network, has revolutionized the work of the Public Affairs office. Tom Stamp, Director of Public Affairs, observes that "So great has been the impact of computing on the Office of Public Affairs that it is becoming increasingly hard to remember the daily routine of just ten years ago, when typewriters sat where microcomputers and printers now hold sway." The writing, editing, design, layout, typesetting, and printing of publications all depend heavily on IT. This has not only increased productivity and faster generation of time- sensitive materials, but has also led to cost savings in the production costs of printed materials. The Public Affairs staff has also come to depend heavily on the use of the campus network for access to e-mail, library resources, information resources on the Internet, and KCInfo, the campus-wide information system. The productivity of faculty has also been enhanced by the use of IT. All faculty secretaries have networked microcomputers and laser printers in their offices, and now handle many tasks which would have been difficult or impossible several years ago. Most faculty now prepare their course materials on their office computers, which frees the secretaries to handle other things. Administrative work, such as searches, are much easier with the help of e-mail, databases, and word- processing tools. Faculty can handle many routine student questions via e-mail and discussion groups, a form of faculty-student contact which is often more convenient for students and which increases faculty productivity without reducing the interaction between faculty and students. Productivity discussions often center on faculty work and administrative operations, but students at Kenyon have also profited greatly by the access to computing and networking. For example, writing small and large papers is one of the major learning activities for students. This involves not only research and writing, but also the often time-consuming task of producing clean, readable copy to hand in to the faculty. The combination of a single word- processing package (WordPerfect) on all microcomputers and on the central VAX systems and a large number of distributed laser printers provides a standardized, well-supported word processing system which greatly simplifies the production of student papers. With production burdens eased, students can spend more time on writing and re-writing to improve the quality of their work. The recent addition of scanning equipment, graphics software, and color printers has added a new dimension to the kinds of papers students can produce. For example, one student scanned in Mayan hieroglyphics and included them in a report. Most of the applications of technology in the Library have been directly beneficial to students in their work. The on- line catalog provides a fast, easy, efficient way to locate information from any network access point on campus. The on- line circulation system identifies materials which are checked out or available. To obtain materials from other libraries, students can submit inter-library loan requests over the network. The implementation of the HelpLine, Kenyon's help desk facility, has had a significant positive effect on the productivity of students, faculty and staff. The HelpLine protects and extends the College's computing investment by helping callers use their computing resources more efficiently without wasting time hunting for hard-to-find answers. By using an on-line referral and tracking system, the HelpLine staff responds to callers more efficiently by quickly directing problems to the most appropriate ICS staff member. The HelpLine also provides a central feedback point for evaluating and improving IT services at Kenyon. E. Informed Planning and Management of Resources The existence of a campus network has led to "networked thinking" about important College data. The central file concept, made possible by the full campus network, allows data management at one central location, distributed file updating at the point of data origin, and access from any location on campus. One-time data entry for employee and student information, for example, increases data accuracy and allows for automatic updating of information resources like the phone directory, e-mail distribution lists, mailing lists, donor information, scholarship information, and payroll updates. All of this saves time and resources. Staff members from many departments contribute data to the campus employee master database and student master database, and in turn, are able to use the data with confidence in its accuracy and reliability. Most databases are used by several departments without quarrels about "ownership." For example, the central billing file is used by Financial Aid, Student Advising, and Accounting. The student prospect file is used by Admissions and Athletics. The data file developed by College Relations is also used by Admissions and the Career Development Center. Databases of this type, and the management and communications systems built on them, are viewed as significant institutional assets which enable administrators to make better, more informed decisions. For example, the Information & Computing Services division has systems for tracking equipment and software, for handling the acquisition of all College IT equipment, for managing network and computing facilities, and for tracking technical and user support problems. With an inventory of thousands of items, the College's equipment tracking system maintained by the Accounting office is essential for good management and planned budgeting. Joe Nelson, Vice President for Finance, notes that "the real value of technology is that the precision it provides to the decision making process allows for the ramifications of the decision to be almost instantly evaluated. This has dramatically reduced the number of poor decisions that would have been otherwise made because data would not otherwise be available. In short, technology makes us all better managers and that should result in better products for the consumer." F. Issues of Status and Competition Colleges such as Kenyon exist in a highly challenging environment, competing for the best students and faculty with other selective, high quality institutions. While many things contribute to an institution's competitiveness, IT resources play a positive role. Scott Siddall, Director of Academic Computing, states that "Information technology enhances our ability to recruit and retain the best students and faculty. According to annual survey data, each year's entering class arrives with greater experience and skill in computing and network communications, which translates into greater expectations for access to such tools. Our investment in information technology has helped us meet those expectations. Our new faculty have elevated expectations as well, and this is an issue in the retention of the best instructors. For example, Professor Sullivan (Physics) worked extensively with his Los Alamos colleagues over the Internet while he was a visiting member of our faculty. Our ability to support his collaborative work was an important element in his decision to accept our offer of a tenure track line." Kenyon strives for excellence and high quality in all aspects of its programs in order to attract and retain highly capable students and outstanding faculty members. In the IT area, Kenyon aspires to have an IT program which is comparable to those of the best colleges of our type, thus enhancing our competitiveness and stature. With resources such as the campus-wide information system (KCInfo), the on-line Library catalog and information resources menu, the Student Network Access Program, the Academic Computing Awards Program, the Kenyon Microcomputer Purchase Plan, the HelpLine service, and the unified, standardized campus network, Kenyon often serves as a model for other liberal arts colleges. This plays a part in projecting the image of a strong, high-quality institution. Kenyon College is located in a small town in a rural part of Ohio. This isolation could be perceived to be a drawback in terms of access to the scholarly world which is often centered in large, urban areas. However, Kenyon's full campus network and Internet access makes it possible to have the best of both worlds: the beauty and calm of the rural setting along with full access to the global information pool. The network also allows prospective students, parents, Trustees, guests, and other members of the "Kenyon family" to use the campus-wide information system (KCInfo) to find information about Kenyon simply by browsing the menus. As President Philip Jordan put it: "The availability of information has been revolutionized. From local bulletin boards and information reference collections, through to national databases and international networks, we have on Kenyon's rural hilltop electronic access to information that brings a sense of currency and being in touch. No longer does a country college feel isolated by the distance to the nearest major city: the world is seconds away." G. Community and Collegiality One of the often touted characteristics of small liberal arts colleges is the sense of community and collegiality which exists on these campuses. Faculty, students, and staff tend to know each other better than in larger, less personal institutions. While some people may view the use of information technology as potentially depersonalizing, at Kenyon the use of IT resources such as e-mail and KCInfo tends to reinforce the sense of close and friendly contact among all members of the campus community. E-mail simplifies and supplements business and social conversations. The egalitarianism of e-mail makes communications among faculty, students, and staff easier and more open. "Our fully- integrated campus network, with virtually all students, faculty, administrators and staff as users, has created a sense of interconnectedness among all of us" notes President Philip Jordan, Jr. The campus-wide information system (KCInfo), although only in full use for this academic year, has already provided many positive benefits for the community. KCInfo provides a single entry point and a logically organized central repository for all sorts of on-line information about the College, departments, programs, student organizations, classes, etc. This gives all members of the community information which is easily accessible 24 hours a day, and which is more current than paper-based information. Besides the information value, this centralized information resource helps people think holistically about the community while still allowing constituent groups to maintain and project a sense of identity. The universal use of e-mail on campus and Kenyon's link to the Internet have contributed to a stronger sense of our participation in the global academic community. Kenyon's faculty and students listen to and join in on Internet discussion groups on a wide variety of academic topics. Faculty "attend" virtual conferences in their discipline areas, read and contribute to e-journals, and join scholars from around the world in research projects. Students are able to collaborate on projects with students from other institutions. For science students whose sequential major courses often preclude off-campus study programs, collaborative work with students from other institutions can provide a useful and productive alternative to off-campus work. The College's investment in our IT infrastructure helps develop and reinforce feelings of community and collegiality in the scholarly world. H. Connectivity and Service to the Local Community While information technology has allowed our students and faculty to reach resources all over the globe, Kenyon's IT resources have also provided opportunities to forge new links to our local community and members of the "Kenyon extended family." Members of faculty and staff families, as well as parents of students, alumni, donors, and Trustees, are given accounts on the College's VAX systems at no cost if they want them. Faculty members at a neighboring college which has not had an Internet link use Kenyon's dial-in facilities to gain access to Internet resources. Library staff members from local K-12 schools and public libraries are also allowed to use Kenyon's library and technology resources. Rural communities in particular are unprepared for the new opportunities afforded by the rapid developments in computing and communications. In Knox County, where Kenyon College is located, local K-12 staff members have turned to Kenyon for the expertise we have assembled as our IT program has grown. Staff members from Kenyon's Information & Computing Services division are providing advice to help county schools and libraries develop IT programs and networking systems. These College-community partnerships bring members of the community to the campus, help them become familiar with the College's programs, staff, and physical resources, and break down barriers which have tended to isolate the College from the community. III. CONTRIBUTED STATEMENTS BY KENYON COLLEGE ADMINISTRATORS A. Philip Jordan, Jr.; President Kenyon's connectivity through our fully-integrated campus network, with virtually all students, faculty, administrators and staff as users, has created a sense of interconnectedness among all of us. We can reach each other easily, converse with several people about the same topic, get out messages to all hands or just to one group of people, carry on an exchange of views, review texts in composition and much else -- all by electronic mail. I can, for example, learn from the student newspaper how they plan to quote me and make corrections before they go to print. The flow of paper is wonderfully diminished, and the telephone is reserved for real conversations. As communications have been revolutionized, so also has been the availability of information. Through local bulletin boards and information reference collections, through to national data bases and international networks, we have on Kenyon's rural hilltop electronic access to information that brings a sense of currency and being in touch. No longer does a country college feel isolated by the distance to the nearest major city: the world is seconds away. Information technology makes possible a new focus on pedagogy, since it provides new ways to teach, and on student learning, since much more self-directed, on your own time learning is possible. Faculty are thinking differently about their teaching -- in some subjects at least -- and becoming more guides and critics than information-delivering authorities. There is more collaborative learning as well. And we are teaching students how to use information sources with strategic purpose and discrimination, so as to find what they need and not be drowned. B. Reed Browning; Provost Access to the Internet opens up an almost inexpressibly grand tool for learning and instruction. Kenyon faculty members can stay in hourly contact with colleagues around the world, getting almost instantaneous responses to queries that as recently as a decade ago took weeks to explore. Evidentiary finds, testing strategies, and interpretive hypotheses can be publicized and critiqued in a matter of days; errors can be identified and corrected almost as promptly. Moreover, targeted "surfing" of the Internet allows faculty members to measure the pulse of disciplinary activity. For Kenyon students the Internet opens up the possibility of establishing contact with and sharing ideas with students who are engaged in similar activities (e.g., enrolled in similar courses) at other colleges and universities. It is an avenue to a world of unexampled bibliographic richness and, increasingly, to a world of centrally important full-text documents. The existence of the Internet obliges faculty members to teach new skills of source discrimination, to be guides rather than authorities. The product of all of this attention to the instructional implications of the Internet will be an alumni body that is comfortable in the new world of digitized information and instantaneous linkages. The sound you hear is the crumbling of walls. C. Paul Gherman; Director of the Library The impact of technology on libraries falls into two categories. The first is the impact of technology on the labor intensive operational activities of running a library. The second impact is on the qualitative and quantitative access to information by users of libraries. Local systems, or the software systems which facilitate acquisitions, cataloging, circulation, and public access to the collections has helped libraries maintain or increase services with the same or fewer numbers of staff. By having the DRA automated system in place, Kenyon College was able to embark on the conversion of its collection from the Dewey decimal to the Library of Congress classification system. Conversion from one system to the other was done by machine matching of the electronic records. By converting to the Library of Congress cataloging system, the speed of current cataloging has improved so that within two years fewer staff members have reduced the cataloging backlog by two-thirds. The investment in the campus network has paid off by allowing overdue notices to be sent via electronic mail. Paper notices no longer need to be printed or delivered via campus mail. Electronic mail also will allow interlibrary loan and new book orders to be made without paper being generated. The acquisitions process moves much faster with fewer duplicates due to the automated ordering system. Work is now underway by many book vendors and OCLC to link the ordering process and the cataloging process to eliminate much of the existing staff intervention. Within one year, new book information will be linked to an acquisition process, so that a book order will automatically be sent to a publisher. As the book is delivered to the library, the catalog record will automatically be sent to the local library system, so that the entire cataloging process will take place without human intervention on the part of the library. This new process should cut staffing needs in cataloging significantly. In interlibrary loan, a nation-wide billing system has been suggested which will tally debits and credits for interlibrary lenders and borrowers. Once a year payments will be made by libraries who are net borrowers saving the cost of constantly issuing small checks for each transaction. This system will greatly reduce the workload of interlibrary loan departments at a time when use of these departments are increasing at fantastic rates. At Kenyon, the use of interlibrary borrowing increased 41% in the fall semester alone. This increase in interlibrary loan borrowing is directly linked to the second payoff that technology has brought to libraries. College libraries now have access to a rich world of information, available only to the largest research institutions only a few years ago. This change has been brought about by CD ROM databases which allow easy access to huge specialized databases of bibliographic information, on line commercial databases and access to hundreds of library catalogs accessible via the internet. Low cost or free access to bibliographic information about millions of books and journal articles has given undergraduate students at a small rural liberal arts college like Kenyon information access beyond the dreams of the most fortunate research scholar working in the world's richest libraries. Interlibrary loan has increased dramatically because undergraduate students now have knowledge of and access to these rich resources. The conjunction of computing and telecommunications in what is known as the Internet can be seen as the greatest advance in information access since the invention of the printing press. The investment colleges have made in linking to the internet and extending that link to classrooms and dormitories will pay off at significant rates. Millions of computers linked to the Internet now offer access to full text journals, graphic files, music, full motion video, and statistical data. Access to these files is being made easier and retrieval more powerful due to wide spread use of software such as gopher, WAIS, Archie, and most recently MOSAIC. MOSAIC will require new investments in high band- width connections to the National Information Infrastructure as well as powerful desktop workstations. But the payoff will be access to information in dramatic new formats, as documents and multimedia databases are linked together into the virtual library of tomorrow. A small example at Kenyon is that via our subscription to Lexis/Nexis, costing $325.00 per month, our students have access to the full text of all the major law journals and most of the major newspapers in the US. Through FirstSearch, another commercial service, students can search a 28 million item database of the holdings of 17,000 libraries or a database of millions of journal articles, each of which is available via fax within hours. The federal government is moving rapidly to distribute government information via the Internet. Kenyon students and faculty can access many government reports at the very point of creation, rather than waiting long periods for the Government Printing Office to release them. Federal information on CD ROM allows our students and faculty to extract large chunks of data and manipulate it, and analyze it on their own personal computers. D. Scott Siddall; Director of Academic Computing Planning for change is difficult at best; planning for change in a traditional academic setting is like announcing plans to relocate a cemetery. Herein lies one of the benefits of information technology. IT is encouraging if not forcing a long-overdue reconstruction of the undergraduate teaching paradigm. At Kenyon, this is happening during the Summer Institute On Academic Information Resources as faculty discuss ways of using new technologies in teaching. These unprecedented debates focus on fundamental questions about teaching. The benefits of IT are compounding as faculty succeed with projects funded by our incentives program, the Academic Computing Awards Program. Information technology provides powerful tools for our students to construct their own bases of knowledge as our faculty guide and facilitate rather than direct the educational process. For example, this year our seniors in Asian Studies collaboratively developed a multimedia publication integrating their individual work on political, economic, and religious systems. We are only beginning to revise our teaching but it is clear that IT is prompting both personal and institutional self-evaluations and open discussions which were unlikely in the absence of this instructional change agent. Information technology is helping us build a stronger sense of our academic community, both locally and globally. Electronic mail coordinates and supplements our conversations and has made routine business at Kenyon much more efficient. Electronic conferences accommodate the varied learning styles of our students. Networking our resources has tied us to our local community through the K-12 networking projects, and promises efficiencies as we develop stronger ties to neighboring colleges. No longer isolated "on the hill," we are members of the global community, with facile connections to scholars and scholarly materials worldwide. For example, the research efforts of Professor McCarthy (Sociology) were made more effective as he browsed libraries in Ireland and Germany over the Internet prior to his sabbatical travel. Information technology enhances our ability to recruit and retain the best students and faculty. According to annual survey data, each year's entering class arrives with greater experience and skill in computing and network communications, which translates into greater expectations for access to such tools. Our investment in information technology has helped us meet those expectations. Our new faculty have elevated expectations as well, and this is an issue in the retention of the best instructors. For example, Professor Sullivan (Physics) worked extensively with his Los Alamos colleagues over the Internet while he was a visiting member of our faculty. Our ability to support his collaborative work was an important element in his decision to accept our offer of a tenure track line. Information technology is enabling the instructor to convey knowledge more effectively. For example, Professor Leccese (Psychology) has developed a three-dimensional animation of complex biochemical processes which take place as a nervous impulse is transmitted from nerve to nerve. The instructional effectiveness of this remarkable imagery proves once again that humans are visual learners. E. Michael Fox; Assistant Director of Academic Computing Information Technology pays off as both an educational and administrative tool to keep Kenyon College in a competitive market. Much of the education students receive at Kenyon is based on IT delivered through many services and resources by the administrative and academic divisions of the college. The quality of education and the quality of students at Kenyon are tightly interlinked with the quality of IT. Without high quality IT Kenyon would be crippled in its ability to provide a high quality education to high quality students. IT is changing the way education is provided to students. Faculty no longer must rely solely on their own knowledge base, teaching skills and the information provided in books. With the aid of computers and specialized software, faculty are able to better illustrate complex concepts. With the aid of the computer labs, students are able to continue their learning experience outside the classroom. Students enjoy a richer learning experience as a result. Thus, IT is enhancing the quality of education at Kenyon. Not only is Kenyon providing IT but more and more students are bringing it with them. Students provide their own computers, software, printers, and modems to be used in their room. The computer network on campus allows these students to access information resources and lessen the need to compete with other students for access. The availability of personal computers and public computers allows students and faculty to expand the curriculum outside the classroom as students and faculty continue after class discussions using VAX Notes. This technology improves student growth by allowing ALL students a chance to participate in discussion with well conceived ideas. Students are motivated to become better thinkers and communicators. Thus, IT is enhancing the quality of students at Kenyon. IT is providing access to a global community of information resources. Each faculty member has the ability to access both information and people over the Internet. Through news groups and list servers faculty are able to incorporate outside discussions and material into their classroom. This material is "hot off the presses." The material changes from day to day and allows faculty a greater opportunity to expose students to the dynamic world we live in. The Internet is being used as a tool by faculty members too augment the curriculum in ways never before possible. The Internet is an invaluable tool to faculty looking for current research material, literature, and other materials for their own research. Thus, IT is enhancing the quality of faculty at Kenyon. As IT becomes more and more common on campus it becomes more accepted and is changing the way we interact The biggest example of this phenomena is the use of electronic mail. E- mail has become an accepted tool for handling everyday communications at Kenyon. Much like the phone has become a vital method of communicating so now has e-mail. E-mail has made communicating more convenient. It's common for students, faculty, staff, and even guests to correspond with one another in a way that wasn't previously possible. Everything from simple messages between two people to campus wide announcements are sent through e-mail. This allows the entire Kenyon community to be kept up to date at a moment's notice. And now with KCInfo on the VAX much of the information on campus is maintained in one convenient location. This allows even people off campus and outside our community to be in touch with information about Kenyon and the Kenyon community. This has been especially helpful to Kenyon alumni and even prospective students. Electronic mail brings the community closer together by keeping current information within easy reach. Thus, IT is enhancing the quality of the Kenyon community. Benefits of IT can be seen not simply by what is accomplished using IT but by realizing what isn't accomplished if IT were not available. I occasionally hear employees remark, after experiencing a problem with their microcomputer which required a repair, that if their microcomputer isn't working they might as well not show up for work. IT is becoming an essential tool. Users are getting things done more effectively and doing things they could not have done without the tools and resources of IT. For example, an employee in the Bookstore who relies on her microcomputer with a CD-ROM drive and modem to search and order books would be lost without these tools. The service she provides would take longer and be inefficient and possibly ineffective without IT. This would have a very negative impact on the function of the Bookstore to obtain textbooks in a timely manner and thus would diminish the quality of service provided to students and faculty. Likewise, I often find that students are getting much more accomplished with the tools of IT. Students papers now include color graphics to illustrate important concepts. Students are working on multimedia projects which include sound, graphics, and video to provide a full impact. As students see how much more effective their work can be with IT tools they come to expect these tools to be available. More and more prospective students realize the benefits of IT and understand its importance as a tool in obtaining the best quality education. Thus, the lack of high quality IT will diminish the quality of students attracted to Kenyon College. F. Bill Quimby; Manager of Library Automation In that my position enables me to get an intimate view of both the Library at work and ICS at work, I find a shared interest in the provision of research tools through technology. The humble Library catalog, after all, is a research tool, and its accessibility via the network to all offices and (in potential, at least) to dormitory rooms vastly improves the researcher's options. As does the provision of electronic databases mounted on different computers on different campuses, for example the ABSEES (American Bibliography of Slavic and East European Studies) available to our campus via the Internet and presented under the umbrella of the Selected Electronic Information Resources section of KCInfo. We have known of the utility of our Library catalog in electronic form (particularly through its various indices) but are just now discovering the utility to the researcher and instructor of the other catalogs that are made available. I am particularly pleased to use as an example the experience of Professor George McCarthy during his research sabbatical. His ability to peruse the catalogs of Irish and German libraries from Kenyon prior to his travels helped him more carefully plan his research time, and led him to materials about which he was not aware. There may be even better things to come, solutions to old problems, solutions to problems which we may not be seeing at this point because existing technology often both dominates and limits our perception of what technology may bring. An example of a potential solution to an old problem: one of the major dilemmas in the Library world is the presentation in electronic catalogs of materials written in non-Roman alphabets. I was recently able to identify, and call to the computer screen via our link to the Internet, materials in Kanji and Cyrillic using a computer program titled Mosaic. I am certain that we will in just a few years see a Library that enables the researcher to do that from its public access catalog terminal! G. Bev Actis; Office Operations Manager/User Services Specialist The impact of the Information Age gives Kenyon no choice but to use IT in imaginative ways to create a technologically literate campus. Because of the stiff competition for talented students, Kenyon must strive not only for competence, but excellence in this area, in order to keep attracting the kind of student that Kenyon has attracted in the past. How well we do that will determine our very survival. Kenyon has risen to the challenge by taking a leadership role among small liberal arts colleges of its kind in developing exciting applications of IT such as the KCInfo CWIS, the on-line Library catalog and information resources menu, the Student Network Access Program, the Academic Computing Awards Program, the Kenyon Microcomputer Purchase Program, the HelpLine facility, and the unified, standardized network at Kenyon. Kenyon's mission is to empower students with knowledge, through the right use of information, so that they can function successfully in the world that they are about to enter. IT serves the educational mission of Kenyon because it provides students, in their pursuit of knowledge, with the resources and tools to access and use information effectively, which is crucial in an increasingly technological world. The Computing HelpLine, Kenyon's help desk facility, has had a significant effect on the productivity of all college groups by helping callers to solve computing problems that would otherwise cause delays in the completion of their duties. The HelpLine uses an on-line referral/tracking system which directs problems to the most appropriate ICS staff member for more efficient service. It also provides a central feedback point for evaluating IT services at Kenyon and improving on them. IT at Kenyon has allowed all departments to develop management information systems and office automation systems that enable them to make better, more informed decisions. Data from these systems is easier to access and analyze, and it is more complete, accurate and up-to-date than previous manual systems. Some examples of the management information systems used in Kenyon's division of Information & Computing Services are: the equipment inventory tracking system, the software inventory system, the ICS budget monitoring system, network facilities tracking systems, and the HelpLine problem/repair tracking systems. KCINFO, Kenyon's campus-wide information system, has improved communication and information distribution among all College groups because it is easy to access, logically organized, available 24 hours a day, and is more current than paper-based information. KCInfo also enhances our sense of community by providing a central repository of information for and about the Kenyon community. KCInfo allows access by other institutions and even prospective students, so they can get an idea of what Kenyon is all about in a very detailed and "real life" way, by browsing its menus. Although development and maintenance costs of IT are high in terms of dollars, it is important to keep in mind the cost/benefit ratio. The benefits realized in every aspect of College activity from our investment in IT are nothing short of astronomical. It has completely revolutionized the way we teach, learn, and work and has literally opened up our doors to the world. H. Ron Griggs; Director of Networks, Systems, and Technical Services The oldest private liberal arts college in Ohio, Kenyon College is isolated on a hill in rural, north central Ohio. Traditionally, Kenyon has used that isolation as a focus to build a community of scholars. With approximately 1450 students all residing in College housing, 135 faculty members, and 300 members of the administrative and support staff, the college maintains an important sense of community unavailable at larger institutions. The development of the campus network at Kenyon served to reinforce and enrich this community concept. Kenyon's information technology infrastructure development took its shape and direction from this larger ideal of a community of scholars. The Kenyon network stresses communication and inclusiveness for every member of the community, with as many resources as possible available to all. The Kenyon network is profoundly influenced by the geography and the architecture of the campus. Though the campus is located in a relatively small area--one can imagine an elongated oval about a mile in length and approximately half a mile at its widest point--it is not physically contiguous. The village of Gambier is situated at the center of that oval. And though Kenyon is a small institution, there are over 70 separate buildings on campus that are either academic buildings, administrative offices, or student residences. More than 20 of these buildings are former private houses, some dating back to the 19th century. The physical network is based on an inter-building fiberoptic cabling plant that can be described as a semi- collapsed backbone, i.e., a small, interconnected set of strategically selected network hub sites from which fiberoptic cabling extends in a star configuration to other sites. Inside each building, twisted pair wiring supports network connections in each residence, office, laboratory, and classroom. The campus network is organized logically with a 100 Mbps FDDI ring as the campus backbone supporting 12 Ethernet subnets. This structure has a high degree of fault tolerance and reliability, and is easily extendable. Kenyon supports centralized computing resources with a cluster of five DEC VAX systems: a VAX 4500, 4300, 4200, 4100, and a MicroVAX 3100. These systems share a variety of software, hardware, and peripheral resources, with limitations placed only for security and privacy. The community also has access to many microcomputer applications and resources via two Novell Netware file servers. All Kenyon faculty have microcomputers on their desks; all members of the administration have either microcomputers or terminals. Students enjoy access to computing at over 150 stations (microcomputers or terminals) situated across the campus, including 40 stations inside student residence halls. Additionally, students with microcomputers can subscribe to the Student Network Access Program (SNAP) for individual network connections in the residence room. All faculty and staff microcomputers are connected to the network, either through serial connections or direct 10BASET Ethernet connections. Over 300 students are SNAP subscribers. As a result, effectively 100% of the faculty and staff at Kenyon, and 99.5% of students use the network at least once per week. The effect on Kenyon College of essentially 100% community participation on the network has been astounding. The various communication tools--electronic mail, of course, but also KCINFO (the Kenyon CWIS), VAX Notes conferences, Usenet News discussion groups, on-line newsletters, on-line polls, on-line student elections, etc.--have served to pull the community closer together and establish a powerful sense that we are all accessible to each other, despite the sometimes disparate schedules of student life, administrative office hours, and academic research and teaching. The network enables the Kenyon community to tap into the vast resources of the outside world, as well. Over 80% of Kenyon students regularly use Internet information tools, for example, enriching their access to information and to scholarly work beyond the traditional classroom material. Through the network, Kenyon students are becoming global citizens and scholars, at ease in a world with global resources at their fingertips. The "splendid isolation" of Kenyon's community on the hill remains, but it no longer limits. I. Glen Turney; Director of Administrative Computing Applications Economies have been achieved in administrative departments using Information Technology to electronically file and access critical information in one central location. Several examples of this central file concept have been implemented at Kenyon. Employee and student information is maintained electronically in one central facility. Portions of the information is updated from different locations on campus and total campus access over the network ensures its accuracy. Phone directories, electronic and paper, are created from this information. A variety of e-mail distribution lists are automatically generated on a daily basis. Mailing lists and labels can also be extracted in various groupings. The main economies center around one basic point - "one change affects all." Savings are achieved by the elimination of numerous duplicate department files, simplified access to the information via the network, and less development effort for reacting to policy changes. Most important, the generation of reliable e-mail distribution lists provides the capability to communicate instantly with the total campus. Savings in time and money are achieved through the use of the electronic network, as opposed to flooding the campus with paper, for major and emergency announcements. The creation of the central billing file provides Financial Aid, Student Advising, and Accounting instant access to the students' financial position with the college. This central file has provided better service to the student and reduced the level of frustration of students and the affected departments. Student prospect information by the Admissions and Athletic departments. Again this is one electronic file accessed and updated by all personnel in both departments. Time is saved because the status and activity for each prospective student is electronically available. Savings are achieved by focusing mailings and contacts on the best prospects. Finally research information is compiled to improve the efficiency and focus of future prospect searches. The Advising office has access to the Registrar grade files enabling them to quickly identify students requiring follow up for academic intervention or advising. The Career Development office has access to the College Relations files to enable students to build a network for job searches. The Admissions office has access to the College Relations files to enable them to identify volunteer recruiting personnel to contact prospective students. Payroll information for Maintenance employees is transferred from the Maintenance system to the payroll system to eliminate duplicate data entry. Donor information is transferred from the College Relations system to the general ledger to eliminate duplicate data entry. Scholarship information is transferred from the Financial Aid system to the Student Billing system to eliminate duplicate data entry. The use of Books in Print, inventory control, and PUBNET ordering systems in the bookstore provide electronic look up, inventory control, and ordering of books in the bookstore. These software tools reduce clerical paperwork and provide improved service to students, faculty, and staff. Printing of payroll W2 forms was changed from a cumbersome pre-mailer form to the laser printer reducing the cost and labor required to print the forms. In College Relations, an extensive data base of gift giving plus an extensive personal and professional profile of alumni, businesses, foundations, and friends provides on-line information access to efficiently support the targeting and development of potential donors to the College. An important part of supporting student life at Kenyon is the assignment of housing rooms through a complex lottery system. This system is a combination of on line and batch programs enabling the housing office to administer this complex process fairly. A Registration system supports the class registration with an on-line process creating a data base for the posting of grades, etc. An on-line course file is created from this data base. The course files is accessible by all students and faculty and provides an early warning of full classes. The result is less time in the registrar's office, during registration, trying to enroll students in full classes. The Schedule25 scheduling system was installed to optimally assign classes to classrooms. The time of this process was reduced from three weeks to four minutes. An added benefit is the ability to simulate several cycles of classroom assignment previously impossible on a manual basis. Microcomputers with Pagemaker and a laser printer have been installed in the Public Affairs office to provide in- house typesetting resulting in savings in outside typesetting costs and reducing turnaround time of generating releases and articles. Financial Aid uses the MicroFaids software system to compute allowable aid from FAF information, follow up to assure that all necessary forms and paperwork are received from prospective students, and to report on the amount of aid rewarded in relation to budgets. The automation of these processes reduces the amount of clerical and management time and improves the accuracy of the process. J. Joe Nelson; Vice President for Finance I think the real value of technology is that the precision it provides to the decision making process allows for the ramification of the decision to be almost instantly evaluated. This has dramatically reduced the number of poor decisions that would have been otherwise made because data would not otherwise be available. In short, technology makes us all better managers and that should result in better products for the consumer. K. John Kurella; Manager of Business Services The primary benefit is easy and widespread sharing of information. This ranges from getting assistance/information from a counterpart thru the Internet (don't have to reinvent the wheel if someone has already done it), to as simple as sending info to a group of associates working on the same project (as in a distribution list for e-mail). A second major payoff is in having accurate and easy access to large, complex collections of data in simple formats. An example is attendance records of employees and the ability to track and find current status of vacation, sick leave, hours worked, premium time paid, or any other specific info on an individual or the group. Although we don't have it to a great degree, centralization of data such as the employee or student master files eliminates a great deal of duplication of effort. If we had a purchasing system on-line, information could be entered one time only instead of many times on various forms to place the order and pay the invoice. L. Teri Leonard; Comptroller Some examples of ways that technology has been useful in the Accounting Office: 1. Direct deposit of payroll 2. Contract process - eliminated hand figuring of fringe benefits and hand typing of contracts and the information is moved automatically to the payroll system 3. Student loan process - eliminated hand typing of promissory notes and moves information directly to the loan system without reentering 4. Credit memo system - eliminated the hand matching of credit memos in the payable system 5. Vendors requiring 1099s are now flagged in the system 6. While not a complete process, the student payable screen allows more than one person at a time to access student account information (including those in financial aid and the Deans) 7. The budget model has allowed us to see the future effect of choices under consideration 8. Kenyon receives government and AMS cash through direct deposit to our account 9. Kenyon now pays its gas and electric bills through electronic bank debit--this eliminates the last minute hand- typing of many checks 10. An example of low level technology--the coin counter 11. The direct entry of payroll updates eliminates the need for duplicate effort--i.e. one person writing it on a piece of paper and another entering it into the system. The Student Account Coordinator now enters address changes directly and we hope to move to direct entry in other areas. 12. Word processing has allowed us to personalize large mailings. 13. Some aspects of e-mail are useful. It can serve as a way to discuss and resolve issues without playing telephone tag. M. Jack Finefrock; Manager of the Bookstore and Adjunct Instructor of Classics Our new TOMTRACS software package, which cost only $400, saves two weeks times four people for the textbook department. Returns are easier, and the computers calculates average margins for us. It also types up all the mailing labels and shelf tags. The computer does the drudge jobs. Our new global Books In Print on CD-ROM merges with GE's electronic ordering system, PUBNET, which reduces order time to overnight in some cases. We also can have instant in stock confirmation and higher discounts since now the direct source is faster than the distributor. We receive higher discounts, faster shipping, instant out of stock notice, and are saving mailing orders through stationery and art supplies direct links. We don't have to wait for a salesperson. Our orders go directly into their computers with no order taker on their end. We can keep less stuff in stock because we can get it here a week faster. The library and the bookstore can share software costs since cross-permissions are sometimes free or at a discount. This will be a big area of savings as actual books go on-line as well as periodicals. We will actually print out textbooks here on demand. Academic bookstores will only be as good as the software and systems available to them. Making the bookstore a second full library and second full computer center helps with the merging of all three of these functions in the next ten years at a terrific savings. Three locations for the same things with some specialized functions at each. The big gains for colleges in the next ten years will not be how much they have but how well they integrate what they already have. It's like cross-fertilization in plants. Everything does better. Also from the Kasha Upanishads "He who sees the diversity and not the unity wanders from death to death." It's not what we've got but how imaginatively and intensively we use it. N. Karen Frasca; Director of Fringe Benefits and Staff Relations The biggest impact technology has had on our department is in nonexempt compensation administration. The entire process runs electronically. Spreadsheets listing all employees, their compensation, positions held, years of service and relevant salary ranges are sent electronically to each member of senior staff. Senior staff inputs their decisions on increases and the spreadsheets give them an instant read out of how those decisions affect each employee and the general pool of money they have to distribute for their division. Staff Relations compiles information from all the divisions and generates a summary spreadsheet showing the new salaries, how the salaries compare to other staff members with comparable positions and years of service, and how those salaries affect the grand total of dollars allocated for all divisions. Once senior staff has given final approval on all their decisions, the spreadsheets are sent to Accounting for calculation of benefits on each employee. The purpose of the calculations is twofold: Accounting uses them for budgetary purposes and staff relations incorporates them into letters sent to each employee advising them of their new compensation and benefits for the coming year. Once Staff Relations receives the calculations they execute electronic commands to extract information from three different data bases. The information is used to generate the above mentioned letters. Before this system was implemented, each spreadsheet was hand typed and then retyped after final decisions were made by senior staff. All the letters were typed by hand as well. This system has saved countless hours of time spent by staff and administrators. It has also provided more information at a much more rapid pace to senior staff which has helped them in their decision making. O. Tom Stamp; Director of Public Affairs So great has been the impact of computing on the Office of Public Affairs that it is becoming increasingly hard to remember the daily routine of just ten years ago, when typewriters sat where microcomputers and printers now hold sway. Because the news operation in the Office of Public Affairs is especially information-intensive, considerable and varied use is made of computing technologies. On the most basic level, we write all our stories for news releases and publications in WordPerfect on microcomputers, preparing labels using the same software. But we receive a great deal of information from other campus sources as well, and we initiate, closely monitor, and respond to e-mail, determining, for example, which faculty member might be best to respond to an inquiry from a reporter. E-mail is also the best way, on occasion, to inform all community members of breaking news, which we send from the e-mail address of our campus newsletter, Fortnightly. Of course, we also tap into programs on the VAX to merge names and other student information into articles. KCInfo and its resources are increasingly important to us for both local and distant information. Internet has become essential for daily use, not only for extensive fact-checking through FirstSearch, InfoTrac, and library systems around the world (particularly the Cleveland, Ohio, Public Library), but also for services such as ProfNet, through which reporters look for experts in given areas. In the publications area of the Office of Public Affairs, the writing and editing of materials produced for both external and internal audiences has been streamlined with word-processing software and equipment. Meanwhile, the design, typesetting, layout, and even, in some cases, the printing of those materials has been revolutionized by desktop-publishing systems. Software tools include WordPerfect, Windows, and PageMaker, and equipment includes large-scale monitors that allow for full-page and multiple- page viewing of documents, along with rapid manipulation of text and graphics. Finished pages--which, in some cases, are used as camera copy for printing purposes--are produced on an HP LaserJet 4 printer. To take one publication as an example of the pervasiveness of computing in the office, production of the College's alumni magazine, the Bulletin, has been transformed in recent years. Almost all copy for the magazine (except for class notes) is generated in WordPerfect, including stories written by freelance writers who provide us with both hard copy and diskettes of their work. Copy is then edited by the staff in WordPerfect before the pages are designed and laid out in PageMaker. After final proofreading, the PageMaker files are conveyed to the printer, who converts the electronic files to negatives from which plates are produced, thus bypassing an expensive typesetting stage. ============================================================= ============================================================= Background paper for HEIRAlliance Executive Strategies Report #4 prepared by representatives of THE UNIVERSITY OF MAINE AT AUGUSTA George P. Connick President Jane A. Russo Executive Assistant to the President Pamela S. MacBrayne Dean of Telecommunications and Academic Development Thomas E. Abbott Dean of Learning Resources and Institutional Development Fred Hurst Associate Dean of Information and Learning Systems Robert S. Tolsma Associate Dean of Instructional Development and Educational Technology ============================================================= WHAT PRESIDENTS NEED TO KNOW ABOUT THE PAYOFF ON THE INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY INVESTMENT: THE VIEW FROM THE UNIVERSITY OF MAINE AT AUGUSTA Faculty and staff at the University of Maine at Augusta (UMA) convene to discuss the logistics of delivering college courses through local cable systems to ten Maine communities. Another group wraps up the design of a lab science kit, complete with fetal pig, instructional videotape and a set of tools for home dissection. Such discussions would not have occurred on this small regional campus ten years ago. But today UMA has dramatically expanded both its mission and its enrollment. The campus continues to serve 3,000 students in the Mid-Maine community, but it also delivers courses and services to 3,000 more off-campus students through an extensive learning network: the Education Network of Maine. Background In 1985, Maine was 49th among states in the number of high school graduates going on to college and last in the number of adults enrolling in any form of higher education. Alarmed by these statistics, the UMS Board of Trustees asked UMA to extend learning opportunities to the state's isolated rural communities. At the time, UMA had no practicable way to discharge this responsibility without incurring the enormous expense of recruiting and hiring large numbers of faculty willing to travel to the icy northern reaches of the state. The plan that unfolded was both ambitious and timely: emerging information technologies would be used to transport the college classroom into Maine's most geographically isolated regions. In the years that followed, UMA established eleven off-campus centers, developed an office of distance education and constructed a comprehensive statewide telecommunications system comprising 43 transmitters and 700 miles of fiberoptic cable. The Education Network of Maine, as this alliance of technology and education providers was later named, was officially inaugurated on September 4, 1989. Today, the Education Network delivers 70 credit courses leading to five full associate and two master's degrees to more than 100 Maine locations each semester. Maine's Education Network was developed by the University of Maine at Augusta in consultation with the Technical College System, Maine Maritime Academy, other University System campuses, Maine Public Broadcasting System, New England Telephone and the Maine Department of Education. Such broad community collaboration and support, crucial to the Network's development, was won as a result of the overwhelming educational need that informed and propelled the creation of the original plan. Maine's lagging educational achievement at all levels could be directly attributed to its long history of uneven public access to higher education. The resulting plan, which would broadly and equitably extend learning opportunities across the state through the use of emerging technologies, was met with approval throughout the education, government and business communities, clearing a path for the development of a complex statewide network and helping to attract significant external funding: -- 1986: $3.[5] million awarded by Federal Title III grant for the construction of the fiber optic spine and other system components. -- 1988, the governor recommends, and the Legislature approves, the first-year funding of $2.[2] million. Development of the ITFS (Instructional Television Fixed Service) System and network of new centers and sites begins. -- 1990: An additional $1.55 million was approved by the Legislature. -- 1990: A $300,000 grant awarded by the Annenberg/CPB Project to help improve instruction and support services for distant learners through a new Center for Distance Education at UMA. -- 1993: Another Title III grant, in the amount of $1.[7] million, was awarded to UMA to develop a statewide student information system and extended program of developmental instruction. An Investment in Technology Without clear indications that the new technology could effectively deliver upon the University's promise of educational access to the state's underserved populations, Maine's significant investment of funds in technology, personnel and faculty and staff development would only have exacerbated already attenuated budgets, alienated faculty and inspired the distrust of public policy makers and taxpayers alike. Questions about the quality of such telemediated instruction invariably arose and, indeed, continue to be discussed today. In the past, educational quality was seen as antithetical to broad educational access. Real quality was defined by the extent to which institutions selected and sorted students on the basis of ability. But in a world where the quality of one's life increasingly depends on an ability to grasp complex skills and reason both creatively and critically, broad and equitable access to education is crucial. And studies have documented that students in telemediated courses do as well academically as their on-campus peers. In a recent independent survey conducted by the Muskie Institute during the summer of 1993, UMA students enrolled in ITV courses rated their satisfaction with the learning experience at the same level as those attending courses where the faculty member is "live" (89 percent). Still, the decision to turn to information technologies presented a challenge in 1985, when the only video transmission system design option available in Maine was microwave. Subsequent negotiations with New England Telephone, however, led to the creation of a fiber optic network connecting all seven university campuses that was both technically feasible and cost competitive with other available delivery alternatives. Construction began on the resulting interactive television system (ITV) in 1988. Today, a four-channel audio, video and data fiberoptic spine, leased from New England Telephone, connects electronic classrooms located at each of the University of Maine System campuses. At each of these seven campuses, the classroom signal is broadcast via point-to- point and ITFS (Instructional Television Fixed Service) from transmitters to multiple receive antennae at the various receive sites. The signal can be transmitted from each campus throughout its own geographic region or throughout the entire state. Courses are offered to students over the Network from 7:00 a.m. until 10:00 p.m. on weekdays and from 7:00 a.m. until noon on Saturdays. Students in remote ITV classrooms are taught by a professor who is simultaneously teaching to a classroom of students on campus. The instructor and any visual images are electronically transmitted to the remote sites where the students can see and hear the instructor on television monitors. A cordless telephone audio talk-back system permits students in these distant locations to interact with the instructor and with other students. Although interactive television is the primary medium of course delivery, a variety of supporting technologies provide students and faculty with additional opportunities to communicate, both in and outside of class. Computer conferencing, for example, allows students and faculty to correspond regardless of time and distance. Audio conferencing brings guests from anywhere in the world into the college classroom. Voice mail, fax notes, and electronic mail all help to expand the diversity and range of communication available to Network students. UMA's investment in technology proved to be a solid investment in its own future as well as in the future of education in Maine. As the 1980s waned and the contraction of the national economy began, state funding for education slowed dramatically and the wisdom of UMA's technological investment became evident. In the early nineties, while most of the other campuses of the University System saw their enrollment flatten or begin to shrink, UMA enjoyed an historically high headcount as first generations of college students across Maine found college available in their local community. Today, more than 55% of UMA students are enrolled at an off-campus center or site. The Payoff The economies of scale afforded by information technologies seem obvious, yet the financial payoff is difficult to quantify by traditional measures. Historically labor-intensive, higher education has seen costs rise regardless of how resourcefully it has responded to the changing needs of society. The contributions of information technologies are realized to the extent that they replace paper processes, eliminate duplication, reduce the time and expense of travel and generally relieve faculty and staff of the more repetitive aspects of the operation, freeing them to spend their time on higher level tasks. Ideally, technologies can help us to do what society is demanding we do--serve a greater number and diversity of students with the same level of quality. UMA's payoff from its technological investment is best seen in the great success it has had in carrying out its statewide mission of educational access. Students living on coastal islands and in towns deep in the northern forest can today attend college at their local school. To accomplish this mission by attempting to construct off-campus facilities across the state and hiring many more faculty to teach in these remote areas would have been impossible. A new high school, serving 500 students in a small Maine city, for example, will cost $18 million to construct this year. By contrast, the total cost to construct the Education Network to date is approximately $15 million--and it can serve 10,000 students on any given day. Academic UMA associate degrees in General Studies, Business Administration, Social Services, Liberal Arts, and Library and Information Technology are available through the Education Network of Maine. Two master's degrees will be offered on the Network this fall and a systemwide Baccalaureate is currently being finalized. Challenging courses in laboratory sciences, foreign languages and mathematics and other advances in course design are largely the result of a grant from the Annenberg/CPB Project, which has funded faculty and staff proposals aimed at upgrading curricula and support services for distant students. This program is supported by the Center for Distance Education at UMA, which regularly offers workshops and training in the educational application of technology. As a result of the Education Network of Maine, UMA has developed * new programs (Associate in Library and Information Technologies) * increased number of course sections (from 350 in 1987 to 2500 in 1993) * new partnerships with other education providers (University of South Carolina and Massachusetts Corporation for Educational Telecommunications) Faculty/Staff The introduction of technology into the teaching process, whether it be through the development of a statewide distance learning program or by simply including computer conferencing in a traditional course, must include ample opportunities for faculty and staff development. Our experience has shown that, given proper incentives and training, faculty and staff respond with creativity and resourcefulness to the opportunities and challenges of distance learning. Such investment has resulted in * increased collegiality among faculty * innovation in course design * advancements in pedagogy * greater productivity * understanding of a greater diversity of learning styles and information Academic and Student Services Students of every age and from every region of the state enroll in Network-delivered courses and programs, but women who live in Maine's rural communities make greatest use of the Network's services. Surveys of students show that the majority are over the age of 30 (60%), female (74%), and typically travel a distance of 11 miles to the ITV classroom, compared with the 31 miles it would have taken to commute to the nearest University campus. Materials are distributed to students and faculty through the Office of Information and Learning Systems. All course materials, including syllabi, handouts, quizzes and exams are sent to this central office for copying, collating and dissemination to all locations. Classes are videotaped and can be viewed at a later time should a student miss a class or wish to review before an exam. Student and academic support services are an important component of any educational program, and distance education is no exception. The distant student, like the student on campus, needs ready access to academic, personal and career guidance. One of the primary roles of the Network's off- campus centers is to provide a conveniently located, friendly environment where students can receive assistance and support and find opportunities to socialize with their peers. Eleven University off-campus centers located throughout the state serve the bulk of the students enrolled in courses on the Education Network of Maine. Off-campus centers coordinate registration, academic advising, admissions, financial aid, counseling and other services for students at the centers and at the high school sites in their region. Statewide student services programs such as "College Plus," bring a wide range of helpful information to students enrolled centers and sites across Maine. In 1993, UMA established a Teleservice Center, a one-stop source of information and services accessed through a toll- free number, through which students and the general public could register, add or drop courses, receive assistance with institutional forms, find referral to appropriate support services, and request information about the institution and its services. Teleservice operators have an extensive database of student and institutional information at their fingertips; soon UMA students will have the same resource. UMA's 1993 Title III grant will fund the development of a statewide student information system, allowing students to create learning portfolios and gain access to a range of important student information. Developments like the Teleservice Center and other projects that encourage greater self-direction by students have already begun to reduce the number of informational calls to office staff both on and off-campus. Students at University campuses, and at all off-campus centers and sites have access to URSUS, the University of Maine System's computerized public access library catalog. This database lists the book holdings, periodical indexes and state and federal documents of the University of Maine System. URSUS also contains collections of the Maine State Library and the Law and Legislative Reference Library at the State House and allows students to search the collections of Maine's Colby, Bates and Bowdoin Colleges and other on-line University libraries across the country. Journal articles may be searched through CARL, the Colorado Alliance of Research Libraries or through INFOTRAC, which includes an expanded index of academic, business and health journals. Students may order materials from their computer terminal and have them sent directly to a specified location. Positioning for the Future Colleges and Universities throughout the country have begun to actively use the powerful technologies that have already revolutionized the publishing and music industries, not simply to manage the campus more efficiently, but to transform the instructional process itself and attempt to keep greater control of their destiny. The costs of not equipping our campuses to compete in a future where students will learn and communicate in a virtual classroom linked to international networks of digitized information will be substantial. Our faculty and staff will lack the tools and expertise to develop new learning modalities and be unable to help students learn to select, synthesize and give meaning to the vast array of informational choice with which they'll be presented. Our institutions will be lost in the growing competition from for-profit learning corporations, some in league with huge communication conglomerates, which are already beginning to seriously challenge higher education's monopoly on the provision and credentials of learning. Perhaps the most important payoff from higher education's investment in information technology will not be found in the balance sheet but among the more qualitative measures of an institution's health. How have the technologies furthered the institutional mission? How have they helped the institution meet the needs of its community for relevant courses and services? How have they increased both the community's need for access and our ability to share resources with others? Information technologies, like any good tools, can enhance our craft and boost our productivity; how skillfully and efficiently we use them depends on how comfortable they become in our hands. And this will take time, as faculty and staff become adept at managing learning networks, electronic and voice mail, as paper processing gives way to digital networking, and as we all learn to adjust to the intricacies of the electronic workplace. To the extent that these technologies become second nature to our operational and educational purposes and more precisely fit that function, they can assure our relevancy in a rapidly changing world and allow us to contribute to education's evolving, and increasingly important, role in society. As we learn to embrace and utilize these tools to respond to the particular needs of our community, we will become more effective at shaping our own future and enhancing the lives of our students--surely the most satisfying payoff of all. ============================================================= ============================================================= Background paper for HEIRAlliance Executive Strategies Report #4 prepared by representatives of SINCLAIR COMMUNITY COLLEGE David H. Ponitz President Ned Sifferlen Provost Stephen Jonas Vice President, Administration Joe Gorman Vice President, Business Operations Karen Wells Vice President, Instruction Edna Neal Vice President, Student Services Ed Rennie Director, Information Systems & Services Virginia Peters Director, Learning Resources Center ============================================================= WHAT PRESIDENTS NEED TO KNOW ABOUT THE PAYOFF ON THE INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY INVESTMENT: THE VIEW FROM SINCLAIR COMMUNITY COLLEGE Methodology Sinclair Community College President Dr. David Ponitz and other administrators at the college held three meetings to gather input for this report. Each meeting lasted two hours. The sessions were facilitated by Neil Herbkersman, Director, Grants Development and Governmental Information. He led the first meeting in a storyboarding effort, a two-part process that included brainstorming ideas on the topic and organizing the ideas into categories. The other two meetings involved elaborating on and prioritizing the material outlined in the first session. Consultant Bob Gremling served as an observer and summarized the information that was presented. The participants in the sessions included: Dr. David Ponitz, President Dr. Ned Sifferlen, Provost Dr. Stephen Jonas, Vice President, Administration Joe Gorman, Vice President, Business Operations Dr. Karen Wells, Vice President, Instruction Dr. Edna Neal, Vice President, Student Services Ed Rennie, Director, Information Systems and Services Virginia Peters, Director, Learning Resources Center The report is organized around seven questions identified in the work sessions: 1) How does the institution shape its IT strategic vision? 2) What are the key assumptions? 3) What is the leader's role in IT investment? 4) What are the issues involving "payoff"? 5) What technologies should be adopted? 6) What are the transforming issues? 7) What are the issues involving measurement? How Does The Institution Shape Its IT Strategic Vision? * Establish an IT vision that is aligned with and supports the institution's strategic vision. * Work in collaboration with faculty and administrators to establish a vision of a redesigned or reengineered approach to teaching and learning utilizing IT. * IT investment can be a strategy for attaining the vision while at the same time satisfying the spiraling demand for attaining strategic business objectives. What learning models are available for doing this? * Considerations when making decisions: determine payoff for whom; short- versus long-term. A pure economic approach will not support risky but vital investments in an infrastructure that will permit a quantum leap to embrace some indefinable future model of operation. * Determine the optimum ways of moving the institution toward the IT vision and infuse technology into the fabric of the college. * Establish how IT will be supported and how the college will react to global IT changes. * Beyond the vision, determine what the target is. Should the college be a leader or a follower in IT? Is the field changing so rapidly that you can't afford to be the leader...or, if you wait, do you lose strategic position? In either case, the full capabilities of technology should be tapped to access the global community. * Determine the ideal way of creating strategic opportunities. This includes determining what processes should be adopted to alter and enhance the teaching/learning environment. * Determine how IT can be utilized to accommodate potential new constituencies. What Are The Key Assumptions? * Let the mission and business decisions drive the implementation and use of technology. Strategies and goals, not the technology, must come first. It is important for people to determine what is possible before instituting strategies and goals. Develop a checklist of assumptions that helps direct how to proceed. * Colleges are becoming market-based. There is no longer a monopoly on learning, and one must be concerned with competition, costs and productivity. * IT investment sends a message about where the college is headed. * Colleges will fall out of step with the rest of society if they wait for research results before making a commitment to IT. The rapid pace of technology development results in technology that is obsolete by the time studies are completed. * IT is only one of many tools of transforming the teaching-learning relationship. * Utilize IT to help students learn how to learn. * There are many aspects of IT beyond a single type of technology. There are myriad options and alternatives. * What methods should be adopted to institute change? TQM vs. reengineering (incremental improvement vs. total reinvention) vs. both. The method selected will depend on an assessment of the organizational culture. * IT investment alone will not produce change. There must be a concomitant investment in people. * IT is only one way of promoting productivity. * Work value is enhanced when the work force is recalibrated to assume higher work functions. * Access is different for two-year and four-year educational institutions because of student demographics. Sinclair Community College's mission is to provide the opportunity for anyone in Montgomery County to have access to post-secondary education. * Ways of looking at access and other IT investment issues: - Geographical + Where students are physically + Who is the teacher (availability of global resources) - Financial + Declining resources are available to higher education. The demand for services is on the rise, as are expectations. How does one balance IT investment with other competing needs? + Disruptions from external forces precipitate change. Public call for efficiency/accountability ...colleges must make a clear case that the benefits outweigh the costs. + As more technology is adopted, different kinds of services can be provided. What costs will be incurred and what pricing structure will be required as a result? + Affordability + Build in cost, efficiency and measurements into every IT expenditure. + Hardware vs. professional development considerations + How to provide access given the financial resources of two-year students + Networking/integration. Leverage partners/alliances to pool resources to promote reinvention, learning and productivity. + Can we afford to continue giving students a great many program options? + IT investment is just like any other investment. Challenge each investment. Benchmark against yourself and others. Determine how the investment helps accomplish your mission. Don't hesitate to benchmark outside of education. + Define what level of access is desired, and what resources must be provided to accomplish this. Build in flexibility for growth in access. - Logistical + Access to information: who will have it. The level of access will depend on the user. + How to provide access internally. Infrastructure, physical access issues + How will various technologies be linked together? + Facilitate anytime/anywhere access for faculty/staff/students + Providing access, such as distance-learning and just-in-time learning, as a marketing strategy. - Psychological + Foster belief students "belong" in college + The promise and the reality of IT causes internal disruption. Some faculty members want facets of IT now. Some faculty will not be receptive, not have the time, or have other priorities right now. When IT investment is made, there must be a redesign of instructional delivery and this also causes disruption. For example, faculty members have to move out of their isolated niches in the classroom and work in teams. Faculty must be redirected and given rewards/incentives to facilitate fundamental change. - Cultural + How can IT be used to remove barriers for students to level the playing field? Access is empowerment. + Make access decisions based on the neglected majority. What Is The Leader's Role In IT Investment? * A college president must strike a balance between macro and micro considerations in IT investment decisions. The middle ground between "grand philosophers" and "reality checkers" must be staked out. * Change must be driven by vision and strategic opportunity. At some point, one must toss aside the blueprints for building a boat to cross the river of doubt that exists about IT investment. Take a deep breath, jump across, and hold on. After making this "leap of faith," utilize continuous improvement methods to move through obstacles. * Transformation becomes easier, and risk is minimized, if focus is maintained on the college's vision. * Quality innovations are the hallmark of a prospering institution; anything less accommodates mere survival. However, reaching the jumping off point requires research and asking appropriate questions in light of the president's unique position in the institution. That position involves: - Dealing with multiple (15-20) constituencies; - Maintaining a major tolerance for ambiguity; - Knowing/supporting key players; - Being a scholar of the process to create the vision, and articulating and promoting it; - Insisting that the proper issues are studied; - Educating the Board of Trustees; - Developing board cohesiveness; - Revisiting the mission of the institution based on community needs; - Providing a seed bed for a creative faculty and staff to function within the mission of the college; - Influencing national/local external forces to support the college's vision. - Encouraging external decision makers to be supportive of the institution's mission, and discouraging them from erecting obstacles. - Positioning the college as the repository for IT in the community in order to leverage partners and new opportunities. - Ensuring effective external partnerships with committed vendors. Institutions need more than internal IT resources to respond to market-based issues. What Are The Issues Involving "Payoff"? * It is important to remember that payoff comes in different forms. Three classifications of payoff: economic, cost reduction, strategic. * Economic Approaches: Net Present Value (NPV); Internal Rate of Return (IRR); Return on Investment (ROI); Breakeven/Payback. * Cost Reduction Approaches: Cost Displacement/Avoidance; Work Value Analysis; Cost of Quality. * Strategic Approaches: Option Value; Technical Improvements; Business Objectives. * What competitive advantages does IT investment provide? * It is incumbent upon each institution to define payoff and productivity in terms unique to that institution and to its vision. * Evaluating benefits is difficult because of IT's complexity/magnitude/high integration/distribution/rate of change. * Higher quality (more productive learning) is part of the productivity equation. * Gauge what traditional investments may be displaced by IT investment. - Investment types: + Infrastructure (Examples: computers, networks, database systems, etc.) + Applications (Examples: human resources, audiovisual/graphics software) + Access (Examples: telephone registration, Sinclair Electronic College) * Each investment type has associated costs for hardware, software, maintenance, renewal, documentation, training, and support (people). Cost allocations and/or charge-backs should be based on relative use of these services. * Issues of different technologies. The need to make one investment. * IT investments create opportunities, and the challenge is to maximize those prospects. Utilize IT to improve cross functional processes and applications that support the student learning processes. What Technologies Should Be Adopted? * At what level is the president concerned with the IT investment? The role of the president is not to do the work of the institution, but to see that it's accomplished. * The president must ask the appropriate questions and have the proper IT evaluators in place. * How to choose. Differentiate between "leading edge" and "bleeding edge." * How do you bring faculty and technicians together to make IT decisions without creating too large a bureaucracy? Not everyone should be in lockstep, but they should be traveling in the same direction. * If possible, build in evaluation criteria and strategies in advance. However, keep in mind, that most innovations involve measuring something for the first time or in a way that differs from the past. * Determine who pays and how (charges to internal departments, student fees, etc.). Determine how direct costs and costs for other campus support will be recovered. * Determine the optimal way to select partners and alliances, both internal and external. * Seek out who possesses profound knowledge in IT. The president must have a process by which he/she can differentiate between "tech wizards" touting bells and whistles as opposed to IT that is supportive of the strategic plan of learning. * From the point of view of external audiences, can we depend on the president as the expert? What Are The Transforming Issues? * The institution must prepare itself and its various constituencies to accept the results of transformation, the inevitable fallout of change. Incentives must be provided for people to embrace change. * Mechanisms must be established to deal with internal personnel issues, such as: determining which instructors will use IT; handling formal/informal conflict; allowing power to shift from traditional constituencies to others. * Promoting IT as a tool of transformation and not merely an add-on engenders outside support for it. * How does a college president link the community at-large with the collegial community to achieve the desired transformations? (internal versus external considerations). * Total Quality initiatives must go hand-in-hand with IT investment. * A critical mass of people is required to make change. * If one big leap is not possible, consider segmented implementation. * Once change is implemented, you will get a flood of requests from people wanting to learn about it. * Who makes decisions regarding IT investment? Determining who makes IT investment decisions is crucial. To whom does one listen? How/when does the institution hire an information specialist? * Coping with the effects of external forces and limiting factors (funding, etc.) that affect transformation. * There may be internal/external pressures impeding change. * On the issue of control, care must be taken that the dog wags the tail; the college must control the technology and not vice versa. * Determine how to best utilize IT to reengineer processes and systems as part of overall quality initiatives. * Business alignment first; systems alignment second. * Care must be exercises to ensure that the learning styles of students are accommodated by the new technology options that are adopted. * Coping with external mandates for change without providing the wherewithal to accomplish it; for example, a state system of electronic transfer of information is instituted without funding being made to implement it. * Recognize the significant initial cost curve for people and organizational transformation. What Are The Issues Involving Measurement? * It is vital to maintain a clarity of mission/vision and measure payoff in light of that. * You must devote time to test IT investment. * How do you measure attainment of IT investment goals? How do you assess/measure productivity? How do you install a measurement process? The measurement strategy varies by the type of investment; for example, infrastructure versus specific projects. In addition, other considerations tend to be lumped in with IT investment. However, IT provides key decision makers with data for making decisions regarding business/organizational objectives. * Can you measure the payoff? It is difficult to measure real benefits, and it makes a difference whether one is examining global issues or individual processes. As stated above, most innovations involve measuring something for the first time or in a way that differs from the past. * There is a need to combine traditional and nontraditional systems of measurement. * It is important to establish a limited number of critical indicators of performance to determine if the mission is being met. Each institution must develop its own set of key indicators to assess payoff. Global indicators can be tailored to function as a gauge for individual IT investments. Some examples of indicators that may be used: OUTPUT INPUT FTEs Faculty Pay Hr/FTE Penetration rate Academic Admin/FTE "Markets" (degree seekers...) Class size Day 1, 14th day, completions Staff/FTE C or better Function cost/FTE Long-term retention State/Local/Student Revenue Degrees Job placement Welfare to work conversions Career upgrades Initial careers * Other key indicators: cost structure; providing access for more people; payoff by cost reductions; how long will it take to get returns. * Measure internal change over time and vs. peers. * Progress toward the vision must be gauged and investment in IT (and other areas) must be continually challenged. Is adoption of technology ensuring the institution's future? * Cost issues: cost reduction -- cost displacement and avoidance; current payoff versus future investment; cost of quality -- how to minimize cost while maximizing added value. Decision makers are often disappointed with returns from IT investment. Also, productivity problems often result in confusion about an objective; lack of clarity about the customers and their needs. * Does the investment in IT result in efficiency, effectiveness, quality (is value created, value lost)? * Measuring expanded/additional services versus the number of staff as a productivity indicator. * Measuring service beneficiaries/job accounting systems. PRODUCTIVITY/CHANGE RESEARCH SOURCES 1. An Agenda for Reshaping Faculty Productivity, Richard B. Heydinger & Hasan Simsek, joint publication of the State Higher Education Executive Officers and the Education Commission of the States, with support from Pew Charitable Trusts, November 1992. 2. Total Quality Management at Oregon State University, L. Edwin Coate, National Association of College and University Business Officers, 1992. 3. Assessing the Value of Information Technology, NCR, Strategic Consulting Group, NCR World Headquarters, March 1992. 4. "Do Computers Increase Productivity? The Battle Lines Are Drawn," Walter Kleinschrod, Beyond Computing, September/October 1993. 5. "As Instructional Technology Proliferates, Skeptics See Hard Evidence of Its Value," Robert L. Jacobson, The Chronicle of Higher Education, May 5, 1993. 6. Collected information and notes from conference on "Restructuring and Re-engineering the Academic Enterprise," Peat Marwick, December 6-7, 1993. 7. Re-engineering Administrative Processes: A Case Study at Oregon State University, L. Edwin Coate, National Association of College and University Business Officers, 1993. 8. The Dynamics of Academic Productivity, transcript from a March 1990 seminar sponsored by the State Higher Education Executive Officers, conducted by William F. Massy, Director, Stanford Institute for Higher Education Research, and Robert Zemsky, Director, University of Pennsylvania Institute for Research on Higher Education. 9. Managing for the Future, Challenges & Opportunities for Higher Education in Ohio, Task Force Report, Ohio Board of Regents, July 1992. 10. "On Values and Market Forces," William F. Massy, Policy Perspectives, The Pew Higher Education Roundtable Program, June 1993. 11. "Prospects for Restructuring: A Sampling of the Faculty Climate," Andrea K. Wilger & William F. Massy, Policy Perspectives, November 1993. 12. "An Uncertain Terrain," Policy Perspectives, November 1993. 13. "Colleges Urged to Make Sweeping Change," Alice Dembner, The Boston Sunday Globe, November 21, 1993. COST/BENEFIT ANALYSIS OF INTOUCH KIOSK PROJECT Sinclair Community College is located in Dayton, Ohio, and has an enrollment of over 20,000 students. Sinclair's Intouch kiosk project was initiated during the summer of 1990 as an artificial intelligence project, funded in part by a grant from the State of Ohio to promote the use of AI. Sinclair formed a team of faculty, academic counselors, and computer technicians to design and prototype an expert system for automated academic advisement. The AI project was called CWEST (Counseling With Expert Systems Technology). After a year of prototype development, the team decided to use touch-screen kiosks to implement the software, so the system would be easy to use, appealing, and readily accessible around the campus. In December 1992, Sinclair formed a partnership with The Robinson Group, Ltd. (TRG) to merge TRG's kiosk software product "Intouch" with Sinclair's advising expert systems. The software merge was accomplished during the winter and spring of 1993, and implemented at Sinclair during the summer term. Following is a summary created in October 1993 of costs and benefits of the InTouch kiosk system. In this analysis, kiosk costs are compared with human academic advisors, and with printed items such as catalogs and brochures, which is definitely a comparison of apples and oranges. The comparison is not meant to imply that kiosks, counselors, and catalogs are interchangeable entities! Rather, the purpose of the comparison is to provide a basis for judging the cost effectiveness of a new high-tech system in terms of more traditional, or familiar, methods of disseminating information and advice. Itemized cost breakdowns and usage data for this analysis are given in the last section. Kiosk costs include the initial cost of installation, spread over an estimated lifespan of four years, plus estimated annual maintenance costs. *** The cost of a kiosk is about $1.54 per hour, based on the following estimates: 1) A kiosk costs roughly $600 per month. 2) Each kiosk is available for use about 390 hours/month (15 hours per day, 26 days/month). *** Each kiosk is providing the following services in one month, based on September 1993 activity: 41 hrs/month -- academic advising 42 hrs/month -- access to personal records 15 hrs/month -- financial information & assistance 2 hrs/month -- employment information 11 hrs/month -- general campus information -------------------------------------------------------- 111 hrs/month -- total time in actual use The equivalent human cost to provide these services can be estimated as follows (rates include salary and fringe benefits): 41 hrs @ $23.50 (academic counselor) = $ 964 /month 59 hrs @ $ 9.00 (clerical staff ) = $ 531 /month 11 hrs @ $ 4.[25] (student employee ) = $ 47 /month ---------------------------------------------------- 111 hrs/month $ 1,542 /month Note that this is a low estimate, since the hourly rates do not include overhead such as office space, furniture, computers, telephones, office supplies, etc. Based on the above estimates, the services provided by the kiosk system (with six kiosks) would cost the institution at least $9,252 per month if performed by people, compared with $3,600 per month for the kiosks. In other words, the kiosks cost about 39% as much as people providing equivalent services. Actually, the kiosks are even more cost-effective than these numbers suggest, since the above analysis is based on time the machines are actually in use. The monthly cost of providing available service (6 kiosks, 15 hours per day, 26 days per month) would run about $32,500 per month, or $390,000 per year, at human rates. Computed this way, kiosks cost about 11% as much as people. *** Another analytical perspective is the cost per student and the cost per instance of use. These are estimatedas follows: The cost of the kiosk system per year is estimated as $43,250. This works out to: $ 2.16 per student per year (for 20,000 students), or $ .54 per student per quarter (counting summer), or $ .30 per interactive session (current volume), or $ .15 per session, if volume were to double, or $ .07 per session if kiosks were busy at all times. This compares rather favorably with costs of altenative means of delivering information and advisement: a. printed catalog, about $ 1.58 each b. brochure (e.g., Business Division), about $1.00 each c. session with an academic counselor (30 min.) $11.75 *** Additional factors and considerations: These are some characteristics and personality traits of kiosks that should be considered when pondering their proper role in the institution: 1. QUALITY OF INFORMATION AND ADVICE Positive attributes of kiosks: - Convenience to students (no appointment needed; available weekend and evening hours; convenient locations) - Consistency of information and advice - Timeliness (often more up-to-date than printed catalog or brochures) - Unbiased with respect to ethnicity, gender, etc., and non-judgmental - Quick response; short session time - Access to large volumes of information (more detail than a person would know) - Actual use can be recorded and tracked, which is not true of printed media Weaknesses and limitations of kiosks: - Lack of portability; can't carry the kiosk around or write notes on it, or mail it - Kiosk has no ability to detect emotional reactions of students; it doesn't know if it offends someone - Expert systems are based on hypothetical norms; kiosk cannot respond to unanticipated individual situations; its intelligence is purely artificial! - Some students are intimidated by technology, no matter how user-friendly 2. INTANGIBLE BENEFITS AND IMPACTS OF KIOSKS In addition to direct hands-on services provided by the kiosks, there are several intangible benefits, impacts, and consequences that are difficult or impossible to evaluate in dollars: a. Student Retention The kiosks can help students avoid potential academic problems, and encourage them to seek help when needed. The kiosks can also eliminate circular referrals (from one office to another) and reduce the level of frustration caused by administrative red tape. b. Staff Awareness The kiosks can serve as a learning resource for new faculty, staff, administrators, adjuncts, etc. as they are becoming acquainted with the facilities and services available at Sinclair. Enhanced institutional knowledge on the part of employees should have a positive impact on service to students in all areas. c. Technical Talent Base The InTouch project is helping to develop an expanded talent base at SCC in technical areas such as multimedia, artificial intelligence, and networking. d. Student Learning Experiences Sinclair students have a unique opportunity to gain hands-on experience with advanced technology by using the kiosks. Many students are also benefiting from participation in the kiosk project in the areas of multimedia, graphics design, and beta testing. e. Showcase for SCC Innovation The Intouch project has brought Sinclair national recognition for innovative technology through presentations at the League for Innovation, CAUSE and other conferences, as well as through publications, demonstrations, and national marketing of Intouch by The Robinson Group. 3. PRIMARY TARGET AUDIENCES The kiosks (especially the automated advising portions) are intended to complement human counselors, not to replace them. Some specific categories of students will benefit most from the kiosk system. By and large, these are individuals who are currently not receiving counseling services at all (by their own choice), and others who might be mis-using counselors' time with trivial matters that can be handled easily by an automated system. Additionally, the kiosks provide services that were never available before, such as direct access to personal records. Primary Target Audiences: a) All students needing access to their academic records. b) All students needing general campus information such as office locations, directories, hours, etc. c) Students who are highly resistant to seeking help from a human counselor, such as: o Students who deny that they need help o Students with a cultural tradition of extreme independence and self-reliance (e.g., Appalachian) o Students uncomfortable with college jargon, who are unsure about how to phrase questions; this is often true of adults returning to school, and students who are the first in their family to go to college. o Students who are shy or suffering from low self- esteem. o Students who are too busy with their jobs and families to take time to see a counselor. d) Evening and weekend students who are normally on campus when counselors are not available. e) Students with mainstream, predictable questions that do not require interpretation by a counselor. CONCLUSIONS In conclusion, Sinclair's InTouch kiosk system is providing a cost-effective service (or collection of services) to the institution's student population. Further, the cost effective-ness of the system can be expected to improve with an increase in transaction volume as more students become acquainted with the system, and as more functionality is added. SUPPORTING DETAILS: Kiosk Costs I. DEVELOPMENT AND INSTALLATION COSTS (one time) Hardware Development system (PS/2 Model 57) $ 5,500 Kiosks (6) $ 70,242 Ethernet cards (6 x $150) $ 900 Network cabling $ 8,375 Art work (external signs) $ 1,000 -------- $ 86,017 System software ToolBook 1.53 $ 350 Windows 3.[1] (6 x $75) $ 450 LAN Workplace for DOS (10 units) $ 1,500 -------- $ 2,300 Kiosk software development (year 1993) SCC staff: 1,140 hrs @ $24.00 $ 27,360 student: 600 hrs @ $ 5.75 $ 3,450 TRG travel and lodging $ 4,500 ---------- $ 35,310 TOTAL $ 123,627 rounded to $ 125,000 = $5,200 per year per kiosk, based on a 4-year lifespan II. COST OF ON-GOING MAINTENANCE & SUPPORT programmer/analyst: 200 hrs/yr @ 24.50 $ 4,900 student: 200 hrs/year @ 4.[25] $ 850 annual hardware maint (1st yr free) $ 6,000 printer paper & ribbons $ 250 ------- Total system $ 12,000 One kiosk $ 2,000 ----------- Total cost per kiosk per year: Installation $ 5,200 Maintenance $ 2,000 ----------- TOTAL $ 7,200 SUPPORTING DETAILS: Kiosk Usage These breakdowns were extracted from actual kiosk log files recorded during September 1993. September volume is probably representative of a typical month; although the use is particularly heavy during the first week of classes, the first two weeks of September were rather light. Average kiosk session time: 4-5 minutes Average topics per session: 3 main menu items light day: about 10 sessions/day per kiosk moderate day: about 35 sessions/day per kiosk busy day: about 100 sessions/day per kiosk ------------------------------------------------------------ KIOSK USE BY TYPE OF INFORMATION: MONTHLY SUMMARY FOR ALL KIOSKS Total Time/ Count/ Time/ Equivalent Advising Topics Session Month Month Human Time --------------- ------- -------- ----- ---------- Career/major choices 4 min 400 26 hrs 66 hrs Credit hour load 2.5 min 300 12.5 hrs 75 hrs Course information 2.5 min 2,000 83 hrs 83 hrs Program information 1.5 min 1,000 25 hrs 25 hrs --------- ------- 146.5 hrs 249 hrs Note: Recommendations given by the InTouch expert system would typically take a person somewhat longer than the kiosk session time. Equivalencies estimated by Gordon Robinson: career/major choices = 10 minutes credit hour load = 15 minutes Clerical Functions: ----------------------- The following kiosk information involves some amount of interpretation or guidance, and would be provided by a clerical person. However, some of these kiosk services are not currently available elsewhere, so we do not have an estimate of human equivalent time. Time Count Total Time ------ ------ ---------- College costs 2.5 min 700 30 hrs Fin. Aid & Schlrships 4 min 900 60 hrs Personal records 5 min 3,000 250 hrs Employment information 1 min 800 13 hrs ---------- 353 hrs General Campus Information ----------------------------------- General campus information is currently provided by student peer counselors and by students working in the Student Activities office. The information includes office locations and hours, admissions and registration processes, academic calendar, and general information about student services. Human time and computer time is probably about the same for these functions: Time Count Total Time ------ ------- ---------- Maps & directories 2 min 1,400 47 hrs Services & facilities .5 min 2,200 18 hrs --------- 65 hrs Based on the totals given above, one kiosk in one month provides the following services: 41 hrs/month -- academic advising 15 hrs/month -- assist with financial information 42 hrs/month -- access to personal records (clerical) 2 hrs/month -- employment information 11 hrs/month -- general campus information ----- 111 hrs/month Comparative human costs -- salary plus fringe benefits: (source: Jeff Boudouris) $ 23.50 /hr -- academic counselor $ 9.00 /hr -- clerical person $ 4.25 /hr -- student $ 24.50 /hr -- programmer/analyst Cost of: printing catalogs: $ 95,000 for 60,000 = $ 1.58/each (source: Ann Armstrong) printing a brochure: $ 10,000 for 10,000 = $ 1.00/each (source: Ann Armstrong; example is the Business Division's brochure) session with a counselor = $ 11.75 (1/2 hour) (source: Gordon Robinson) ============================================================= =============================================================