SFSU ITS Planning Framework

Planning Framework

San Francisco State has engaged in a variety of campus-wide, collaborative planning efforts in the past several years. Some of these planning efforts have focused on technology, and some have not. Nevertheless, even those planning efforts which have not focused on technology have resulted in the identification of technological solutions and the need for technological infrastructure to support the goals of the planning process.

In 1995, President Robert Corrigan initiated a Commission on University Strategic Planning (CUSP). The CUSP initiative involved the creation of six planning groups, which were staffed by a wide cross-section of students, faculty, staff and administrators. The planning groups addressed:

Academic Excellence;
Combating Discrimination;
Community Responsibility;
Internationalizing the University;
Teaching and Learning Success;
A User-Friendly University.

Although the final CUSP report is now under development, planning group reports and recommendations have been under discussion for over a year. Several of these specifically noted the role technology should have in meeting planning goals. The planning group "Toward a User-Friendly Campus," for instance, had guiding principles and recommendations which addressed technology infrastructure requirements. Examples include the following principles and (selected) recommendations:

Principle: On a user-friendly campus, the physical environment supports the appropriate goals of students, employees, and visitors, including:

Easily and fully accessible facilities, equipment, information, services, and other material resources necessary for students to meet their educational objectives;
Easily and fully accessible facilities, equipment, information, services, and other material resources necessary for employees to meet the work objectives for which the university holds them accountable;
A hospitable and inviting physical environment, offering public art and also information kiosks, shuttle buses, and services which are appropriately accessible to visitors.

Recommendation: Every member of the university should be provided with a computer account, including access to basic services, with adequate access to equipment to use these services and adequate infrastructure support.

Principle: On a user-friendly campus, members of the community understand and act in accordance with the human desire for positive interactions with others. Typical interpersonal behaviors in such an environment reflect and support the following values, applicable without regard to differences in such categories as rank, class, age, race, gender, ethnicity, or sexual orientation: respect, courtesy/civility, appreciation, empathy, trust, inclusion, and consultation.

Recommendation: Communication among individuals and groups on campus, particularly on issues that affect student success, should be facilitated via e-mail, voice mail, bulletin boards, touch-tone messages and grade reports.

In addition to CUSP planning groups, San Francisco State University has an Information Technology Team (ITT) comprised of the Executive Director of Computing Services, the University Librarian, the Director of Audio-Visual Services, the Director of the Center for the Enhancement of Teaching (CET) and the Associate Vice President for Academic Resources. This team of executives coordinates the development and implementation of a wide range of information technology projects on campus, and is responsible for the allocation of funds designated by the President for Information Technology Enhancement (ITE) Initiatives on campus.

Beginning in FY94/95, President Corrigan started the Information Technology Enhancement Initiatives with a commitment of $500,000. This permanent funding allocation was increased to $1,000,000 in FY95/96, $1,500,000 in FY96/97, and is expected to be $2,000,000 in FY97/98. There was a one-time allocation of $700,000 in FY96/97 for an Integrated Library System. A complete listing of ITE projects and both past and projected budgets is included in the Appendices. Projects have focused on access, training and support, including:

Providing electronic mail and Internet access (including Help Desk support) to all students, faculty and staff;
Providing faculty training in technology, with a particular emphasis on multimedia;
Electronic access to Library databases;
Multimedia production facilities;
College-based support staff for technology.

The Information Technology Team prepares an annual Campus Information Resource Plan (CIRP) which describes both the strategic and tactical information technology plans of the Library, Computing Services, Audio Visual Services, and other campus units. The ITT will continue to provide management guidance and support as the campus implements the ITS Initiative projects.

In addition to on-going planning groups, the campus has formed task groups to address specific information technology issues. In 1995, a campus-wide committee including students, faculty and administrators was convened to address the Chancellor’s directive to develop a plan for students to have 24-Hour access to a personal computer and networking services. The task group’s report is included in the Appendices.

The campus determined, through a questionnaire conducted electronically during Touch Tone Registration, that 74% of San Francisco State’s students already have access to a personal computer outside of campus, and most of those computers have modems. Although the requirement that all students have 24-Hour access has not been completely satisfied, the campus addressed a significant part of the 24-Hour access requirement by opening a 27-station, 24-Hour computing lab in the campus library in summer, 1996. The new facility has been extremely successful, but the campus has still not achieved the level of access required by either the campus task group or the ITS Initiative. This proposal, particularly the "Early Start/Easy Access" component, addresses unmet needs in this area.

In addition to campus-based planning and coordination efforts, San Francisco State has actively participated in system-wide telecommunications planning efforts, including the Telecommunications Infrastructure Master Planning Project and the CSUNET/Community College expansion project. Since San Francisco State University serves as a major hub for CSUNET, the campus has been actively involved in supporting system-wide data and video networking projects.