We asked University Business readers to tell us how evolving technology would come into play within their departments or their own jobs in 2019.
“It’s ever changing! Technology directly impacts my role and institutions as a small Technical College in PA. Faculty need to work with industry partners to make sure we are teaching students the most updated technology and software to make the success in their careers. There is a skills gap in the US and we are using technology to build a skilled workforce.”
—Kellyn Nolan, chief academic officer, Office of Academics, Johnson College (Pa.)
“Technology continues to push my job into a more advisory role. Working for a small University, my job was more hands on in the direct recruiting. I am now able to delegate to employees that are off-site. I have literally more than doubled my workforce. We have had record-breaking accuracy in our enrollment projections as well. Because we continue to increase our contact, we are better informed earlier in the process.”
—Jonathan Shelley, director, Student Recruitment & Admissions, Maranatha Baptist University (Wis.)
“Sustained technology shifts including moves to IPTV, collaboration tools vs. email, network PoE feeding more than just phones and wireless hardware, cloud-based SAAS leads PAAS, IAAS, and DAAS. Cloud-based storage starts to move back from the cloud to on-prem, and the continued evolution of smartphones and tablets that allows one’s work office to move with the user. With this comes a lack of ability to detach from work and find time to disconnect from technology.”
–Robert Evangelista, associate CIO, Core Technology Services, University of Rochester (N.Y.)
“Lynn University will use tech to automate routine marketing tactics, empowering our team to spend time on strategic priorities. For example, designers spend considerable time on print deliverables like postcards for events. Writers will begin using cloud-based templates to create materials, freeing up design time to focus on digital marketing initiatives instead.”
—Sherrie Weldon, chief marketing officer, Lynn University (Fla.)
“Thoughtful technology integration into Higher Education will become even more important in 2019. With more than 40% of K-12 schools surveyed this year by the Consortium for School Networking, having a 1:1 device program, it will be critical to educate faculty in new teaching methodologies. Assisting faculty to engage with new and innovative technologies so that they can facilitate deeper student learning is what we are focusing on in the School of Education at LMU.”
—Shannon N. Tabaldo, director of Innovation in Digital Education and Leadership (IDEAL) Institute, School of Education, Loyola Marymount University (Calif.)
Read our main feature on the impact of technology on various campus departments in 2019.
“As the connected age matures, technology increasingly can help institutions determine where to invest to serve constituents. Practitioners that can test new (and established) idea and then present evidence about what works and what doesn’t may help their schools gain a competitive advantage over those that can’t. The caveat is that agility relies not so much on understanding, but a cultural commitment to act on discoveries. Technology alone won’t allow us to meet that challenge.”
—Hal Legg, chief communication and marketing officer, SUNY Oneonta (N.Y.)
“The increase in web-based resources will cause our institution, which serves a high percentage of first-generation, low-income students, to focus on a one-to-one device program and streamline our resources with single sign-on functionality and several ADA accommodations.”
—Trey Arrington, vice president for operations, Spartanburg Methodist College (S.C.)
“Evolving technology will allow for a comprehensive business processes enhancement throughout my college in 2019. A change to a new ERP will spearhead the revamping of “old tools” by the adoption of a technology framework designed to deliver effective and timely processing; with the appropriate “internal controls” for audit and reporting purposes. ERPs must be implemented with Student Success as the driver. The CIO’s must provide an environment for business process change to happen.”
—August Alfonso, vice president for Facilities Operations and CIO, Del Mar College (Texas)
“We are starting distance learning and have elected to use Canvas, starting in 2019. We just moved our email provider to G-Suites. We will be looking at moving more tools off of networks to the cloud. And, we are hoping to upgrade a number of computers on our 2 campuses.”
—Lisa Bogart, library director, Eastern International College (N.J.)
“New technologies enhance teaching and learning now more than ever. At Fresno State we are committed to maintaining high-quality teaching through pedagogical uses of technology. We constantly upgrade our classrooms with the latest computer devices, projectors, apps, online tools and software to support collaboration, hands-on practice of teaching and research.”
—Trang Phan, assistant professor, Instructional Technology Resource Center (INTERESC) in the Kremen School of Education and Human Development, California State University, Fresno
Read more Outlook on 2019 features.
