What are some of the instructional technology challenges higher ed leaders are facing as their campuses grow in physical size? Unfortunately, technology budgets do not often grow when campuses do. So selections must be made with maximum ROI in mind, from both the usability and support ends. New deployments ought to integrate into the university’s […]
Staff in the IT department at the University of South Carolina Upstate in Spartanburg used to say “no” a lot. Meeting the computer needs of 6,000 students—many who work full-time and have families—and hundreds of faculty became an increasing challenge in the less-than-affluent community. Requests from faculty and the demand for technical assistance couldn’t be […]
Administrative flexibility and a seamless user experience were the simple AV system requirements desired by the IT team at London South Bank University. The institution, which serves 18,000 students and is located in the Southwark borough of London, is one of the city’s largest. With 290 classrooms, consistency in AV infrastructure is key for the […]
It was clear starting in 2013 that an aging, on-premise, analog phone system would not cut it anymore for Campbellsville University in Kentucky. The institution, which sits an hour and a half outside of Louisville and serves over 3,500 students, needed to ensure reliable phone service for all departments across a main campus and three […]
Carine Feyten Chancellor and president, Texas Woman's University Topic: Safety and security Trend: Campus safety certainly is going to get more attention from senior administration—and how we are perceived by prospective students and their families will impact their "buying decision." Finding the right balance of open and enjoyable campus life and controls that might mitigate […]
For engineers, life has become increasingly complicated in the worlds of nanotechnology, lean manufacturing, and rapid product design and development. We learned from our research that engineering education can no longer deploy conventional, isolated solutions. Indeed, there is rarely an easy, one size fits all, cookie cutter answer in an environment that has uncountable moving […]
The University of Vermont offers its students allergen-free, gluten-free and kosher food stations—plus cage-free eggs, fair trade coffee and locally sourced organic food (including Vermont maple syrup). Hunger cravings can be satisfied at any of three dining halls and 12 retail locations on campus, yet meal prices haven’t increased at rates higher than the cost […]
In the past, Weber State University processed payments according to what was purchased and where. So basketball tickets went through one system, bookstore purchases went through another, and lab fees still another. Not only was it clunky on the front-end, but it made for tedious reconciliation on the back-end and a general feeling of chaos […]
Picture this: sticky notes on every screen. And if there are none on the monitor, lift up the keyboard. Nothing there? Try opening the pencil drawer. Unfortunately, it’s not hard for the wrong person to find these notes, and it’s the passwords written on these innocuous slips of paper that worry IT administrators at every […]
For all the advantages of online learning—flexibility, personalization and affordability among them—there can be downsides for some students. Traditional, on-campus students can take advantage of a wide variety of social and extracurricular opportunities, but online students may feel isolated and disconnected from their peers and from their college or university—and risk losing the engagement so crucial […]