Banner days ahead

Collaboration and 1College Project have created a Dickinson network

October 10, 2006

Robert Renaud, vice president and chief information officer, and Jill Forrester, director of institutional systems, are helping to spearhead the technological changes that are transforming the college's campus and operations.

The 1College Project has been moving at breakneck speed and there is no end in sight.

At the heart of the project is the implementation of Banner, which began in December 2004 and is integrating technology with administrative processes, such as creating paychecks and advices (the "pay stubs" that come from the college via e-mail) and allowing students to search and register for classes.

"It is typical for the initial implementation of Banner to take three years," explains Robert Renaud, vice president of library &  information services (LIS) and chief information officer. "At Dickinson ours took just a year. And it is even more remarkable that it was successful and that it came in on time and on budget." He adds that three times out of four when a college or university makes such a change, it fails.

Portal opens

But LIS is not resting on its laurels. Plans are moving forward with creation of the portal, which will be operational by fall '07.

The portal will be a Web-based interface that allows individuals to customize the information that they receive from on- and off-campus sources and will be a one-stop shop to access Dickinson e-services, including Banner and e-mail.

"There will be portal links to Banner so decision makers, for example, could have it set up so that every morning there is a pie chart showing the number of applicants or the size of the endowment," he adds. "That's the 2010 vision."

Evolution at Dickinson

By looking to the future and listening to users, LIS staffers are crafting a Banner that is unique to Dickinson and evolutionary, explains Jill Forrester, director of institutional systems.

One suggestion from Dan Cozort, associate professor and chair of religion, led to a new online class list application (CLIQ) for faculty members.

"This is not the only feedback that helped LIS tailor the system—it has been a collaborative effort. In fact, we are still soliciting constructive feedback," says Forrester

In response to more generalized feedback, LIS is working to create a single sign-on solution, which staff members hope will be available when the portal is up and running.

Technological expansion

And Banner is saving campus personnel time. Renaud and Forrester point to the payroll process of printing and distributing paychecks and advices that now takes hours rather than days.

The 1College Project obviously has been a focus of LIS, but other changes within the department have made technology more accessible and usable at Dickinson.

Since the creation of LIS in 2004, the college's network is more secure, and the pipeline to the Internet has doubled in size, according to Renaud. In addition, the core of the campus is wireless, including the library, Britton Plaza, Dickinson Walk, the Quarry and the HUB.

The technology committee is looking to roll out wireless in other areas as well and increase the Internet bandwidth again.

Changes on the horizon

On the library side, Renaud is excited about the recent addition of Rafael Alvarado, the new director of academic technology services.

One of the first tasks for this new team member is to look at the Information Commons, its role in the campus community and changes that should be implemented. One idea already being discussed involves turning the area into a dynamic student-faculty collaborative space.

Other areas beyond the library and network that will change in the near future are telephones for administrators and faculty. By next academic year, a new system will pave the way for use of the Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP).

With input from students, the cable TV network and its offerings are being studied to create a lineup that meets demand.

Digital scholarship

While it may seem obvious that technology is an important part of academic life, many on campus may not realize the degree of digital scholarship that occurs on a regular basis, says Renaud.

For example, the staff of Dickinson's archives has spearheaded a project called In Their Own Words, taking thousands of documents from the college's extensive collection, scanning them and posting them on the Web for scholars to access worldwide.

"It's rare that a liberal-arts college is using technology in such a pervasive way as Dickinson, but I'm not surprised," says Renaud. "After all, our founder was a scientist and a man of technology—how could we not live up to his legacy?"