November 18, 1999
PRESENT ABSENT Dr. Jack Armistead Dr. Glen Johnson Mr. Andrew Schnell Dr. Jeffrey Austen Dr. David Larimore Prof. Carolyn Whitaker Dr. Jon Booker Dr. Carl Owens Mr. Frank Bush Dr. Gary Pickett VISITOR Mr. Richard Cashion Dr. Rebecca Quattlebaum Ms. Lauren Neal Dr. Cathy Cunningham Dr. Don Ramsey Mr. Charles Ferrill Dr. Patrick Reagan Ms. Monica Greppin representing Mr. Paul Isbell Mr. Danny Reese Dr. Raymond Holbrook Dr. Winston Walden Mr. Paul Isbell Ms. Darla Wilhite Ms. Mary Kelley Ivanov
The Information Technology Committee met at 11:00 a.m. on November 18, 1999 in Johnson Hall, Conference Room, Room 102. Dr. Gary Pickett called the meeting to order.
APPROVAL OF AGENDA: Dr. Cathy Cunningham made a motion to approve the agenda. Dr. David Larimore seconded the motion. Motion carried.
APPROVAL OF SEPTEMBER 16, 1999 MINUTES: Dr. David Larimore made a motion to approve the minutes of the September 16, 1999 meeting. Dr. Ray Holbrook seconded the motion. Motion carried.
NEW TELEPHONE SYSTEM UPDATE: Mr. Charlie Ferrill discussed the new telephone system update with all the committee members. He described the special features that the new phones would offer and said new phones would be installed in all faculty and staff offices in December with cut over to the new telephone switch before Christmas. He said extensive training is being conducted for telecommunications staff on the new system.
IRC AND RECREATIONAL COMPUTING POLICIES STATUS REPORT: Dr. Jeffrey Austen made a motion to give Information Technology Services authority to enforce the IRC and Recreational Computing Policies. Dr. Patrick Reagan seconded the motion. Motion carried.
A friendly amendment was proposed by Dr. Ray Holbrook for offices to establish their own procedures within the policy guidelines. It was discussed that if offices wanted to define appropriate use for their area, they could consult with their reporting channel and define procedures that were appropriate for their area and within University policy. After discussion Dr. Pickett suggested this needed to be further reviewed and the scope of the policy broadened. After further discussion Dr. Holbrook made a motion that this be referred back to the subcommittee to revise the policy after reviewing TechNet and TBR policies along with input from Information Technology Services. Dr. Jon Booker seconded the motion. Motion carried.
Mr. Richard Cashion said disparate policies needed to be brought together to create coherent unified policies. He also recommended a new subcommittee be formed to study existing policies and recommend changes and additions. Dr. Pickett said he would appoint a new subcommittee. Discussion followed. All motions were recalled and withdrawn.
Dr. Pickett introduced Mr. Danny Reese to the committee and welcomed him to Tennessee Tech. Mr. Reese began work on October 1st and has had the opportunity to meet with most of the committee members prior to day’s meeting.
WEB PAGE MONITORING AND MAINTENANCE: Mr. Reese asked Ms. Monica Greppin speak on the current procedures departments follow to develop their own web pages and get them linked to the main University web page. She said web pages are reviewed by her office for appearance, accuracy, flow, and compatibility. The question was raised as to what responsibility this committee has for policies and procedures regarding web page monitoring and review? It was decided that Mr. Reese, Ms. Greppin, and Mr. Isbell look at web page management at the University level and make a recommendation on how to proceed.
USE OF TTU MICROSOFT SITE LICENSED SOFTWARE ON FACULTY/STAFF PERSONAL COMPUTERS: Mr. Reese said work had been done on this topic but didn’t know if the committee was aware of this policy. The existing site license agreement, which TTU has with Microsoft, has a provision for software that is licensed by the University, to be installed on faculty/staff personal computers in order that faculty/staff may work on University business at home. This provision is know as the "Work at Home Rights" clause. Mr. Reese wanted to investigate the resources that will be required to put this policy in motion and will update the committee at the next meeting.
TECHNOLOGY PLANNING PROCESS FOR 1999-2000, TECHNOLOGY ACCESS FUNDS ELIGIBLE PROJECTS, NON TAF ELIGIBLE PROJECTS: Mr. Reese said there had been good response and suggestions to the modification of the planning documents to include a section on vision. The planning documents will be distributed in late November or early December. The planning subcommittee will meet after the plans have been turned in to review and recommend priority.
COMPUTING EQUIPMENT HARDWARE/SOFTWARE APPROVAL PROCESS: Mr. Reese said he would like to streamline the procedures for approval of the purchase of computer hardware and software, keeping in mind the requirements of the TBR. Mr. Reese also added that he would work with purchasing and provide an update at the next meeting.
CAMPUS PIPELINE: Mr. Reese said a new release of this product is scheduled in December and another release in late spring. Campus pipeline is a web-based application that runs in concert with the administrative SCT software to provide additional function and improved service to students and faculty. We need to evaluate this software based on what we presently offer and what it provides before committing on using it. Dr. Pickett requested Mr. Reese schedule a presentation by Campus Pipeline in order for the committee to get a better understanding of what Campus Pipeline will do.
SUCH OTHER MATTERS: Dr. Pickett appointed a new subcommittee to review and make recommendations on new/updated policies as they relate to information technology. He appointed the following:
Dr. Jeffrey Austen – Chairman
Dr. Jack Armistead
Dr. Jon Booker
Mr. Danny Reese
Dr. Patrick Reagan
ADJOURN: With no further business, the meeting adjourned at 12:20 p.m.