About the IUPUI Student Technology Fee transition

On this page:

• About the transition
• How is the transition process being managed?
• How was the transition rolled out?
• What is the timeline for this transition?
• What principles define the "common good"?
• How is discipline-specific use distinguished from the "common good?"
• How is school- or discipline-specific IT funded?
• What are examples of services funded by the STF?
• How are faculty and students involved in the process?

About the transition

On February 23, 2009, Chancellor Charles Bantz announced that a phased plan will leverage the Student Technology Fees (STF) paid by undergraduates at IUPUI to expand and enhance campus-wide IT services available to them. To accomplish this plan, the undergraduate STF at IUPUI is administered in full by University Information Technology Services (UITS). Student Technology Fees paid by graduate students at IUPUI are not affected by this plan unless schools opt in for all or part of the plan.

How is the transition process being managed?

The Office of the Vice President for Information Technology (OVPIT) is managing the transition. Overall leadership of the transition is provided by Stacy Morrone, Associate Dean for Learning Technologies and Associate Professor, and Sue Workman, Associate Vice President for Support. Oversight is provided by Garland C. Elmore, Dean for IT at IUPUI and Deputy CIO. He is joined by a support team which includes Debby Allmayer (Human Resources Officer), Jill Piedmont (Deputy Finance Officer), Misty Wick (Communications), and Theresa Walsh (Executive Assistant). UITS is working with each school to plan the transition. Each IUPUI dean appoints members to represent the school; hence there are 18 transition teams, one for each school.

How was the transition rolled out?

Initial meetings focused on the transitional process. The teams identified technologies and services to be leveraged in the short term as well as those which will require substantial analysis over several months or a year or more. An operational team of UITS and school representatives are managing a smooth and effective transition.

What is the timeline for this transition?

February 23, 2009-June 30, 2009: UITS and school transition teams charged to develop school plans for transitioning services appropriately funded by the undergraduate STF to UITS management, effective July 1, 2009.

July 1, 2009-June 30, 2012: UITS manages the undergraduate STF at IUPUI and continues transition planning with IUPUI's schools. Services that remain within schools will be evaluated by the transition teams on a case-by-case basis and funded through UITS accounts managed by Associate Dean Stacy Morrone and Associate Vice President Sue Workman.

July 1, 2012-June 30, 2013: The transition period is complete with all undergraduate STF-funded facilities and resources managed by UITS.

What principles define the "common good?"

One of the guiding principles in originally establishing the STF was that it be used to directly support information technology services available to students. General purpose services are typically available to all students or support an important campus priority for undergraduates. These typically include the computers, networks, software, and staff support for undergraduates, regardless of their major, and provide the foundation upon which schools can build discipline-specific or unique, distinctive offerings. School-specific services and facilities will remain the responsibility of the schools and will be funded by sources other than the undergraduate STF. Within this context, there may be opportunities for schools to provide their own software and services in a general purpose facility, which may be given preferential scheduling based on school needs.

How is discipline-specific use distinguished from the "common good?"

In reviewing STF-funded infrastructure, facilities, and services during the transition period, the UITS and school-based transition teams apply the following questions to distinguish between discipline-specific services and general purpose, widely accessible services:

• Does the IT resource support undergraduate students?
• Is the resource accessible or available to all undergraduates regardless of major or class standing?
• Can the facility or service potentially serve an important priority at IUPUI, for undergraduates overall or across multiple disciplines or departments?

How is school- or discipline-specific IT funded?

School-specific services and facilities will remain the responsibility of the schools and will be funded by sources other than the undergraduate STF by the end of the three-year transition (July 1, 2013), unless they serve all undergraduates or meet an important campus priority (see the timeline and common good sections).

What are examples of services funded by the STF?

As described in the IT Strategic Plan, Empowering People, leveraging resources provides economies of scale that can result in greater efficiency and cost savings by providing consistent software builds and services across the IUPUI campus and Indiana University overall.

Services made possible by this change in the administration of the STF include operating, maintaining, and upgrading the UITS Student Technology Centers (STCs); consulting in the STCs; software in the STCs; undergraduate printing; IT Training workshops offered through UITS IT Training; audio, video, and software build support in multimedia facilities; technology in informal learning spaces; email stations; and other services being planned by the transition teams.

UITS and the schools will explore new opportunities to enhance student IT services at IUPUI and achieve the goals of Empowering People. These opportunities include developing additional Student Technology Centers in areas serving large numbers of undergraduates, enhancing support for student laptops, expanding wireless networks, equipping new computer classrooms, and providing specialized, instructor-requested software broadly available across campus.

How are faculty and students involved in the process?

UITS works regularly with the IUPUI Faculty Council Technology Committee, and will additionally review plans and progress with the Faculty Council Budgetary Affairs Committee, the Campus Planning Committee, and the Committee for Fee Review. Faculty are also involved in their schools' transition teams at the discretion of the deans. Transition team members are available to discuss the STF process with other groups and forums. UITS is working with the IUPUI Undergraduate Student Government and the Student Ambassadors to engage student participation in the process. Additionally, schools may also involve students in the planning and transition.