Page 30 - Campus Technology, January/February 2018

VIRTUAL ROUNDTABLE
“As universities begin to battle for the reduced number of traditional students, a solid technology infrastructure on a campus could make the difference in which universities students choose.”
— Thomas Hoover
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CAMPUS TECHNOLOGY | January/February 2018
be the greatest challenge.
The infusion of mobile technologies affords a multitude
of opportunities, expanding use cases for how and where people learn and consume information, and allowing institu- tions to learn more about user behavior in more ways than can be imagined. Mobile technology on a college campus serves a variety of purposes, often with varied levels of suc- cess and effectiveness. IT divisions must continue to think about how their systems and infrastructure can scale into platforms and devices that go beyond the traditional and in- stead into a more competitive, mobile-friendly marketplace.
We must capitalize on the strengths of portability and the BYOD nature of mobile tech, and accept that as a result our faculty, staff and students are going to command new and different support from our IT divisions.
Goodrum: The modern person on the street or in their home may not have the time or attention to understand much about the Internet of Things (unless they ask Siri or Alexa about it), because they are too distracted by their smart- phone, -watch, -exercise tracker, -bulb, -thermostat, -door- lock, -refrigerator with a webcam, etc.
At Oregon State, the College of Agricultural Sciences is developing a precision agriculture curriculum, which is all about generating and using data that will allow farmers to make the best decisions possible. Faculty members in the Department of Biological and Ecological Engineering expect
IoT to play a significant role in the generation of data that, when matched with the power of the cloud and scientifically validated algorithms, will allow producers to make smart de- cisions. Assistant Professor Chet Udell, a faculty member in the department, is developing a multi-term curriculum (funded in part by an Information Systems Learning Innovation Grant) which aims to teach students how to build and develop sen- sor packages and interact with the cloud, thus putting theory into action. In addition, Professor John Selker runs the Open- Sensing Lab, which focuses on developing environmental sensing projects and research using solid-state sensors of water, atmosphere and soil status. Through the Internet of Ag- riculture (IoA), the technology for sensors and communication could potentially play a critical role to ensure our ability to feed the human population in 2050.
6) Role of IT
Hoover: IT can and should play a huge role in today’s higher education institution. It goes without saying that
IT first needs to focus on helping the institution fulfill the university mission and strategic plan. That should be the core responsibility for IT.
IT has the distinct ability to enhance and offer as- sistance to every department on campus. In this time of decreased public funding for higher education, IT can position itself to be a great resource for the university. On the academic side, IT can streamline the recruitment and enrollment process, as well as assist with retention and helping students to graduate. Those are extremely important areas in states that are moving or have moved to performance-based funding models. On the adminis- trative side, IT can help improve workflow and automate administrative tasks in various departments. As one of my esteemed CIO colleagues says, “IT is the circulatory sys- tem of the university.”
Another area that IT can play a role is in recruitment. As universities begin to battle for the reduced number of tradi- tional students, a solid information technology infrastructure