Using the cloud to deliver reliable IT services - Page 2 of 4

Have you noticed an increase in student performance and/or motivation? If so, how?

Currently underway are numerous assessment projects led by the Dean of Assessment and Curriculum Effectiveness. Our initial project was to increase student attendance at the college library through innovative uses of technology in support of new student study spaces. The library has designed four unique study areas: (1) kinesthetic, (2) collaborative, (3) quiet, and (4) white noise or open areas.

To date, student usage of the library is up 390 percent from the previous academic year.

In addition, we have invested heavily in supplemental video materials in literature, economics, and business, along with executive leadership. Lastly, the IT department helped deploy a cloud-based library system that gives our students access to more than 3,000 libraries worldwide, along with 2.3 million eBooks—which dramatically increased the access to academic materials for our students.

How do you use technology to streamline administration and aid in decision-making, and to what effect?

We are focusing more and more on data accessibility. We have worked hard to expose the data in our ERP through the use of Cast Iron from IBM. This has allowed the college to creatively integrate data sources internally and in the cloud using business logic identified by the college.

In addition, we have deployed both Salesforce.com and Business Objects to provide ready access to reports and aid in effective report writing. As data accessibility has improved, we have begun to explore predictive modeling to help drive decision making in College Advancement and other offices.

The use of best-of-breed technologies allows staff, faculty, and students to be more effective in their work. Leveraging the same data in multiple places enhances efficiency, decreases errors, and saves money. It also lends itself to a more cohesive, systematized approach in which data flows smoothly from one department to another.