Minutes, January 25, 2017 (Approved)

A meeting of the Committee on Information Systems (CIS) was held Wednesday, January 25, 2017 from 1:00-2:00 PM in Library Room 115. The twelve attendees were:

1.  Robert Adcock (SIS)
2. Maria Beltran (GLC)
3. Stefano Costanzi (CAS)
4. Nancy Davenport (LIB)
5. Terry Fernandez (OIT)
6. Alan Isaac (CAS)
7. Stefan Kramer (LIB)
8. Sarah Menke-Fish (SOC)
9. Joseph Mortati (KSB)
10. Sonja Walti (SPA)
11. Stef Woods (CAS)
12. Chenyang Xiao (CAS)

The following items of business were discussed.

1. Co-Chair Joseph Mortati called the meeting to order and for the November 2016 minutes to be approved, which were. New member Robert Adcock of SIS was welcomed.

2. Joseph Mortati provided an update on the topic of Information Literacy as it relates to AU Experience (AUx) Courses, which in this context, means being literate about types and sources of information, not anything to do with Information Systems.

3. Sonja Walti raised the issue of allocation of classrooms based on pedagogical needs. It appears that different schools allocate classrooms differently based on course, section, or instructor needs – it is currently not possible to change rooms based on inadequate setup including layout, furniture, and technology. There should be a way to request features ahead of time. It should be technically feasible to flag special needs when requesting classrooms as such capability is available when scheduling events. Upon further discussion, it was agreed to invite Tara Sabbagh, Associate Registrar, Student Information Systems, to explain the process at the university-level and what the various “tiers” of classrooms there are.

4. Stefan Kramer provided an update on the Fall 2016 ATSC (Academic Technology Steering Committee) meeting.

a. Student Computing Devices – a survey showed that 10% of about 350 recipients did not bring any kind of computing device to campus. A small-scale needs assessment to establish a baseline is necessary but students should not have to self-identify – this is a chair issue and a policy problem without a procedural solution.

b. $164,000 has been allocated for Priority 1 & 2 upgrades to classrooms. There are three “tiers” of classrooms [note: we need definitions for these].

c. For all online video content used in teaching – includes Blackboard and non-AU sources such as YouTube – to have closed captioning would require 5 full-time equivalents (FTEs). This item needs further discussion by CIS.

5. The CIS Issues Lists was reviewed to update statuses and determined which items need CIS attention. Of the 19 items on the list, #1-7 and #17 were reviewed.

6. There being no additional business for the good of the order, the meeting was adjourned.