ITAC minutes for Sept. 22, 2004

1. The budget situation was clarified. Of the $200,000 budget, $98,914 
was allocated to personnel, which  includes workstudy students for 
Academic Skills, Library, CIS, and Fine Arts. Of the amount budgeted for 
operating expenses and equipment ($101,086), $46,455.27 has already been 
spent on PCs for the School of Business, wireless upgrades for Duncan 
Hall, and supplies for the labs. This leaves approximately $50,000 left 
for the rest of the academic year.

There was a discussion about supplying paper and toner cartridges for 
the labs. Some labs currently receive these supplies from the Technology 
Fee funds (Library, Academic Skills), but others do not (School of 
Education). The committee reached a consensus that there should be a 
consistent policy for allocating printer supplies. However, we could not 
agree on exactly how these supplies should be distributed. Part of the 
problem may be defining exactly what a computer lab is - does it include 
all computer facilities (i.e., open labs, closed labs, and classrooms) 
or just the ones that are open to students at any time (i.e., labs that 
are not closed and not classrooms)? This issue was tabled until the next 
meeting.

2. Student technology fee recommendations
a. Chuck Lawson addressed the group on a proposal for the Fine Arts 
computer lab. The requested equipment would be primarily for creating 
videos and doing digital photography. They are converting from 
traditional photography to digital photography. Some of the videos would 
be used for admissions purposes. Lawson requested a list of items, 
including 4 Macintosh computers, digital still cameras, digital video 
cameras, inkjet printers, Quark Xpress software, digital juice and more. 
The total request was about $17,000. The committee recommended funding 2 
Macintosh G4 computers for this lab.

b. Paul Shapiro's request for SPSS software was considered. This 
software can be used by a wide range of disciplines on campus. It is 
installed in the Academic Skills lab, so it is open to everyone. The 
committee recommended funding this proposal. Some of the funds will come 
from the Technology Fee, but some will come from Instructional 
Technology. The latter will be from funds that currently paid for SPSS 
on faculty computers.

c. Stephanie Harvey requested classroom technology for the Biology 
Department. This included 2 ceiling mounts for existing projectors and a 
new projector (and ceiling mounts) to replace one that was stolen last 
Summer. Questions were raised regarding whether the stolen projector was 
covered by insurance. The committee recommended funding the 2 ceiling 
mounts for existing projectors.

d. Steve Galatas requested classroom technology for History and 
Political Science. Several faculty in this department are avid users of 
multimedia and other technology. The committee recommended computer 
projection technology for 2 classrooms in History and Political Science.

Next meeting: 3:30 on October 20 in the Morgan Hall Conference Room

Attendance: Chuck Lawson, Ginger Perry, Vera Weiskopf, Bryan Davis, Jim 
Neale, Royce Hackett, Arvind Shah, Carl Mueller, Gary Fisk, Stephanie 
Harvey, Steven Galatas, Curt Howell, and Nancy Morris.