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Campus Council for Information Technology

Note from the Chair

The charge to the Council is to provide advice and recommendations to the Provost and Executive Vice Chancellor and to the Vice Provost for Information and Educational Technology (IET) on educational and information technology and its use at UC Davis in support of instruction, research, administration, and public service. 

In the current environment of highly constrained budgeting where decisions will have significant consequences, recommendations from CCFIT will have enhanced impact. It is more important than ever that we receive broad input from the campus community. I hope you will participate in the forums that we will sponsor this year. Also please do not hesitate to contact us at the feedback email address below, or you can email me directly (jekiskis@ucdavis.edu ). I look forward to hearing from you.

Joe Kiskis
Chair, CCFIT (2009-10) and Professor of Physics

Joe Kiskis

Campus Council for Information Technology

CCFIT Comments on "UC Davis: A Transformative Vision" Draft (posted 02/02/10)

On February 1, Chair Kiskis submitted feedback to Chancellor Katehi about the draft campus vision document that was circulated in November for community input.  Submitted on behalf of CCFIT, the feedback includes comments collected from Council and subcommittee members as well as suggested edits.  The CCFIT memo emphasizes three key points: the need to recognize the role of faculty in teaching and mentoring and to state an aspiration to greater excellence in our educational mission; the need for the quality and ranking of the library to match our campus aspirations for the research and teaching it facilitates; and the need to more clearly define the target audience for the campus vision document and to adjust some terminology accordingly.

Community Forum on Next Generation Email and Communication Applications for Faculty and Staff (posted 01/28/10)

The campus is in the initial stage of considering options for enhancing the features and capabilities of email service for faculty and staff. One option is to move to a service offered by a commercial provider like Google’s Gmail and related Google Apps. Plans to investigate the feasibility of such a move are being developed.

On Feb. 17, the Campus Council for Information Technology (CCFIT) will sponsor an open forum with the community to discuss the plans for a Gmail pilot project for faculty and staff.  Professor Joe Kiskis, chair of CCFIT, will host the session.

All members of the community, including faculty, are encouraged to attend and participate in the discussion. Feedback collected during the open forum will help inform the plans for the pilot.

The open forum is scheduled as follows:

Date: Wednesday, Feb. 17, 2010

Time: 2-3:30 p.m.

Location: Ballroom B, Activities and Recreation Center (ARC)

The following topics will be covered:

  • Why UC Davis is examining possible alternatives to the current central email service (known as ‘Cyrus’) and is conducting a parallel but related review of the central Microsoft Exchange (‘Xeda’) service on campus;
  • The objectives for the focused eight-week pilot program, including determining the extent to which Gmail (Google’s email service) can meet the communication needs of faculty and staff, and the extent to which they integrate properly in our campus environment;
  • An overview of Gmail and other Google Apps (e.g., calendar, documents and spreadsheets, groups, sites, etc.);
  • The mechanisms by which faculty and staff can join the pilot and stay informed (e.g., project Web site, comprehensive FAQ, orientation sessions; etc.); and
  • A Q&A with the Gmail project team.

CCFIT sponsors open forums as a way to engage the community and collect substantive input from interested campus members about current issues and initiatives related to campus information and educational technologies.

Seating is limited. To secure a seat, please RSVP at gmail-pilot@ucdavis.edu by Thursday, Feb. 11, 2010.

Background materials:

This month's CCFIT meeting agenda:


Monday, January 25, 2010
3:10 - 4:30 pm
2203 Social Sciences and Humanities Building

3:10-3:15

Welcome and approval of minutes — Joe Kiskis, Chair

3:15-3:55

Discussion of Subcommittees' Preliminary Work Plans for 2009-10 — Subcommittee Chairs

3:55-4:10

CCFIT Feedback on the Campus Vision Draft — Joe Kiskis, Chair

  • Reading materials: Summary of CCFIT Feedback  / Draft vision document
  • Discussion: Finalizing CCFIT input for submission to the chancellor

4:10-4:30

Exploration of Gmail for Faculty and Staff — Morna Mellor, Director-IET, Data Center and Client Services, Gabe Youtsey, Project Manager - IET Application Development

UPDATES:

Feedback

Comments about the CCFIT report and activities can be sent directly to council-support@ucdavis.edu