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One of the principal reasons for our success, is that we employ a multi-level approach. " Howard Spivak, Director for Library Systems & Academic IT |
"[A]cademic computing resources on the campuses must be expanded and updated to meet student demand. Students need more computer laboratory workstations, better technical support from staff, longer hours of access and higher speed connectivity. Faculty should have the hardware, software and support to incorporate technology into lesson plans and class discussions. ... Colleges and universities across the country have addressed the constantly changing and growing need for computer access by assessing a technology fee." Memorandum to CUNY students from the Office of the Vice-Chancellor for Student Development & Enrollment Management, March 20, 2002
The University's Board of Trustees adopted a technology fee of $75 per semester for full-time students and $37.50 for part-time students, effective fall 2002. (For Brooklyn College, this meant approximately$1,400,000 in new funding.) Each College was required to establish an implementation committee (which included student representation) and submit a plan showing how Tech Fee funds would be used. At Brooklyn College, our Tech Fee spending plan was crafted squarely within the context of our Information Technology Master Plan.
The College has now completed two rounds of Tech Fee planning, spring 2002 and spring 2003. The College and the Library/Academic IT have benefitted in many ways from Tech Fee monies–indeed, students' academic lives have been vastly improved. These are the ways in which Student Technology Fee funds will benefit students using the services of the Library and Academic IT:
New E-resources (for more information, see Theme 3: Electronic Information Resources, below)
Chat software to be used for real-time virtual reference service, increasing students' access to librarians
AV equipment for the individual academic departments, enabling more efficient use of audiovisual tools for teaching and learning
A new full-time Web developer who will concentrate her or his efforts on building "super sites" that provide Digital Supplemental Instruction (DSI)
Student workers whostaff the New Media Center and assist in the maintenance of the new Library's 400+ student-access PCs
Blade servers, enabling us to attach more student-access PCs to the Library's network
Membership in the New Media Consortium http://www.newmediacenter.org, which increases our purchasing power for hardware and software through steep discounts
Plasma screens for Library and Academic IT program announcements (these will be placed in the Library's foyer and New Media Center, and in the Library Café)
Smartboard for the Library's Woody Tanger Auditorium
Film projector for the Library's Woody Tanger Auditorium
Wireless connectivity throughout the Library building, providing students and faculty with much greater computing mobility and enabling the start-up of our handhelds project
Handhelds and/or tablet/laptop pilot project, enabling students to borrow handheld devices with wireless network cards for use throughout the Library and permitting staff to experiment with wireless/handheld applications for library and higher education uses
Software upgrades for the New Media Center and the Library Café
Equipment to allow the creation and packaging of CDs for students