Information Technology Services activities

Information Technology Services (ITS) worked this past quarter to complete projects for campus partners and execute upgrades to the technical infrastructure, and launched a search for a new chief information officer due to the resignation of Sharon Pitt to take a position elsewhere.

Collaboration across the University

•    ITS staff completed a successful project for Services for Students with Disabilities (SSD) that included data integrations and Single-Sign-On (SSO) implementation for the Accommodate system. This web-based case management system is used to automate, simplify and track the approval and delivery of accommodations for students. The system integrates with Banner and allows data to move between the systems. This database management system allows the SSD office to automate many tasks and also provides automated notifications to faculty when they have a student with needs. It also integrates with the campus SSO to provide a better student experience and a more common login process.
• ITS staff collaborated with Campus Recreation to create an application that shows how many people are currently using the different areas within FitSpace. The application is within the myBinghamton portal and the FitSpace staff update the app to show how many people are in the spaces such as the pool, basketball courts and weight areas. The app shows maximum capacity numbers so visitors can determine when it might be best to visit FitSpace to workout.
• ITS staff also completed the integration of the SSO login with the ArcGIS lab for the Department of Geography that was looking to integrate SSO into its ArcGIS lab environment. ArcGIS Online is a web-mapping portal (hosted by ESRI) that is licensed by the University. The previous process to gain access was manual and users were added to the system individually. The Geography Department wanted to enable the SSO feature available in the system to allow the use of the PODS ID to gain access. This allows the same username and password to be used in ArcGIS Online as is used for other campus purposes like email and Blackboard.
• ITS staff completed a project for the Fleishman Center for Career and Professional Development to automate the import of students into the B-Engaged system. This automated process replaces three manual processes and reduces the error rate significantly while also saving time for staff. The new system also integrates single sign on (SSO) to allow for a more consistent logon experience for the end users.

Hardware and software upgrades

• Delivered a new virtual Linux server for the Library Archon project. This will move us closer to eliminating the old Library virtual ESX infrastructure.
• Completed an upgrade to the Shibboleth environment that allows for the integration of Single sign-on to University applications and services using a common account (PODS).  This upgrade keeps Binghamton current with releases and allows for the use of newer features and functionality.
• Upgraded the IBM Spectrum Project (TSM) backup environment with newer hardware, newer AIX operating system and the latest release of Spectrum Project to bring the system to the current release.

Search for new chief information officer launched

In late October, Associate Vice President and Chief Information Officer (CIO) Sharon Pitt accepted a new position with the University of Delaware. With her departure, ITS continues to work to serve the technology needs of the University and prioritizes the strategies outlined in the Information Technology Strategic Plan that align with the goals of the University. Vice President for Operations JoAnn Navarro is acting in an interim role as chief information officer and is working closely with ITS directors during this transition. The CIO search is now active and a search firm is leading the efforts to fill the vacancy.

Other completed projects

• Completed myCourses upgrade to prepare for crocodocs to box view conversion
• Selected a vendor for the campus Identity and Access Management system after reviewing multiple products and demonstrations by vendors. The Identity and Access Management system will touch every system and application at the University and will fundamentally change how we manage identities and accounts.
• Closed out the Phase I installation project for the Business Intelligence System – SAS.  This completes the system setup and integration for the hardware/software environment.
• Met with the Business Intelligence Advisory Board. Held two review classes for Hyperion end users to give input to new SAS reporting tools.
• Completed the implementation for automating early arrivals into the Lenel system. This replaces the manual task of adding early arrivals into the access system each semester.
• Implemented Oracle Wallet Proxy for Banner Job Submission in BANPROD
• Completed the bi-annual testing of all panic buttons on campus
• Continued work to upgrade campus phone system to ShoreTel (Mitel) Connect. Converted several campus users to Shoretel Connect to participate in pre-cutover testing of the new software
• Switched ewaste recycling over to a new vendor (eWaste+), saving the campus funds and staff resources