IT: Technology Task Force

The Technology Task Force is a committee which meets every 5 years to draw up a plan for technology development at Augustana.

Technolgy Task Force II Report 1997

Technology Task Force III Report 2002

BACKGROUND
During the 1992-93 academic year the Technology Task Force (TTF) prepared a five-year plan for technology development at Augustana. Their report was presented to the campus for feedback and refinement and subsequently endorsed by President Ralph Wagoner. The TTF report has served as the blueprint for technology decisions at Augustana since that time. Appendix A contains a list of accomplishments that correspond to the original TTF report.

Four years is a whole generation in the computer field. Although the TTF report includes plans through the 1997-98 academic year, the Information Systems Committee (ISC) believed it was time to prepare a new planning document. A new task force (TTF2) was created including Charles Brown, Tim Chamberlain, Loren Koepsell, Richard Swanson, Ronelle Thompson, and Arlen Viste.

The members of the new task force felt it would be helpful to gather input from a broader constituency. It was decided to hold a Tech Fair for all college employees to provide an opportunity for faculty, administrators, and staff to see first-hand the latest technologies being used on campus. The day-long fair was held in January 1996 and was attended by a cross-section of the college community.

The new task force also decided that it would be helpful to survey staff, administrators, faculty, students, and alumni to determine their perspectives on currently available technologies and their future needs. In the case of the alumni, the campus Advancement office provided student workers to make individual calls to a random group of recent graduates.