With the recent changes, or lack thereof, in the IT department at the university, there have been many questions from students and faculty alike, mostly regarding the recent outsourcing of the department.
Current interim Chief Information Officer, David Hunter, wants students and faculty alike to be informed about the new changes already in place since the department’s outsourcing, as well as the many changes to come.
Hunter is an employee of Dynamic Campus, the company that now manages the IT department. Student employees remain employed under the university, while being managed by Dynamic Campus employees.
Dynamic Campus is a company out of Austin, Texas that strives to provide small, private institutions with the same level of IT support as large, public universities.
According to Hunter, they currently provide IT services for fifteen colleges around the country, including two others in Ohio: Lourdes University and Franciscan University.
The biggest changes coming to IT, Hunter identifies, are better and faster wi-fi, as well as more efficient help services.
The new changes in internet speed and connection will be an estimated $1.3-1.4 million in expenses and will occur in three phases, according to Hunter.
The first phase includes replacing the central system, located in the IT data center, that allows devices to connect to the university’s wi-fi.
Second, they will begin replacing all wireless access points around campus, including adding more to outdoor common areas, such as the fountains, for ones that are more up-to-date.
Lastly, they will replace all the switches “where the internet connects to the university and the access points, and all the equipment in between,” Hunter said.
Hunter realizes it is a large, and expensive, job.
“Wi-fi problems should be a thing of the past,” he said. “The leadership of Capital University realizes the importance of it. That’s one of the reasons they partnered with Dynamic Campus, and its also another reason why they’re funding these projects we’re recommending. They are key critical things to make sure that you have a good experience in the classroom.”
The installation of the updated wi-fi systems is projected to begin in the fall of 2024.
Along with the updated internet systems, changes with the IT desk, currently located on the first floor of Blackmore Library, has also been a topic of discussion.
Hunter states that a more immediate change in how IT is run, launching in January, will be using automated responses to immediately answer inquiries.
Currently, the department uses a ticket system to submit questions to the IT help desk. This, however, has been inefficient, with tickets tending to pile up and many going unanswered.
“People sometimes feel they send a ticket in and it goes into a black hole,” Hunter said.
A new program, Knowledge Base, will be largely replacing this system, using AI to answer commonly asked questions immediately, any time of the day.
“[Knowledge Base] will use AI to go ‘here are some possible fixes for your problem.’ You click on it and it tells you how to fix it. So now, 24/7, you can solve a lot of your own problems without having to wait for us,” Hunter explains.
As far as the possible consequences of turning to automated help, rather than personal, Hunter asserts that there will be no changes to staffing.
“We’re not looking to cut any employees. We’re looking to do more through automation. What automation does for us is create a better level of service because people can help themselves, allowing employees to spend more time on larger projects,” he said.
Another, perhaps more controversial, talk of change for the IT department, is moving its location to the basement of Blackmore, rather than being at the same central desk as library services.
According to Hunter, although there are no current plans for a move due to pushback from students, it may be more convenient. “Our preference from an IT perspective would be to have it [in the Blackmore Library basement]. We feel that it provides a far superior experience for the student worker. Instead of sending somebody down here for extra help, they could turn right around and talk to the other people right behind them,” he says.
While new IT management is coming up with new ideas and developments for the coming semesters, student workers in IT are having trouble adjusting to the switch.
Madi Anker, sophomore and second-year IT employee, said, “There’s just not a lot of communication between the students and staff. That, I know, for me too, has caused a lot of tension between the staff. There’s a lot going on that we’re just blind to,” they said.
A lack of communication between management and student faculty could be a major cause of concern in the future of IT development. While Dynamic Campus is focused on large projects, student workers are being left out of some important conversations.
Anker does mention a full staff meeting that will be taking place before winter break. Hopefully student workers will then be better informed, as the future of better efficiency and service at IT relies as much on student workers as it does its new management.
