Technology Resource Allocation Policy

Eastern Mennonite University (EMU) procures and administers technology systems and components centrally. This policy identifies the principles and processes used by Information Systems (IS) to determine how technology resources are allocated to meet the needs of the EMU community.

General Resources and Services Provided

The institution provides the following resources to students, faculty, and staff:

1. A wired campus network with access to the internet and network connections in all classrooms, meeting rooms, offices, and residence hall rooms.
2. A wireless campus network with access to the internet in all residence halls, classrooms and interior common spaces.
3. A desktop computer and a telephone with voicemail for all staff and faculty (half-time or greater). All part-time staff and part-time/adjunct faculty will be provided access to shared versions of these resources installed in a space that can be reasonably shared with employees of similar classification.
4. Printers located in common areas for departmental printing and student use.
5. Copiers located in common areas for departmental copying and student use.
6. Public student computer laboratories and departmental computer labs.
7. Multimedia projection systems in all classrooms regularly scheduled by the registrar.
8. Several technology classrooms with adequate computers for each student per class section.
9. A web-accessible library catalog and related research tools.
10. An integrated administrative computer system, including web access to data used by employees and students.
11.  A facilities and rooms scheduling system.
12. A web-based course management system.
13. A central Help Desk for requests for everything technology-related on campus.
14. Access to network storage, sharing of files, printing and backup of files.
15. Email accounts are provided for all faculty (including retirees if requested), staff, and students.
16. Systems for remote collaboration and instruction.
17. Equipment available for checkout at the Help Desk
18. A web portal to the Student Information System.
19. Google account through Google’s Apps for Education program.

Specifications for Resources and Services Provided

Cell Phones

Access to cell phone resources is governed by policy administered by Financial Affairs/Human Resources. IS will work with departments that need a cell phone that is shared frequently among department employees. With approval from the vice president for finance, these phones will be provisioned under an institutional cell phone contract but must be funded by the requesting department.

Computers - Desktops

Desktop support is provided for institution-owned computers running Windows and Mac OS. Windows is provided for employees unless a Macintosh is preferred.

Desktop computers include sound capabilities, but no speakers are provided. Speakers can be supplied to any employee for a small fee charged to the department. Speakers are not available for computers in computer labs (public or departmental). Headphones may be used with any computer but will not be supplied by IS.

Resource limitations make it impossible to guarantee the availability of a computer for faculty on sabbatical. A computer may be provided, when available. Faculty whose primary computer is a laptop may continue to use it on sabbatical.

Computers - Laptops

Departments that require their employees to use a laptop as their primary computer will be required to fund the difference in cost from a standard Windows desktop computer. There may be additional charges for software and an extended warranty.

Laptops that are shared in a department will be funded entirely by the department. The department will also need to fund all upgrades and replacements for these shared laptops. IS may have older laptops available for long term checkout.

If a faculty/staff laptop is stolen, Information Systems will pay $800 and the department pays the remaining amount. If submitted to insurance, the department pays the deductible.

If a faculty/staff Windows computer is damaged after the warranty has expired, it will result in an early computer upgrade. If a faculty/staff Mac computer is damaged and is not covered by warranty, the repair cost will be split 50/50 between Information Systems and the department. Before the repair is made, the cost of repair will be reviewed to determine whether to proceed with the repair or to upgrade early. An early upgrade will follow the normal laptop process.

Computers - Chromebooks

Departments that require their employees to use a laptop are encouraged to consider a Chromebook instead of a laptop running Windows or MacOS. Chromebooks provide most of the functionality of a laptop at a lower cost, and with improved reliability, security, and portability.

Chromebooks are supplemental devices funded by the requesting department; they do not replace a desktop computer. IS can configure a Chromebook to connect to a user’s desktop computer to run software that requires Windows or MacOS.

Computers - Work-Study/Shared

Older computers and monitors will be made available to departments for use as work-study or shared computers. If the department requires a more powerful computer, the department will need to fund the full cost and any future replacements.

Photocopiers/Multifunction Devices

Photocopiers are provided in central locations and departments. These devices also function as scanners and printers, and are sometimes referred to as multifunction devices (MFDs). The IS department is responsible for copier procurement, maintenance and supplies. Departments and individuals will be charged for paper output (copies, prints), and scanning. Copiers may be cascaded on campus if usage metrics indicated that copiers are being over- or under-utilized.

Disposal of Obsolete Electronic Resources

All EMU-owned electronic equipment removed from service by IS will be processed in a manner that meets all state and federal requirements for disposing of electronic equipment.

Energy Consumption

All EMU-owned computers are configured to minimize their energy use throughout their lifecycle. Computer purchase decisions are made based on energy consumption and other factors. IS promotes the use of technology in energy efficient ways and discourages practices that are inefficient and unsustainable, such as defeating power management settings of workstations.

Email

Every current student and current employee will be provided an emu.edu email address that will be recognized as the email address to which all official electronic university communications are sent. The following provisions apply to administration of students’ and employees’ emu.edu email accounts (email account holders):

1. Email account holders will always ensure that their email is stored securely and regularly check for email sent to their email account.
2. Students may elect to automatically forward their emu.edu account to any email address of their choosing but, in doing so they recognize that EMU cannot guarantee the delivery of email forwarded to addresses outside the emu.edu domain. The emu.edu account holder remains accountable for all emu.edu originated email sent to their emu.edu domain address.
3. Employees are not permitted to automatically forward their emu.edu assigned email accounts to any other email address.
4. All users will take precautions to safeguard their EMU email accounts from access by any other party, in part because they may contain important and confidential institutional data, regardless of whether the account is accessed via the web, a mobile device or a computer on campus.
5. Non-returning students or graduates retain use of their email accounts for a transition period of 12 months after the end of their last academic term at EMU.
6. Non-returning employees will have their email options explained to them during their exit interview with Human Resources.
7. Retirees may request continuation of their emu.edu email accounts for life. The retiree’s account will be considered a guest account with the option to receive, but not send to, institutional broadcast messages.

Equipment: Departmental

All university computers are maintained in a central inventory. Computers that are an integral part of a piece of scientific equipment, or are used primarily for research purposes, are not generally part of the replacement plan. Replacement of such equipment must be funded entirely by the department. All departmental equipment is labeled and part of the inventory database. If equipment is re-deployed, the department that funded the equipment will be given first priority; however, IS may use such equipment anywhere on campus.

Equipment: Grant-Funded

Individuals pursuing grants for technology equipment should discuss their plans with IS as part of their budgeting process. Technology equipment that is acquired under grants will be inventoried. Any upgrade will be funded by the grant or the department.

Faculty members teaching in various special curricular programs are, under certain conditions, awarded research or startup funds. Some faculty members may have research or discretionary funds available to them when they hold endowed chair positions. When these special funds are used to buy additional computers and other electronic equipment, this equipment will belong to the university. Such equipment must be ordered through the IS purchasing process and will not normally be upgraded or replaced by the university, except through further use of these special funds.

Equipment: Loaners

Loaner equipment is available for student, faculty and staff checkout from the Helpdesk.

Borrowers will be responsible for loss or damages to the loaner equipment, up to a maximum of $300.

Fax Machines

All fax machines are funded by the department. IS will provide phone service and basic support. The department will be charged a monthly fee for the phone service (see Telephones section).

Financial Processes

Technology at EMU is financed through the annual budgeting processes. Costs for connecting students’ computers to the campus network are included in tuition and/or housing costs.

An attempt is made to anticipate as many purchases as possible in the budget planning stage. Near the start of each spring semester, division heads ask departments to identify and submit technology requests for replacements or newly identified needs. If supported by the division head, these are then turned over to IS for compilation and comparison to needs identified through inventory review. Information Systems then submits a review of needed equipment to the Information Systems Planning Committee, which makes a recommendation to the Cabinet for the annual capital budget. IS pays particular attention to equipment needs that cross departments, such as classroom equipment.

Computer technology items (includes all hardware and all software installed on EMU owned computers) purchased by the institution are to be requested, approved, and purchased through the centralized process, regardless of the source of funds. This ensures compatibility, monitoring of inventory, compliance with licensing, cost efficiency and to provide assistance with warranty issues. All technology purchased with IS assistance will be labeled and included in the inventory database. Support for any technology resource procured without the assistance of IS will be at the discretion of Information Systems leadership. The department may be charged an hourly rate for this support.

In purchasing equipment, IS considers total cost of ownership. To keep this cost lower, the department purchases equipment from industry-recognized vendors. Cost, functionality, life-span, and overall quality are balanced in selecting appropriate equipment.

Network storage: Personally Secured

All current students and current employees are provided network storage space that is considered their private storage space (see privacy provisions in Responsible Use of Electronic Files and Communications). For students, this space is intended as a secure place to store files that need to be protected and/or backed up. For employees, this space is intended for institutional files that are private to the employee, including space for backing up data if a laptop is provided to an employee.

Students will be provided 150 MB (megabytes) of private network file storage.

Employees will be provided 150 MB of private network file storage but they may request additional space by sending a request to helpdesk@emu.edu with the reason why the additional space is needed.

New Technology Adoption

Technology is continually evolving. As new technologies emerge, the IS department evaluates how and when to make it standard for all users. Until the technology is adopted as “standard” by IS, any department requiring the new technology will provide the funding. Should the equipment be re-deployed, the department that funded the equipment will be given first priority in using the equipment. All technology equipment will be part of Information System’s inventory and may be used anywhere on campus.

Printers

Networked printers are provided in central locations wherever possible. In most cases this means a personal printer is not provided or supported. The latter are provided in limited cases where the departmental printer is distant (per decision of Information Systems leadership). The IS department is responsible for printer replacements, including working with departments on functionality needs and cascading when appropriate.

Costs for all networked, laser, printers and copiers are the responsibility of IS. For these devices, departments will be charged per page on a monthly basis. Costs for all other printers are the responsibility of the department. The IS department is responsible for consumable supplies in the public computer labs.

Projectors: Departmental

Any department that desires to have a projector available on a permanent basis will need to fund the purchase and arrange for IS to procure it. The projector will be labeled and entered in the inventory database. It will be considered similar to departmental equipment (see section on Departmental Equipment).

Replacement Cycle

With rapid technological advances, regular replacement of technology is essential. For desktop computers the goal is a five-year replacement cycle. In many cases the newest

machines are placed in locations that require the highest performance, and some cascading of older machines may result. Regular reviews are performed to determine other replacement and upgrade needs.

An inventory of desktop and other technology equipment and software is maintained to permit evaluation of existing equipment and identification of priority needs. The oldest, least functional desktop machines are retired annually.

Software

Software Support Levels

The IS department provides three different levels of support for four categories of software as outlined in the following table:

Software Metering

A license management system will be used to maintain a limited number of licenses for software used by many people.

Computer Lab Software

In order to add new software to EMU’s list of approved software, faculty must contact the IS Help Desk.

Personal Software

If users install software not on the list of supported software (i.e. “personal software”), they are responsible to ensure that it causes no harm to the network or university servers and are entirely responsible for its support. If IS is required to reinstall Universal, Special or Hosted Software on a computer more than once because of use of personal software, a fee will be charged to the individual. If “personal software” is installed on EMU-owned hardware, the user must be prepared to provide IS with proof of purchase and proper license documentation upon request.

Software Training

Training by IS staff for software is limited to “Universal Software” and then only for general “orientation” to the software. Additional assistance for application software is outlined on the website and may include finding user experts on campus, checking listings of Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs), searching software vendors’ Knowledge Bases, and acquiring off-campus training.

License Procurement

Licenses for software must be kept up to date. The IS department purchases licenses for all EMU approved software installed on EMU computers regardless of funding source. EMU owned licenses may not be installed on computer hardware that is not owned by EMU.

Computer Maintenance and Operational Procedures

Users are responsible to keep their computers free from programs that consume unreasonable resources or otherwise slow the computer performance. If the IS department is required to reimage a computer more than once because of Spyware/Malware infestations, a fee will be charged to the individual.

Special Needs Accommodations

Occasionally university employees may require special equipment for their computers due to health concerns or special needs. The university will provide suitable technology equipment as may be required by the user to adequately perform their tasks as defined in their written job description. Funding for such accommodations will be provided through the budget processes that would have otherwise made available the standard technology provided to the user. If special equipment is required due to medical conditions, the employee may be requested to provide a doctor’s note for documentation of the circumstances before the equipment is purchased.

Standardized Peripherals

IS supplies a monitor, keyboard and mouse to each user. Standardized models and features have been established to reduce support issues. If a department needs or wants a different model peripheral or feature that is not a part of the standard, the full purchase cost will need to be funded by the department. These peripherals must be purchased in consultation with IS to ensure compatibility with EMU systems.

Telephones

The IS department will provide a telephone, dedicated extension and voicemail for all EMU employees upon request. Departments that need additional phone features--e.g. line sidecars or headsets--will be required to fund the difference in cost from a standard telephone.

There will be a monthly charge to the department for all extensions assigned to the department. Extensions may only be added and deleted on a quarterly basis for billing purposes. The addition of a telephone is contingent on the availability of wiring to the desired location. The IS department has conference speakerphones available for use upon request.

Responsibility and Review

Responsible Party
Responsibility for this policy lies with the provost. Policy implementation is the responsibility of Information Systems leadership.

Policy Review
This policy is to be reviewed by the Provost's Council.