Every member of The Office of Information Technology is called to promote a culture of excellence in customer service and technology professionalism. User support services are involved with every aspect and service the office provides while emphasizing the critical importance of campus computing resources for faculty, staff, and students.
Information Technology’s User Support Services include:
- Technical consultation for employees, students and guests of Daemen College.
- Timely support for employees’ equipment provided by the Office of Information Technology.
- Support for some discretionary additions such as smartphones, BYOD devices, cameras, printers, and a multitude of network-attached devices such as: HVAC units, security devices, and miscellaneous technology purchased by individual departments.
Number of users within Information Technology’s scope of responsibility:
380 – Full time Faculty, Staff & Administrators
180 – Adjunct Faculty & Part time Staff
The approximate number College-owned computers Information Technology supports:
730 Desktops marked in 2017 Audit
Desktop iMacs 85
Desktop Windows 695
(Includes lab computers)
1311 in inventory without decom tag (127 Apple, 1100 Windows)
189 Laptops marked in 2017 Audit
Laptop Macbooks 31
Laptop Windows 149
698 in inventory without decom tag (53 Apple, 642 Windows)
These numbers are larger than the total number of employees that Information Technology supports. A variety of employees have both laptops and desktops, some adjunct faculty share computers, and some academic departments have computers for workstudy students.
(*This total does not include the 114 provisioned iPads on campus that Information Technology supports. It also does not include any of the provisioned smartphones that Information Technology supports.)
Information Technology’s scope of responsibility also includes support for resident students’ network connectivity. Our S.M.A.R.T. Squad supports students’ personally owned devices:
2780 – Total Students consisting of:
680 – Resident Students
2100 – Commuter Students
i. Technology Refresh Program- Potentially Transitioning into a 5 year Equipment Refresh/Upgrade Plan
All full-time faculty, full-time administrators and full-time staff will have computers refreshed every 36 – 48 months based on equipment model. Depending on the model they may be considered for an equipment upgrade modification vs issuing a new device at 36 months. Monitors will be refreshed by Information Technology as necessary. Faculty may choose to have either a desktop or laptop at time of refresh. Faculty and administrators may choose Mac or PC, if their department can support any overage costs for Apple devices or PC’s exceeding $800. Printers and other peripherals are purchased by individual departments and offices.
All public access computer labs and classrooms have computers refreshed by Information Technology every 36 months based on equipment model. Monitors are refreshed by Information Technology as necessary.
All part-time faculty, part-time staff, and departmental computer labs are provided with refurbished second-tier computers coming out of the refresh cycle.
Information Technology strives to decommission all computers that are older than 72 months.
All equipment provisioned by The Office of Information Technology is recorded in an inventory web app called AssetTiger.
ii. Campus-wide Software Licenses
The Office of Information Technology provides campus-wide site licensing for the following software:
- Microsoft Office
- SPSS
Other specialized software programs are purchased at the request of academic departments or administrative offices. These programs include, but are not limited to: Maya, VMware Fusion, Adobe Creative Cloud, Nuke, Visual Studio, Acrobat and Quickbooks.
iii. Technology Training Symposiums and Workshops
Two technology training symposiums are coordinated by The Office of Information Technology and held annually for all interested faculty and staff. Technology workshops are developed by Information Technology staff members to provide professional development to those supported by The Office of Information Technology.
“Taste of Technology” is a full day symposium held every June. “Byte of Technology” is a half day symposium held during the Inter-semester break every January. These events offer all attendees a wide variety of workshop topics including some of the latest trends in technology in higher education. They also aim to provide a sampling of the technology available at Daemen, and to encourage attendees to better utilize the available technology to increase productivity.
These symposiums started in June 2011 and attendance at each has increased slightly every year. There is consistently an even mix of faculty and staff among the attendees.
Attendees are surveyed after the symposiums and qualitative data is collected to gauge usefulness, interest in future workshop topics and ways to make improvements. In June 2018, 100% of respondents “Strongly Agreed” or “Agreed” that “The 2018 Taste of Technology Symposium provided me with useful ideas and information”. 100% of respondents also “Strongly Agreed” or “Agreed” that “I would be interested in attending another Technology Symposium hosted by Information Technology.”
Other individual training sessions are held periodically (2 – 3 times) each semester. This past year Colleague User Interface training was held to help acclimate faculty and staff with the new interface.
iv. Employee Technology Satisfaction Survey Results
Technology satisfaction surveys are metrics used to gauge customer service and performance levels. Participation is solicited via emails to all faculty, staff and students at the end of each Spring semester. Anonymous feedback from the surveys is used to analyze variances, facilitate improvements, and influence priorities and decision-making.
The following is a sample of data collected from the annual Faculty, Staff and Administrator Technology Satisfaction Surveys. It is worth noting that in 2014 and prior, only faculty members were polled. The 2015, 2016 & 2017 surveys polled faculty, staff, and administrators.
| Overall, how important are technology resources and services to your work: | |||||||
| 2018 | 2017 | 2016 | 2015 | 2014 | 2013 | 2012 | |
| Extremely important / Very important | 99.4% | 99% | 97% | 97% | 100% | 100% | 100% |
| Somewhat important / Not important | 0.6% | 1% | 3% | 3% | 0% | 0% | 0% |
| Rate your level of satisfaction with your college-owned computer hardware and software: | |||||||
| 2018 | 2017 | 2016 | 2015 | 2014 | 2013 | 2012 | |
| Excellent / Good | 89% | 84% | 86% | 88% | 83% | 80% | 76% |
| Fair / Poor | 11% | 10% | 9% | 6% | 12% | 11% | 20% |
| No Opinion | 0% | 6% | 5% | 6% | 5% | 9% | 4% |
| Rate your satisfaction with Information Technology support for your college-owned computer: | |||||||
| 2018 | 2017 | 2016 | 2015 | 2014 | 2013 | 2012 | |
| Excellent / Good | 77% | 86% | 88% | 86% | 83% | 82% | 83% |
| Fair / Poor | 4% | 2% | 2% | 2% | 9% | 5% | 7% |
| Not Needed | 19% | 11% | 10% | 12% | 8% | 13% | 10% |
v. Public Access Computer Labs and Computer Classrooms
Information Technology supports a variety of public and departmental computer classrooms and labs:
564 – Total Number of Computers in 2016 consisting of:
120 – Public-access Computer Lab Machines
315 – Computer Classroom Machines
104 – Portable Classroom Machines (Laptop carts)
25 – Departmental Computer Lab Machines
498– Total number of computers in 2016
546 – Total number of computers in 2015
During the regular academic semesters, Information Technology employees and / or workstudy students monitor the public-access computing facilities from 8:00am-12:00am.
114 – Total Weekly Hours of RIC Computing Center
80- Total Weekly Hours of Business Building Computer Lab
Printing is available to students that have an active Daemen account in all public computing labs. Each registered student is allocated an initial allotment of $15 for printing. Any charges over $15 are added to the students’ end of semester bill.
139 – Cases of paper were used in the public-access computer labs during the 2017-2018 Academic year.
220 – Cases of paper were used in the public-access computer labs during the 2014 – 2015 Academic year.
RIC Computing Center
- S.M.A.R.T. Squad Support
- Open 99 hours/week with support staff
- Open an additional 15 hours/week with no support staff availability
- Printing available 114 hours/week
Business Building
- Staff of 24 Work studies
- Open 80 hours/week with support staff
- Printing available 80 hours/week
Work Study Duties:
- Assist with all printing problems
- Maintain continual functionality of the Lab, including stocking the printers with supplies
- Assist with all questions regarding email, software, printing, or internet
- Forwarding any questions that cannot be answered to S.M.A.R.T. Squad or the Computer Lab Supervisor
Computers on Campus:
Public Labs & Classroom Breakdown:
RIC 120Classroom TheatreDesktopWindows 101
| Computer Location | Classification | Type | Operating System | Count |
| Business 204 | Classroom | Desktop | Windows 10 | 23 |
| Business 202 | Classroom | Desktop | Windows 10 | 37 |
| Classroom Instructors | Classroom | Desktop | Windows 10 | 41 |
| DS 135 – Tech Lab | Classroom | Laptop | Windows 10 | 30 |
| DS Chemistry Lab | Classroom | Desktop | MacOS | 16 |
| DS Physics Lab | Classroom | Desktop | MacOS | 8 |
| DS Science Lab | Classroom | Desktop | MacOS | 10 |
| Math Classroom | Classroom | Desktop | Windows 10 | 17 |
| VPAC Stop Motion | Classroom | Desktop | MacOS | 1 |
| VPAC Sound Editing Bay | Classroom | Desktop | MacOS | 1 |
| VPAC 9 | Classroom | Desktop | Windows 10 | 13 |
| VPAC 20 | Classroom | Desktop | Windows 10 | 23 |
| VPAC 20 | Classroom | Desktop | MacOS | 1 |
| VPAC Cintiq Lab | Classroom | Desktop | Windows 10 | 10 |
| VPAC 018 | Classroom | Desktop | Windows 10 | 13 |
| VPAC 109 | Classroom | Desktop | MacOS | 2 |
| VPAC 206 | Classroom | Desktop | MacOS | 15 |
| VPAC 207 | Classroom | Desktop | Windows 10 | 1 |
| VPAC 207 | Classroom | Desktop | MacOS | 17 |
| DS29 Photography Room | Classroom | Desktop | MacOS | 1 |
| Math Lab | Departmental Lab | Desktop | Windows 10 | 5 |
| Natural Science | Departmental Lab | Desktop | Windows 10 | 7 |
| Psychology Lab | Departmental Lab | Desktop | Windows 10 | 6 |
| PT Lab | Departmental Lab | Desktop | Windows 7/8.1 | 7 |
| Business Laptop Cart | Laptop Cart | Laptop | Windows 10 | 20 |
| Duns Scotus Laptop Cart | Laptop Cart | Laptop | Windows 10 | 20 |
| RIC 101 | Laptop Cart | Chromebook | ChromeOS | 30 |
| Schenk Laptop Cart | Laptop Cart | Laptop | Windows 10 | 19 |
| TRC | Laptop Cart | Laptop | Windows 10 | 15 |
| Business 207 | Public Lab | Desktop | Windows 10 | 15 |
| Library Circulation Desk | Public Lab | Laptop | Windows 10 | 30 |
| RIC 2nd Floor | Public Lab | Desktop | Windows 10 | 4 |
| RIC 2nd Floor | Public Lab | Chromebook | ChromeOS | 1 |
| RIC 2nd Floor | Public Lab | Desktop | MacOS/Windows 10 | 8 |
| RIC 3rd Floor | Public Lab | Chromebook | ChromeOS | 1 |
| RIC Computing Center | Public Lab | Desktop | Windows 10 | 56 |
| RIC 120 | Classroom Theatre | Desktop | Windows 10 | 1 |
| RIC Computing Center | Public Lab | Desktop | MacOS | 4 |
vi. Students Mentored to Assist with Resources in Technology (S.M.A.R.T. Squad Help Desk)
The Daemen College S.M.A.R.T. Squad offers a variety of services to help the student body with their technology needs and problems. The S.M.A.R.T. Squad is a student supported help desk, which is staffed with trained student assistants and mentored by Daemen College staff members to diagnose and correct many student computer hardware and software concerns.
- 20 Trained student employees (ongoing recruitment)
- Daily hands-on training with staff member and seasoned assistants
- One, 8-hour day of training for members per year (S.M.A.R.T. Squad Training Day held in late August)
Responsibilities
- Diagnostic, installation and repair services available
- Network connection assistance
- Assist student body with computer related questions
- Assist with Move In Weekend (Labor Day Weekend) and Information Technology Symposiums
- Assist with printing problems, formatting issues, basic technical assistance
- Assist with questions regarding email, software, or internet
- Assist The Office of Information Technology with any necessary projects and needs
vii. Email List Moderation
Daemen College has several email lists to communicate with Faculty, Staff, Administrators and Students. The moderated lists are managed by Information Technology. Emails posted to moderated lists are required to be reviewed before posting. Several lists are optional and users are able to unsubscribe. Lists fall into one of two categories:
Moderated Lists:
- employee-announce@daemen.edu
- faculty-announce@daemen.edu
- students-announce@daemen.edu
- student-events@daemen.edu
- admin-announce@daemen.edu
- admin-staff-announce@daemen.edu
- faculty-admin-announce@daemen.edu
- staff-announce@daemen.edu
Unmoderated Lists:
viii. User Accounts
Information Technology provides and maintains a central user account system via Active Directory to serve as the primary source of authentication for all services.
- Servers that Authenticate: https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/16fGTJeUtORMT6lUsNxAc7uqlr_yH3bhJL2w_oaHxMpQ/edit?usp=sharing
- Organizational Units (OUs): (Counts as of 6/29/2018)
-
Organizational Unit Totals Description Students 2385 This is for all Main and Online campus students with an active program. StudentsRemote 540 This is for all students with a campus location of TTI/TTNJ or a TTI program code with an active program. Faculty 496 Full- and part-time faculty Staff 447 All salaried and hourly staff employees StudentEmployees 4 Current students that have a job that needs employee level access Alumni 5402 All users that have either graduated or left the college on good terms Offices 71 Offices and departments each have a generic account Other 236 Friends of the college such as nuns, emeritus faculty, former employees, the board of trustees, and individuals participating in Daemen programs FirstYear 312 Temporary location for incoming students that will be moved to Student just before summer orientation. IDOnly 2 Users such as international students that need swipe card access but not other systems. (This OU may no longer be needed) Support 25 Administrator level accounts that other servers use to authenticate off of AD Deactivated 8389 Users who no longer wanted their accounts or left the college on bad terms NoEmail 1504 Accounts that need access to systems such as MyDaemen and Colleague but no Google account. GRAND TOTAL 19813 Sourced June 29, 2018
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- Single Sign-On (SSO) – The main service for SSO is CAS (https://cas.daemen.edu/). Systems can authenticate either using the native CAS protocol or SAML. These are the systems that authenticate via CAS: https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/18AHuNNA6QwqK3hI1uoWAV44CgckUMcitSnB2SYtmMfs/edit?usp=sharing
- . Google Apps uses a Windows server with software purchased from SSO Easy (ssoeasy.com) provides the connecting bridge to Google Apps. Google apps will move to CAS in the future.
- User Account Creation – MyDaemen Web App streamlines the user account creation process. GADS (Google Active Directory Sync) runs three times each day to ensure that accounts in Google match those in MyDaemen. If an account has been created, deactivated, or changed status in MyDaemen, the sync will make equal changes in Google to match.
The Office of Information Technology New Employee Account Provisioning Policy:
STEP 1: The Office of Information Technology is notified that a new employee needs an account provisioned. The new employee’s supervisor is directed to fill out our New Employee Account Provisioning form. This online form requests necessary information such as name, title, permissions request, department affiliation, office, etc., and stores it in a spreadsheet in Google Drive. This spreadsheet is shared between several members of the Office of Information Technology (Office Administrator, Systems Administrator, and division of Information Management).
STEP 2: The new account is provisioned within Active Directory. Active Directory handles authentication for servers such as Google Apps, MyDaemen, Blackboard, and Printing. The new employee is contacted (via alternate contact info provided on the provisioning form) and provided their temporary password. The new account is forced to change password upon initial login.
STEP 3: The division of Information Management within IT changes security levels within Colleague to provide access to Colleague and WebAdvisor as necessary. Before this access level is granted, the division of Information Management verifies that the request for security level access has been approved by the appropriate supervisors.
STEP 4: If Ellucian releases new functionality that impacts access levels or permissions, the division of Information Management within IT will review security and access levels before implementing the changes.
STEP 5: When the Office of Information Technology is notified, account access is revoked by disabling the account in Active Directory.