November 2023 Agenda

Meeting Date: November 29, 2023

Time: 1:30 pm

Location: 206/207 Frey; Teams

Present: Tommy Smith, Andy Maverick, Chris Barrett, Jackie Bach, Param Singh, Stephanie Rhodes, Craig Woolley, Kappie Mumphrey, Michelle Montero

Remote: Stephen Beck, Angie Mann, Kilbert Spland, Matthew LaBorde, Mo Carney

Absent: Calvin Feldt, Melanie Thornton

Presenters: Katie Bouey

Others: David Alexander, Viola Sprague, Lesa Jeansonne, Susan Crochet

Opening

1. Administrative Announcements

2. Executive ITGC Updates [Craig Woolley]

IT Governance Audit Update

Action

3. Approval of the Minutes from the Meeting held on June 12, 2023

Information/Discussion

4. Tiger Card Mobile Credential Project [Craig Woolley, Katie Bouey]

5. ITS ITGC Project List [Katie Bouey]

Teams Telephony
Campus Addressing

Updates: Sub-Committees & Working Groups

6. Moodle/Technology Survey [Craig Woolley, Jacqueline Bach, Parampreet Singh]

Wrap-Up

7. Information sharing/Announcements [All]

8. Suggested agenda items for future meetings, including ITS topics of interest [All]

9. Next steps/Follow-up items [Chair]

November 2023 Minutes

1. Administrative Announcements

The Chair welcomed new members to the Council.

2. Executive ITGC updates

Craig Woolley gave an update on the IT Governance Audit. He stated that four out of fourteen items have been completed. He stated that Risk Management is being addressed as part of the fourteen new IT policies. Craig also discussed Asset Management, stating that the university is working on a solution to allow LSU employees to query currently owned software and look for economies of scale. Craig briefly discussed IT Governance Measurements and Metrics, as well as the IT Strategic Planning timeline, which will both be based on a system-wide strategic plan. He briefly discussed IT Costs, Student Technology Fee, and IT Funding Model. Craig also discussed Project Prioritization Evaluation Process, stating that the LSU A&M campus already has a process in place, but it is needed at the system level. He also briefly discussed Research and Grants IT Information Security Requirements as well as Enterprise System/Application “Owner” Roles/Responsibilities. There was a brief discussion concerning the role of ITS regarding research infrastructure.

3. Meeting Minutes Approval

June meeting minutes were approved with no revision. Motion to approve by Andy Maverick; seconded by Stephen Beck.

6. Moodle/Technology Survey

Param Singh, Jackie Bach, and Craig Woolley gave an update on the Faculty Survey on Educational Technology. Craig stated the survey was the result of a group effort between Academic Affairs, ITS, and Faculty Senate. He stated that the purpose of the survey was to assess the educational technology needs of faculty, whether it be hardware or software. He reminded the Council that the previous survey resulted in the upgrading of approximately 60 classrooms, including updating podium interfaces and equipping classrooms for hybrid teaching. Jackie stated that the focus is not only on the Learning Management System (LMS), but also on hardware and software. She added that there is the need to increase faculty participation in the survey as well as the need to submit the survey results to various stakeholders to support them in their decision-making process. Jackie stated that they are currently in the planning stage, which includes determining parameters for the survey, collecting incentives to increase participation, and drafting questions for the survey. Param shared the survey timeline and next steps, which include having a draft survey by January and launching it in February. He stated the goal of compiling the survey results in March to present to Faculty Senate, as well as generating recommendations in April. There was a brief discussion concerning whether other campuses would participate in the survey.

4. Tiger Card Mobile Credential Project

Craig introduced the new Tiger Card/Mobile Credential project to the Council. He stated that there are two parts to the project. The first part deals with the student body wanting a mobile credential, which will allow students to have a student ID on their mobile device. The second part of the project is to adopt a single standard for physical access control across campus. Craig stated that the university currently has approximately 7 different systems for access control, with most requests for access handled via a manual process. He added that the goal of the project is to use dual readers that could handle a mobile credential or a traditional card swipe.

Katie Bouey stated that the project team is presenting information to various groups across campus, including the Associate Deans, Business Managers, and Technology Support Personnel (TSP). She reiterated the goals of the project. There was a brief discussion whether physical cards would be eliminated altogether. Craig stated the default will be for students and staff to receive the mobile credential, while still allowing the option to request a physical card. There was also a brief discussion concerning how to handle classes or testing centers that don’t allow cell phone use.

Craig stated the project is in the early stages of identifying use cases and constraints as well as gathering feedback from a survey that will be sent out to stakeholders. There was a brief discussion concerning the use of a mobile credential for financial transactions. He stated that the goal is to provide sponsors with enough information to make an informed decision as to the best way to move forward for the Physical Access Control System (PACS). Craig informed the Council that some of the PACS have features that will reach end of life (EOL) in December 2024. He then presented the project timeline which includes identifying a vendor solution, replacing end of life components, implementing the mobile credential for the first-year cohort, adopting the mobile credential for the rest of campus, and completing the PACS rollout. Craig discussed various risks related to the project such as any usage not known by the project will cease working once the go-live for the mobile credential occurs. He stated that the project recognizes the high cost of replacing current mechanisms, in some cases running power, network connectivity, and replacing controllers. He added that once a single vendor is selected for physical security access, all other solutions will be deprecated.

Katie discussed various benefits of the project including enhanced technology, mobility, local management by departments, and public safety. Craig stated that there will be a process for granting an exception to any areas that have a unique need for a separate system. There was a brief discussion concerning how a PACS would function during a power outage. There was also a brief discussion concerning charging fees for issuing a physical card once the mobile credential is live. There was a discussion on how to handle requests for new physical access readers for departments that don’t currently have them.

5. ITS ITGC Project List

Katie demonstrated to the Council how to access the ITS Project Dashboard that shows the status of all IT Governance Council (ITGC)-governed projects as well as all CIO-governed projects. She gave an update on the Microsoft Teams Telephony project. She stated that the project is closing, adding that the last two call centers will go live in the near future. She also gave an overview of the various headsets and physical phones available for purchase in the ITS Computer Store. Katie also presented a project cost comparison which included an original cost estimate of $6.7 million compared to the $1.86 million estimated cost of the Microsoft Teams Telephony Project.

Katie gave an update on the Student Information System (SIS). She stated the university is undergoing SIS project planning for 2024, with the integrations team prioritizing activities based on a focus list. She added that Student Financials and Financial Aid work streams are working on some of their cross-functional activities. She stated the Security group is confirming the setup that was done for academic advising and curriculum management. Katie added that Cohort 1 and Cohort two are happening in tandem.

Katie also gave a brief update on the Identity Access Management (IAM) project. She stated that the selected vendor can provide different constraints on data, allowing for multiple campuses to leverage the product. Craig added that by including the other campuses, it resulted in savings of hundreds of thousands of dollars. There was a brief discussion concerning the use of Single Sign On (SSO) by the different campuses with the IAM system.