Author: Nick Rallo

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FAQ

Is it true that academic computing was cut in the recent Organization Design changes, and if so, how will this affect my teaching and my courses this semester?

Please be assured that academic IT support will remain in place and will be able to assist you as it has in the past. Please see the following questions for more detailed information about this support.

Generally, the Office of Information Technology (OIT) Help Desk will continue to assist the campus community by providing general information about, access to, and support for the following applications: Blackboard, Qualtrics, ExamSoft, WordPress, Sitecore, and various statistical applications (SAS, SPSS, Mathematica, etc.)

The Center for Teaching Excellence (CTE) will assist and consult with faculty on the use of these tools to enhance course instruction, student engagement, and learning assessment.

Q1
Who should I call if I need help with Blackboard or Canvas?

The Office of Information Technology (OIT) Help Desk will continue to provide information about and technical support for Blackboard. If you need assistance with copying content from one course section to another, merging sections, or have general “how-to” questions, the OIT Help Desk Consultants can assist you. Please call ext. 8HELP or email help@smu.edu.

The Center for Teaching Excellence (CTE) will provide advanced training and guidance for faculty for the pedagogical use of Blackboard, such as building useful assignments, applying learning assessment tools, providing instructional design, using social learning features, and managing the integration of third party tools.

Q2
Who should I call if I need help with or information about Qualtrics?

Qualtrics is a Web-based online research tool, designed specifically to with conduct market research, customer insights, employee performance, event registration, institutional assessment, alumni outreach, academic research, and much more. All faculty, staff and students can simply login using their SMU ID number and password and begin using Qualtrics. There is no setup required.

For information, documentation and online training materials for the Qualtrics service, please visit http://www.smu.edu/BusinessFinance/OIT/Services/Qualtrics.

The Office of Information Technology (OIT) Help Desk will continue to provide information, ongoing support and access to Qualtrics services, including managing collaboration groups and troubleshooting technical issues. For additional questions on how to access the service, please call ext. 8HELP or email help@smu.edu.

Q3
Who should I call if I need help with ExamSoft?

ExamSoft is a test management application that allows faculty to administer a secured exam in class with laptops and iPads.

For information, documentation and online training materials for ExamSoft, please visit http://www.smu.edu/BusinessFinance/OIT/Services/ExamSoft.

The Office of Information Technology (OIT) Help Desk will continue to provide information about ExamSoft, access to the service, user maintenance, and synchronization with Blackboard. Please call ext. 8HELP or email help@smu.edu.

Q4
Who should I call if I need a Zoom Video Conferencing account?

The Office of Information Technology (OIT) Help Desk will continue to provide information and access to the Zoom Video Conferencing service. Please call ext. 8HELP or email help@smu.edu to request an account or help incorporating the use of this Web-based tool in the classroom.

The Center for Teaching Excellence (CTE) will provide guidance for faculty in the use of Zoom to complement course instruction, enhance student communications, and provide for synchronous distance learning.

Q5
What should I do if I would like my students to create ePortfolios or use Web publishing in my class?

WordPress is the Web authoring /content management tool available to students for these uses.

Students, staff, and faculty may host academic, personal, and research sites at people.smu.edu. For more information on creating space on people.smu.edu (WordPress), please go to http://www.smu.edu/BusinessFinance/OIT/Services/WebPublishing#tab_tab2.

Q6
Who should I call to help me with technology questions or issues concerning the Audio/Video equipment installed in the classrooms?

Please continue to follow the same procedures that you have in the past for your area. For schools other than Lyle Engineering, Cox School of Business and Dedman Law, there is a special hotline (x8-8888) that directly calls the OIT Help Desk so we can dispatch support personnel. OIT will continue to provide support for faculty and emergency response for the use of technology in the classrooms and we plan to enhance the service going forward.

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News OE2C

The Faculty Senate Resolution on the Progress and Effectiveness of the OE2C Project

The following resolution was unanimously approved by voice vote at the February 4, 2015 SMU Faculty Senate meeting:

Whereas Article VI of the University bylaws provides that [the Faculty Senate has] “the responsibility to speak by resolution through the President of the University to the Board of Trustees on any issue of general University interest or any issue of specific concern”; and

Whereas the Faculty Senate has previously requested the SMU Administration to devote a substantial and appropriate portion of any savings or additional revenue resulting from OE2C toward (1) recruitment and retention of high-quality faculty, (2) investment in research infrastructure, university libraries, and doctoral programs, (3) increasing the number of laboratory and teaching assistants to improve the quality of undergraduate education, and (4) university-wide fellowships to attract high-quality graduate students (Faculty Senate Resolution on Project SMU: Operational Excellence for the Second Century, April 2, 2014); and

Whereas “[t]hought leaders among the SMU faculty and staff will also be called upon to provide valuable input into how SMU can best achieve its ambitions to attract outstanding faculty and students, and to provide our students with a rigorous and engaging educational experience” (OE2C Vision Statement); now therefore be it;

 Resolved, that the Faculty Senate requests the SMU Administration to report to the Senate at the beginning of each semester on the progress and effectiveness of the project and the designation and allocation of funds generated by savings or additional revenue from the project consistent with these goals.

Related

Read the OE2C Vision Statement 

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News

An Update from President Turner on the Organization Design Initiative

Dear SMU Colleagues,

As of yesterday, all vice presidents, deans and the athletic director have shared their new organizational structures with their staff and notified employees in affected positions. I believe the changes we have implemented through the OE2C Organization Design Initiative will help us ensure the long-term success of the University, but I know they have required a great deal of perseverance from our SMU community.  Thank you for your patience and flexibility throughout this process.

The structural changes implemented over the past few weeks were created by vice presidents, deans and the athletic director with input from their leadership teams where appropriate.  Each leader thoughtfully designed their organization to deliver appropriate service levels while providing financial resources to be reallocated to our academic mission. As other OE2C initiative teams design solutions that streamline work processes, there may be additional staff changes on a smaller scale that will be handled with equal care.

As these changes take place, the need for increased sensitivity continues.  Some of our staff members in eliminated positions will remain with us for varying lengths of time. We must continue to respect their privacy and be as helpful as possible with their transition. Also, other employees have been given new responsibilities and will need time to adjust to redefined roles.

The strength of SMU is our people. We will emerge from these demanding changes as an organization better prepared and equipped to serve our community and advance our mission.

Sincerely,

R. Gerald Turner

President

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News

Office Supply Swap Repurposes Goods and Saves Money

supplyswap-MG-use
Lisa Palacioz (Center); Bonnie Bazley (Just left)

Mary Tays and her Perkins Administration Building (PAB) colleagues couldn’t stand the thought of throwing away perfectly good binders, paper clips and folders, some of which had been stashed in supply cabinets and in the attic for years, gathering dust.

Tays, the PAB building manager, knew there had to be a better way to handle abandoned office supplies. She wanted to figure out how to connect the supplies with the people who could use them. Colleague Bonnie Bazley, assistant to the vice president in SMU’s division of Student Affairs, agreed. Together they created a building-wide event to put supplies in the hands of their coworkers.

The Office Supply Swap was born.

With just a few tables, some well-placed fliers and a couple of staff email messages, Tays and Bazley pulled it together. They encouraged everyone in the building to clean out their supply closets and bring the items to the break room on the ground floor. Employees responded and brought in office supplies of every kind. Items from the building’s lost-and-found collection were added, such as scarves, gloves, reading glasses, etc.

“Over three days in January, people dropped off supplies they didn’t need and picked up supplies they did,” said Tays. “It was fun. It was free. People loved it!”

supply-swap-4-MG-web
The office supply swap haul

Because everything was free, there was no need to assign any staff to watch over the tables.

When it was over and the employees had their fill, boxes of leftover office supplies were donated to the Interfaith Housing Coalition in Dallas.  “We had to get a donor form filled out and signed by the president, as there are usually some tax issues with donating goods,” said Tays. “But it was worth the effort and Interfaith Housing was happy to receive the supplies.”

Tays and Bazley hope the idea spreads to other buildings on campus. “It’s a great way to save money in your department,” said Tays. “Why spend more money getting things that are already here? Plus, it’s fun!”

Tell us about savings successes in your area or share your idea for saving money by sending an email to oe2c@smu.edu.

Related News

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FAQ

Is the OE2C Project saving SMU money or just reallocating funds?

Most of the consultant-assisted projects in higher ed are initiated by universities responding to some level of financial crisis. While SMU has a slight structural budget gap (annual expenses exceed annual revenues), SMU’s leadership chose to be proactive by engaging the campus in a review of our organizational structure and business processes so that we could allocate resources more strategically to the core academic mission. We believe this is a critical and prudent set of actions that will sustain us during the uncertainties facing higher ed.

For the most part, funding reduced in the administrative areas of the University will be repurposed directly to teaching and research. Fewer positions, and importantly a commitment to contained position growth in the future, will result in savings. Savings will also be realized by more efficient use of space and energy and other costs associated with space as well as with the more efficient purchasing of furniture, fixtures, equipment and supplies and more strategic third-party spending. The end goal is an organization that is more productive, with fewer layers of management to better enable the flow of information and decision making, where employees are aided by best-practice business processes.

Success begets success. When SMU stakeholders see the results of a better organization both from repurposed and saved funds, we expect their participation and interest in SMU will increase, resulting in better and more qualified students, faculty, and staff and the ability to attract greater donor and grant funding. We also hope that reducing costs and enhancing revenues will allow SMU to be less reliant on, and more competitive regarding, tuition rates. So the expected outcome of OE2C is that we will be able to continuously advance the performance and standing of our university through the investments we will be making.