Goal 6 Committee Report

Goal 6: Provide Comprehensive Information Technology Services

Committee Members:
Chair: Faith Morrison - Associate Professor: Chemical Engineering
Co-Chair: Terry Reynolds - Professor and Department Chair: Social Sciences
Walter Milligan - Assiciate Professor: Metallurgical and Materials Engineering
Warren Perger - Associate Professor: Electrical Engineering
Richard Selfe - Technical Communications Specialist: Humanities
Theresa Spence - Librarian: Library
Peter Tampas - Associate Professor: Technology
Brian Whitman - Graduate Student Representative

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Charge

This committee was charged to evaluate Michigan Tech’s delivery of comprehensive information technology services to the University community. Information technology services encompass both computer and library services. Specifically, the committee has evaluated how well the University is meeting the projected targets outlined in the University’s Strategic Plan. It has also addressed the five North Central Association (NCA) criteria. This report is split into two sections: library services and computing. See Attachment 1 for a more detailed explanation of this committee’s charge and responsibilities.

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J. Robert Van Pelt Library

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Patterns of Evidence—Criterion 1: Purposes

The committee finds that the JRVP Library does have clear and publicly stated purposes consistent with the University’s mission and vision statements.

Michigan Tech has a single central library, the J. Robert Van Pelt (JRVP) Library. The library’s vision statement is published in the library’s annual reports [7.7E3; 1990–95]. The mission statement is published in a separate mission document [2.4A1] available in the library director’s office. A recurring theme in the University’s Vision [2.1D1] and Mission [2.1D2] statements is the requirement that the institution prepare its graduates to succeed in a rapidly changing technological environment. The Library’s Vision statement is consistent with this in that it calls for the Library to be "a center of advancing information management initiatives, technologies, and resources." The University’s Mission further requires it to "provide the inhabitants of this state with the means of acquiring a thorough knowledge of the mineral industry . . . and of the application of science to industry." The Library Mission statement is consistent with this in that it calls for the library to "select, acquire, maintain and preserve . . . as much of the recorded knowledge of mankind as is consistent . . . with the current and anticipated instructional and research needs of its patrons." The Library’s Mission statement, however, is too detailed in listing some of the activities of the Library and should perhaps be reviewed.

The University’s Vision statement emphasizes the creation of "a rewarding and challenging educational environment," "a strong research environment," and the production of "intellectually vital graduates." The Library’s Vision and Mission both are consistent with these purposes in that they call for meeting "the established and future educational, research, and curricular needs of the MTU academic community." This statement is quite broad, however; perhaps it should specify the Library’s role.

The planning and decision-making processes for the Library are part of the University Strategic Planning Process. Units are asked annually to indicate strategic goals which are consistent with the University’s 8 Strategic Goals. The goals arrived at through the planning process are made public and are discussed widely as is appropriate for an institution of higher learning.

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Patterns of Evidence—Criterion 2: Resources

The committee finds that the Library resources in the areas of collections are insufficient to meet the stated research and educational purposes of the University. The human resources are effectively organized in that a great deal is being done with staffing levels below those at comparable institutions. External threats such as high materials inflation have impeded progress towards improving the Library collections since 1988.

The Library budget has changed since 1988 as shown in Table 1 (below), logging an average 6% overall increase in expenditures. These budget increases covered the purchase of the Library’s automated management system which includes the online catalog as well as other information management tools. The budget does not include maintenance to the Library building.

TABLE 1. Changes in the Budget of the JRVP Library 1988–94.

Year	Books/Periodi- cals/Binding	% Change	Other	% Change	Total	% Change
1988/89	768,948	-	1,058,285	-	1,827,233	-
1989/90	826,414	7%	1,024,981	-3%	1,851,395	1%
1990/91	956,895	16%	1,206,857	18%	2,163,752	17%
1991/92	784,573	-18%	1,205,750	-0.1%	1,990,323	-8%
1992/93	1,018,863	30%	1,331,794	10%	2,350,657	18%
1993/94	1,067,272	5%	1,275,505	-4%	2,342,777	-0.3%
1994/95	1,088,103	2%	1,345,420	5%	2,433,523	4%
Average		7%		5%		6%

The Library staff consists of 12 librarians all holding Masters degrees, 4 other professional staff (computer technology experts), and 17.5 support staff². In 1994/95 the Library staff was reorganized to create a more hierarchical structure with a clearly defined career path for librarians and to address some inconsistencies in library reporting structure. A major result of the reorganization was the creation of two assistant director positions, the assistant director of automated and technical services and the assistant director of research services (Figure 1). Compared to other state-supported universities in Michigan, Michigan Tech has a typical split between professional staff (38% of total staff are professional for MTU, 30% is the state average), nonprofessional staff (38% MTU, 35% state average), and student assistants (24% MTU, 36% state average) [2.4A4].

FIGURE 1. Organization Tree for the J. Robert Van Pelt Library, 1997.

Director

Administrative Assistant

Secretary II

DAC (Advisory Committee)

University Library Committee (Advisory Committee)

Forum (Advisory Committee)

Assitant Director of Technology and Automated Services

MAASTA (Advisory Committee)

Serials/Acquisitions Librarian

Acquisitions Assistant

Librarian's Assistants (3)

System Administrator

Manager–Library Computing

Manager–Binding/Building

Assistant Director of Research Services

REST (Advisory Committee)

Head–Reference/Institutional Services

Librarians (3.5)

Librarian's Assistant

Manager–Circulation/ILL

Librarian's Assistants (5)

Government Documents Project Librarian

Librarian's Assistants (2)

Archivist

Librarian's Assitants (2)

Head–Collection Management

Collection Management Librarian

Librarian's Assistant

Both statistics reflect the low level of spending on staff rather than high levels of spending on collections and other expenditures (see below).

The Library’s primary physical resources are its building, built in 1966, the collections it houses, and the technology needed to organize the collections and to access outside electronic information. The Library building is full to capacity, even with a significant fraction of the collection (almost 10%) having been removed in 1983 to off-site storage. Volumes in the storage annex are currently at risk due to an outbreak of mold in 1996 [2.4A]. Documents associated with the 1992–93 ABET visit mention a lack of study and storage space in the Library as a problem [6.3A], and this persists. The University recognized the space problem for the Library in its 1995 request for a new library building: "The thirty year old building is inadequate for library purposes regarding space, information technology, service and environmental issues . . . It cannot carry out the mission of the library and the University." [7.7E3]. According to the Program Statement for the Library Building Program [2.4C6] there is currently a shortfall of over 75,000 square feet of assignable space; the current building has just over 49,000 square feet of assignable space [7.7E3]. In addition the Library is experiencing some heating/cooling problems, and furniture needs to be improved [2.4B].

To address space needs for the Library, some amount of storage space has been allotted to the Library as part of the next building project on campus, the 80,000 square foot Sciences Complex¹⁰. This building project has not been authorized; the earliest completion date, if authorized, would be 2001. Second in line on the MTU Capital Outlay Budget request is a 60,000 sq ft library addition to be completed by 2003. This library addition is also not yet authorized.

The Library collection numbers approximately 780,000 volumes, split in half between main collections and government documents which are part of the selective depository housed in the JRVP Library; 154,000 volumes in the main collection are individual titles⁹, the balance being journal volumes, parts of series, or multiple-volume works. The MTU Archives and Copper Country Historical Collection (4,000 ft³) is a nationally recognized depository of historical documents on copper mining.

MTU is a unique institution in the state in that it is a research university which is strongly focussed on engineering and the sciences: over 90% of MTU’s students are majoring in engineering or the sciences. The science disciplines tend to use archival journal articles in preference to individual monographs, and the Library collection policies reflect this science bias: 88% of MTU’s materials budget is dedicated to serials, compared to the state average of 50% [2.4A]; this is the highest percentage of materials budget allocated to serials among the state-supported universities. MTU is also second in serials expenditures/fiscal year equivalent students (FYES) at $179/FYES [2.4A] (second to UM-AA, $211/FYES, ahead of WSU, $145/FYES, and MSU, $103/FYES). The strong emphasis of the collection on journals and series makes the JRVP Library more labor-intensive.

MTU’s peer institutions have been experiencing these same challenges with respect to building and maintaining quality research libraries. MTU’s library earns its most favorable rating with respect to peer institutions when comparing the percentage of the university budget which is spent on the library (2.6%, 2nd highest percentage of seven benchmark institutions investigated [8.4B]), but falls short when the dollars spent per full-time equivalent student is compared (MTU is 7th of 9 benchmark institutions).

The bias towards serials is accompanied by a shortfall in the amount spent on other collections, mainly books. MTU spends $24/FYES on non-serial collections which is the second lowest amount in the state (low = LSSU, $14/FYES; high = UM-AA, $149/FYES;
WSU = $73/FYES; MSU = $54/FYES) [2.4A].

The Library’s expenditures for acquisitions have grown by 57% since 1989, and the collection has grown by only 9% over the same period [2.6F5]. This reflects the large negative impact that journal and monograph inflation has had on the Library’s ability to improve and maintain its collection (journal inflation 1994 = 8.4%, 1995 = 10.7%, 1996 = 17.1%, 1997 = 11.2%⁸ compared to MTU acquisitions increases of 7% on average.). Journal subscriptions were eliminated during two large-scale cancellation projects in 1986 and 1991—the number of serials subscribed to was reduced by a combined total of 1,000 [2.4A]. The Library has responded to this decrease in local information access by expanding interlibrary-loan (ILL) and document-delivery (DD) services to undergraduates, absorbing ILL/DD costs of under $15/document, and implementing fax agreements with Michigan universities². The ratio of circulations of MTU-owned materials to interlibrary loan circulations has halved from 20:1 in 1986 to 10:1 in 1996 [2.6F5, page 8]. This reflects a tripling of interlibrary loans in that ten-year period and the transition of MTU from a net loaner of materials to a net borrower [2.6F5, page 8]. An additional journal-reduction project is currently being considered [2.6F5].

The advent of the World Wide Web (WWW) has made many materials available to researchers and students in their home departments. Much of the most useful information, however, is available only by subscription. The Library provides patron WWW access through its management system and performs its traditional role of identifying important, non-free, WWW resources which need to be provided to its users. The advent of the WWW, therefore, has increased rather than decreased the Library’s scope.

The Library has changed substantially since 1988 in the area of computerization. The Library card catalog was replaced first by the NOTIS software and then by Horizon (beta-test version; development discontinued by manufacturer) and finally by the Endeavor Voyager software which is in current use. The funding for these changes is included in the figures in Table 1. In addition, Library staff have been provided with computers and computer training. Expenditures for electronic collections have increased from $0 in 1985/86 to $65,000 in 1996/97⁹. New cooperative agreements being put in place in July 1997 will increase patron access to electronic materials for the same costs. There is a widespread belief in the public that the availability of electronic resources will bring a cost savings; this has not materialized [2.6F5]. One reason for this is because vendors of electronic materials usually price their products higher in order to protect their print-media interests.

The Library lists as one of its goals to increase campus access to electronic materials including full-text databases [2.6F5]. MTU has a distributed computing architecture, however, and this has complicated efforts to distribute many materials. In addition some licensing agreements prohibit some types of network distribution. Recently (June 97) all but two of the Library’s electronic databases have become available over the Web to campus users⁹. The Library continues to work with the Information Technology Department to address the remaining technological problems. The ability to deliver information remotely rather than having to rely on the central library facility is seen as a key feature of the future of the Library. Implementing computer technology, however, is quite expensive.

Investments in the Library infrastructure have been made in the last 10 years including the following:

• Portions of the interior were painted 1988/89 and 1996/97.
• The building was rewired in 1993/94 and 1997 for improved electronic communication.
• Three former study carrels were converted to three group-study rooms by the Friends of the Van Pelt Library (1997). Three additional carrels will be renovated in summer 1997.

Library accomplishments include

• Improved instructional programs by expanding the number of resources covered and the level of information skills taught⁴. Material presented includes creating effective search queries, use of electronic and print databases, and using Internet resources.
• Increased collection of electronic resources.
• Registry of Student Honorees initiated 1991/92; raises funds for the Library.
• Received into the MTU Archives and Copper Country Historical Collections a unique collection of Quincy Mining Company documents (1991/92).
• Established Career Resource Center with grant from GE Company (1990/91).
• Facilitated the formation of a Friends of the Van Pelt Library group to support the Library.
• Improved staff evaluation procedures; reorganized staff to be more effective, 1990/91, 1994/95
• Improved user services (e.g., expanded interlibrary loan and other document delivery services to undergraduates, added remote drop boxes, and instituted mail and e-mail renewal of borrowed materials).
• Networked in-house CD-ROMs, 1990/91.

While a great deal of change has taken place at the JRVP Library since 1988, many challenges remain. The Library building is too small for the current collection and is inappropriate for becoming "a center of advancing information management initiative, technologies, and resources" which is the stated goal [2.6F5] of the Library. Outside threats such as materials inflation rates exceeding the increases in the materials budget and uncertainty in the areas of electronic publishing have negatively affected the Library’s ability to meet its goals. Demands placed on library collections have grown as 9 new PhD programs have been established at MTU since 1988 while a concomitant increase in access to materials has not occurred. Deficiencies of space and access to materials identified in the 1988 NCA report persist.

Based on the physical resources in place in the JRVP Library, there is reason to doubt that it can accomplish its purposes.

Patterns of Evidence—Criterion 3: Accomplishments

The question of whether the Library is accomplishing its purposes can be rephrased using text from the Vision and Mission statements as follows:

• Does the Library select, acquire, maintain, and preserve as much of the recorded knowledge of mankind as is consistent with the current and anticipated instructional research needs of its patrons?
• Does the Library meet the established and future educational, research and curricular needs of the MTU academic community?
• Is the Library a center of advancing information management initiatives, technologies and resources?

The Library’s performance against these three measures is mixed.

Does the Library select, acquire, maintain, and preserve as much of the recorded knowledge of mankind as is consistent with the current and anticipated instructional research needs of its patrons?

Between 1989 and 1995 the Library staff evaluated the collection of the JRVP Library [2.6F5] by comparing holdings with those recommended in Books for College Libraries III [2.4B5]. They found that the average match rate is 31% across all disciplines, ranging from a low of 10% for fine arts to a high of 72% for geology and mining engineering (Table 2). No comparable information is available on the collections of our peer institutions.

TABLE 2. Evaluation of MTU Library Holdings compared to Books for College Libraries III [2.6F5].

Subject	% MTU held
Agriculture	35%
Biology	52%
Chemical Technology	62%
Chemistry	63%
Economics	40%
Education	16%
Electrical Engineering	57%
Fine Arts	10%
General Engineering	56%
General Science	46%
Geology	72%
Language And Literature	32%
Mathematics/Computer Science	69%
Mechanical Engineering	43%
Military Science	12%
Mining Engineering/Metallurgy	72%
Music	19%
Physics	60%
Philosophy	11%
Physical Training/Sports	11%
Physiology	39%
Political Science	21%
Psychology	30%
Social Sciences	33%
Sociology	20%
Technology	46%

The quality of the collection for undergraduate educational purposes is satisfactory according to the departmental self-studies and a student survey [5.4A]. The complaint that the books are old is often voiced [2.4B]. The Library weeds books from the collection in places in the stacks where shelving is tight. In addition Government Documents is in the second year of a two-year program of extensive weeding⁹. The absence of more recent texts reflects the erosion of the monograph acquisition budget rather than the lack of space.

The research and graduate collection was listed as inadequate by eight university departments in their self studies [2.6A1, 2.6A2, 2.6B7, 2.6B9, 2.6B11, 2.6C, 2.6D, 2.6F2]. Five of these [2.6A1, 2.6A2, 2.6B7, 2.6B9, 2.6D] are PhD-granting departments. In the 1993 Library survey [2.4B] the adequacy of the Library’s collection of journals for research purposes was rated 2.6/5.0 by faculty, staff and PhD candidates responding to the survey. The adequacy of the monograph (book) collection for research purposes was 2.4/5.0 among the same group of users. When educational adequacy was questioned, the results were 2.8/5.0 for the journals and 2.7/5.0 for the monographs.

Journal subscription inflation has been averaging greater than 10% per year for most of the past 10 years. Solving the problem of the inadequate journal collection is difficult. Maintaining the current collection requires a significant ongoing resource commitment by the University (a $100,000 annual increase in the nearly $1,000,000 journal budget would be necessary). Adding new journals requested by faculty would require new monies; the new journals would presumably experience inflation rates equal to that of the current collection, compounding the budgetary problem.

As indicated in the previous section, MTU’s collection expenditures are already highly weighted towards journals and in $/FYES are second highest among state-supported institutions. The lack of user satisfaction with the journal collection is a reflection of the size and diversity of Michigan Tech - for the number of students at MTU, a wide variety of journal-dependent programs are offered. The problem remains providing better access to journal articles for faculty and students within budgetary constraints.

The Government Documents Collection is a selective depository collection which, while it does not have the impact of a monograph collection of comparable size, is found to be quite useful by programs such as the Social Science, Forestry, Geology, Biology, Civil and Environmental Engineering, and Humanities⁹. A large map collection which is part of Government Documents is heavily used. In addition, housing the Government Documents Collection is a service to the general public which is one of the University’s purposes. Use of the Government Documents Collection is largely in-house; no statistics exist to evaluate the effectiveness of this collection. Weeding the Government Documents Collection is a bureaucratic process; a list of a limited number of proposed withdrawals may be submitted to the U.S. Government for approval on a schedule determined by the government⁹.

It is difficult to ascertain whether the Library is acquiring the most pertinent materials given its limited budget. Decisions for 78% of monograph expenditures are made by departmental library liaisons who are faculty members in each department. The University Library Committee determined the algorithm which is used to split most of the monograph acquisitions budget among departments. The liaisons are asked to address the needs of both the undergraduate and the graduate/research programs. The collections librarian allocates approximately 22% of the materials budget for reference materials, professional tools for library staff, Archives purchases, and Government Documents purchases⁹.

Because of the small size and relative youth of the non-science programs at MTU, the Library collection is weaker in these areas (see Table 2). The Library received $5,000 from the Friends of the Van Pelt Library in April 1997 to address some of the inadequacies of the undergraduate collection and $1,000 to purchase materials relevant to African- and Native-American experiences. Between 1988–1991 the Library received $12,900 from the Minorities Task Force to collect in these latter areas⁹.

Overall the Library does an adequate job of collecting for the undergraduate educational purposes of the University, but a target of holding 50% of those books in Books for College Libraries would seem minimally appropriate⁹. The collection is not adequate for graduate/research purposes. Given fiscal constraints and the reality of high journal costs, innovative use of document delivery and electronic resources seems in order.

Does the Library meet the established and future educational, research and curricular needs of the MTU academic community?

The Library has recently established group study space on the second floor for engineering students working in teams. This space, with more rooms to be completed by August 1997, addresses a current need of engineering undergraduates for space where teams can work for extended periods of time.

To address the need for access to research journals, the Library has streamlined its interlibrary loan procedure and implemented fax agreements with Michigan universities. Data from the document-providing service OCLC indicates that the average completion time for an ILL request is 8–9 working days². New books may not be available by ILL, however, and most books obtained through ILL are typically due back within 3 weeks of when they are received by the Library.

User-friendliness of the Library has been improved by the introduction first of a copycard system followed by the Tech Express system where students use funds stored on their ID cards to pay for photocopy charges. The Library has also added telephone, mail, and e-mail renewal of materials for the convenience of all of its patrons. These services need to be more widely publicized, however. A Career Resource Center has been established in the Library to house job-hunting materials for students. The hours of the MTU Archives were extended to accommodate researchers, and an archivist has been hired permanently for that collection. A Library Web site has been established to deliver resources and services to users.

To ascertain future needs of Library patrons the Library staff has been conducting focus groups of students, faculty, and community members to identify needs. The information gathered from this exercise will be used to define Library planning priorities for the next decade.

The research, curricular, and educational needs of the University community are changing rapidly in the area of information management. The JRVP Library has been responsive to these changes. The Library staff faces the challenge of meeting needs of which its clients are only just becoming aware. As the role of the library changes, the services delivered by the JRVP Library will change as well. The Library seems to be meeting the current, non-collection needs of its clients. The collection is inadequate; access through ILL and DD is a less desirable substitute.

Is the Library a center of advancing information management initiatives, technologies and resources?

The Library staff are hardworking and capable. In a 1993 survey conducted by the Library, the performance of the staff was rated by library users at 4.2/5.0 for their support of the University’s research mission and 4.5/5.0 for their support of the teaching mission [2.4B]. In addition, Library staff have been recognized for the high quality of their instructional program [2.6F5] and have been recognized at professional society meetings [6.2A1].

The decision to change to the Voyager automation system for the Library was made to facilitate the incorporation of information technologies and resources into the Library. In addition to providing a Web-based access to the catalog of Library materials, Voyager automates and streamlines acquisitions, volume check-in of serials, and management of reserve materials, and provides a point of delivery for electronic resources such as databases.

The Library runs an active bibliographic instruction (BI) program. Since 1988 the number of resources and the level of information management skills that the Library presents in its classes has increased⁴. The Library works with courses on every level and, upon request, provides individualized research instruction to new graduate students, many of whom are new to the U.S. and unfamiliar with American libraries. Since the early 1990s the Library has routinely contributed to the orientation for new teaching assistants (TAs) in Humanities and provides these TAs with one-on-one assistance in designing their library-based assignments. The number of groups and individuals served by the BI program has increased from 2279 to 4633 (individuals) and 159 to 260 (groups) since 1988⁴.

Peer institutions are ahead of the JRVP Library when it comes to availability of electronic databases and information technology training, however¹⁵. Until recently (June 1997), most databases at MTU were limited to use within the Library. There is no interactive electronic classroom in the Library in which to train users in the latest information management techniques. Library instruction could and does take place in departmental computer laboratories, but departmental labs are used very intensively and scheduling of these facilities is extremely difficult and inconvenient for the displaced computer users. In addition, only limited resources are accessible from the remote labs; Library instruction includes using electronic and print materials which are only available in the Library. Electronic classrooms are part of the proposed Library renovation but are a minimum of 4 years in the future. The Library administration is currently working with the Advancement Department to secure $60,000 to create an interactive/hands-on classroom for Library instruction. There is no current mechanism for patrons to get on the network in the Library with their own computer; the Information Technology Department and the Library have a joint initiative to bring wireless (radio-wave) network access to the Library for patrons [2.6H9]. The pilot study will be done in 1997–98¹⁴. There is a low-level of awareness among faculty of library training programs.

In summary, the collections continue to be is a major weakness of the Library. The monograph collection needs to be caught up in missing materials, and the base budget for acquisitions needs to be increased. Additional collections will also require increased staffing expenditures. The journal collection erosion by inflation is a contentious problem faced by MTU and all of MTU’s peer institutions; MTU is in a more detrimental position relative to its peers, however, since deficiencies in MTU’s collections have been noted by patrons and highlighted during accreditation visits since at least 1988 and have not been addressed. Library services are strong, and many recent initiatives will soon bear fruit, particularly in the area of bringing greater electronic access for patrons both within and outside of the Library.

Patterns of Evidence—Criterion 4: Continuous Improvement

The JRVP Library has improved in many ways since 1988, but two areas which have not shared in this change are the depth of the monograph collection and the space available for materials and studying. Demands on the Library have increased with the addition of 9 new PhD programs to MTU. These two factors call into question the readiness of the JRVP Library to accomplish its purposes in the near and far terms.

The "Program Statement for the Library Building Program" stated in 1995 that "The current library building is outdated and out of space for library purposes. It cannot carry out the mission of the library and the University." [7.7E3]. Improvements to the Library building which are planned or have taken place are listed in the MTU Facilities Special Maintenance 5-Year Plan 1994 [4.6C2] and in the Facilities Management Self Study [2.6H7] and include installing emergency lights and a generator (originally scheduled for 95/96; now scheduled for Summer 1999), replacing the Library’s chiller and furniture (originally scheduled for 96/97; now scheduled for Summer 2000), Library renovation (originally scheduled for Summer 98; now scheduled for Summer 2001), building interior renewal (originally schedule for Summer 1999; now scheduled for Summer 2002), and the Library cooling tower replacement (Summer 2002). For the upcoming MTU Capital Campaign, a renovation of the Library, the establishment of a $2.5 million book/periodical endowment, the establishment of a $2.5 million technology endowment, and $300,000 for an interactive classroom appear as goals [2.1D3].

Decisions on building priorities are made by a faculty/administration building committee. The need for an improved Library has been recognized by this group as evidenced by the MTU Campus Master Plan Supplement, 1993, in which building a new library is ranked third in priority, behind the Walker Theater project (currently the focus of an intensive fund-raising campaign) and the Environmental Science and Engineering Center (currently under construction) [2.2A]. In 1995, however, the committee declined to propose that a new Library building be the next campus priority, instead recommending the building of a Sciences Complex which will include an unspecified amount of space for compact shelving of library materials. This new storage space will free up space in the current Library building for increased storage or study space; renovating this space would be an additional expense. This proposed building could be open in 2001 at the earliest¹⁰.

With regards to the Library’s collection, in 1991 the University Direction and Planning Committee [2.1C] recommended that the acquisition budget be increased by $100,000 per year for 5 years in order to facilitate the growth of graduate programs. This suggestion was not adopted. Increases in the materials acquisition budget have not met the rate of inflation. The Library budget (including funds for automation and computer hardware acquisitions) has remained a constant 2.6% of the university general fund budget [2.4A]. Plans to address the inadequacy of the Library’s collection rely on future external fund-raising success.

The Library is greatly improving its technological capacity. Wireless infrared networking capability is being installed in the Library building in summer 1997 to allow users with laptops to get on the network. Improvements in the network backbone of the Library building will greatly increase the speed of electronic library transactions resulting in a speedier search for library materials for patrons and greatly facilitating the work of library staffers. The Library focus groups have been conducted, and the data is being compiled; these results will indicate areas of improvement to be addressed by the Library.

In the three purposes of the Library outlined at the beginning of the Criterion 3 section the JRVP Library performs well on purpose #2 meeting the service needs of the MTU community. In the area of becoming "a center of advancing information management initiatives, technology and resources" [2.1D1; Purpose, page 3] much progress has been made recently. There continues to be concern about the amount of materials made available to the growing MTU research and scholarly community, however [2.1D1; Purpose, page 1]. The campus needs to be engaged in a debate over the relative effectiveness and costs of local collections versus document delivery.

Patterns of Evidence—Criterion 5: Integrity

The University in general demonstrates integrity in its practices and relationship is related to the operation of the JRVP Library. Procedures are in place to deal with employment issues, and they are followed.

References to the JRVP Library in University documents are generally accurate. One possible exception would be in the description of the size of the collection. Most University publications which mention the Library describe it as holding 780,000 volumes. This is accurate, although it is relevant to note that over 400,000 of these are government documents and fewer than 380,000 volumes are in the general collection. Of the 380,000 volumes in the general collection only 154,000 are non-serial titles.

A second area of question is overly optimistic statements with regards to progress towards addressing recognized problems with the Library building and collections. The 1988 NCA Self-Study report [6.2A1] and the 1993 ABET report [6.3B] both indicated that expansion of the Library was a top priority for the University. These statements are subject to question given the lack of progress in this area in the intervening years. If priorities have changed, the description should also change.

A final area of comment is related to the process for approving new PhD programs. The need for improved library collections has been clear since at least the last NCA visit. Nevertheless on each of the request forms for the 9 new PhD programs approved since 1988 it has been indicated that no additional library resources would be necessary to implement those programs. The choice to omit needed library resources is possibly motivated by the desire to reduce the obstacles to implementing desired programs but is disingenuous.

SWOT Analysis

To summarize the state of library services at MTU, we present in this section enumerated lists of the strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats associated with this program.

Strengths

• The Library has highly competent staff who are well appreciated by the campus community.
• The MTU Archives and Copper Country Historical Collection are nationally recognized as an outstanding resource.
• Book-purchase recommendations come through the successful departmental liaison program which ensures that the most urgently needed materials are purchased.
• An active, successful Friends of the Library group is helping to improve the Library.
• The Library has a diverse instruction program that emphasizes electronic resources and developing competencies for information literacy and lifelong learning.
• Important technological upgrades are in the process of taking place.

Weaknesses

• Size and composition of the collection.
• Lack of space for the collection in the current building.
• Lack of study space in the current building.
• The current building is uncomfortable and in need of an update (heating/cooling, furniture, lighting all poor).
• 70,000 volumes are currently stored off-site in closed stacks and are difficult to access.
• Not all electronic resources are accessible outside of the Library building.
• Lacks a classroom facility that accommodates the hands-on computing necessary for interactive learning and the mastery of the Library’s growing number of electronic resources.

Opportunities

• The MTU Archives and Copper Country Historical Collections are a widely recognized quality resource which could be used even more broadly if electronic access were developed.
• Colleagues in the Information Technology (IT) Department continue to be helpful in addressing hardware and software problems the Library has faced.
• Expanded advancement activities may help to develop endowed resources.
• The Friends of the Library volunteers continue to expand their service to the Library.

Threats

• Extremely high journal and monograph inflation rates.
• The collection of electronic resources requires the ongoing purchase and maintenance of computer equipment which is quite costly. Also, constantly changing formats for electronic media pose a problem for archiving these materials.
• Subscription rates for electronic materials are exceeding predictions and are volatile.
• Skills required of Library staff are changing rapidly; training budgets and availability of training sessions must keep pace.
• To redress the identified weaknesses in the Library’s book collection, a considerable investment ($200,000–$500,000) would be required.
• Weaknesses in the Library’s journal collection will require an as-yet-unidentified innovative solution to meet patrons’ needs given limited resources, volatility in the publishing industry, and MTU’s geographic isolation.

Recommendations for Action

Below are listed actions that the committee suggests be implemented to take advantage of the opportunities and to address the concerns listed in this report.

1. The University community and Library Administration need to address the universally recognized shortcomings of the Library monograph collection and put into action a jointly-arrived-at plan. A suggestion would be to increase base-budget acquisitions monies to bring up the monograph collection to 50% of the volumes in the Books for College Libraries III. The inadequacy of the collection is seriously threatening the University’s mission, particularly its research and graduate education missions.
2. A dialog needs to be initiated between faculty and librarians to generate possible solutions to the journal-inflation crisis. It is impractical to expect to match journal inflation of $100,000/year indefinitely. Cooperative solutions must be found. A possible suggestion would be to invest in more rapid inter-library loan; for new books which are unavailable through ILL the Library could commit to purchase the book. Innovative cooperative journal agreements could be investigated involving regional sources (e.g., local hospitals, schools, colleges).
3. The Library needs to more widely publicize new and old services as well as upgrades as they come on line.
4. Technological problems related to the electronic dissemination of information need to be addressed within the current distributed computing environment. A wider-spread network access of electronic resources will ease the need for library hardware. Additional synergies between the Information Technology Department services and Library services need to be anticipated and brought into existence, e.g.\ computer user training for common software could be developed within the Library.
5. The Library space deficit needs to be addressed on the short term and on the long term. On the short-term, compact shelving needs to be installed, perhaps beginning with the Government Documents Collection. The cost for installing compact shelving in the Government Documents Collection is estimated to be $300,000⁹. On the long term the University needs to continue to press the state for a Library addition.
6. University documents which describe the Library should clearly indicate the fraction of the collection which is composed of government documents. This will give a more accurate representation of the Library’s collection.
7. University documents which describe proposed Library improvements should more accurately reflect the priority of these actions.
8. Modify the Library Mission and Vision statements to eliminate some of the more detailed statements Also, there are some phrases which are too general, e.g., the Library cannot meet all the needs of the University community, but information-related needs are within its purview.

Patterns of Evidence—Criterion 1: Purposes

Computing mission statements are found in many different documents due to the decentralized nature of computing at MTU. In general, these documents are public and demonstrate consistent efforts to state purposes.

The Information Technology Department (IT) vision statement, contained in its strategy document [2.3A4] and annual reports [7.7E2], indicates that IT seeks to "be a leader in meeting the challenges of the future through integrating information and educational technologies." IT also has goal statements for each of seven key areas in these documents. The annual Computer Strategy Reports, prepared by individual departments and compiled by a subcommittee of a campus advisory committee known as the Computer Advisory Committee (CAC), also contain mission statements, as do numerous other documents filed by departments, units and colleges [2.3A9]. Each unit is required to submit a report annually which addresses the "philosophy of computer use" and planning for one- and three-year time horizons.

The goals expressed in the collective mission statements of providing quality service to the users, integrating technology into the curricula, and making information and information-technology tools available to the campus community are appropriate for a technological university. The departmental mission statements are generally consistent with IT’s overall mission and with the University’s mission.

Patterns of Evidence—Criterion 2: Resources

The committee concurs that the current structure, although not without its shortcomings, is sufficient for the University to accomplish its purposes of providing an outstanding technological education to its students.

Computing at Michigan Tech is not a centralized activity. There are several distinct types of computing on campus: student computing, which is under academic department control, administrative computing, which has a more amorphous structure and has portions managed by individual departments as well as by IT, and central computing, which includes campus-wide services such as access to the World Wide Web, classroom computing, distance learning technologies, and the dormitory network, all managed by IT. Not surprisingly, given the dynamic state of computing worldwide, there has been a great deal of change in the organization of computing on campus in the last 10 years.

Over the last 10 years MTU has gradually made the transition from a centralized, mainframe-based system to the current distributed system connecting over 2,500 computers [2.6H9]. As the personal computer began to replace the mainframe in industry in the 1980s, engineering departments on campus began building departmental student computing labs based on IBM-compatible or Macintosh personal computers or on workstations running the UNIX operating system. The decision was made in 1993 not to replace the IBM mainframe but instead to transition all computing on campus to a distributed model.

The transition was not painless. Under the old system, IT, then called Computing Technology Services (CTS), received a budget and provided computing capability. In the new system IT still exists, but individual units are responsible for their own local hardware, software, and support. Student computing became the responsibility of academic units, and they were granted the power to set student computing fees to cover costs. The Library and administration units were given extensive support from IT to bring about the transition to distributed computing.

It was soon apparent that the new system lacked necessary structure and bounds. Hardware was being purchased without due consideration of networking requirements. Also some questionable financial arrangements developed. For example, in 1990, to accelerate the acquisition of computers by faculty, the dean of engineering offered to purchase a Sun workstation for every faculty in the college. A short time later the debt for these purchases was transferred to the individual departments, and student computing fees were raised to cover the debt¹⁶.

In response to this type of computing management, an oversight structure was developed to manage campus computing. In 1993 the Computer Advisory Committee (CAC) was formed and it now has 5 standing subcommittees: the Subcommittee on Fees, which must approve changes in student fees and recommends policy for the expenditures of student fees, the Computing Strategy Subcommittee, which is responsible for coordinating the drafting of departmental strategy documents and for merging these into the University’s Computing Strategy document, the Systems Administration Council, the Campus Computing Standards Subcommittee, and the Acquisitions Subcommittee, which reviews large computing expenditures. The CAC is composed of the chairs of the subcommittees. Recommendations from the CAC are passed for approval to the Computer Executive Committee (CEx) consisting of the Provost, Deans, and other key administrators. As discussed in detail later, the CAC structure has been effective in addressing problems and setting direction for computing on campus.

IT is currently organized as shown in Figure 2, below). IT includes a staff of 60 FTEs (full-time equivalents) and 50 students [2.6H9]. In 1990 the University’s telecommunication services were folded into IT reflecting the convergence of voice, data, and video technologies. In 1994 a new department head of IT was hired through a national search, and in 1997 that position was elevated to Vice Provost for Information Technology to reflect the importance of information technology to MTU’s mission. In 1991 training was outsourced and desktop support and system administration was downsized [2.6H9]. Distributed Computing Services (formerly Academic Computing Services) focuses on electronic information services such as e-mail, WWW, and USENET News services. Engineering and customer service are handled by small work teams.

FIGURE 2. Organization Tree for Information Technology Department.

Vice Provost-Information Technology

Distributed Computing Services

Messaging and Mail-enabled Applications

Campus-wide Information Services

Software Services

Distributed Systems Coordination

Graduate Student Internship Program and ADDOC Team

Future Products and Services Research

Administrative Computing

BANNER® System Support

JRVP Library Project

Electronic Factbook

University Data Administration

Telcom Customer Service

Telephone Service

CATV—MTU Movie Channel

Ameritech Cont. Administration

AT&T Cont. Administration

ACUS Cont. Administration

Voice-mail Service

Work Order

Finance and Billing

Equipment Maintenance

System Administration Pilot

System Administration Services for Administration Depts.

Pace Labs

Educational Technology Services

Audio/Visual Support

Satellite Services

EDS

Network Operations Center (NOC)

Media Production

Technical Support for:

Board of Control

Commencement

Cultural Enrichment

Convocation

Telcom Engineering

Cable Physical Plant

Data System

Voice System

Video System

Network Security

Performance Management

Residence Life Network

System Administration

Command and Control Systems

Until recently system administrator salaries at MTU were among the lowest in the country⁷. In summer 1996 considerable turnover of these positions occurred and salaries increased. To address systems-administrator issues and to provide a forum for the sharing of ideas, the System Administrators Council was formally organized in 1995 [2.6H9], replacing a more informal structure which had previously existed. This group also debates campus technical standards.

The academic units fund their student computing by student computing fees which have grown dramatically in recent times. The student basic-access-fee revenue has increased from $900,000 in FY94 to $1.4 million in FY96⁵. Additional income is available to some units as course fees on computer-intensive courses, but the level of this income is difficult to determine since these course fees are included with all lab-fee charges in the university accounting system. The budget of IT rose from approximately $2.2 million to $2.6 million dollars from FY 93 to FY 95, not counting the costs of decommissioning the mainframe [2.6H9].

Up until 1995 hardware for faculty and staff was funded entirely through existing SS&E (Services, Supplies, and Expenditures) portions of departmental budgets or through discretionary funds. IT subsidizes network connections but charges student laboratories ($10/connection/month) and faculty and staff ($13/connection/month) to connect to the network. System administration services for faculty and staff also came from SS&E. The departments are not permitted to use student lab-fee income for faculty and staff computing [1.5D1]. To address this shortfall, some resources for buying hardware for faculty and staff have been added to general fund budgets. In 1993 the CAC recommended that $1,000/year/faculty be allotted to academic departments in support of computing. This pool was implemented gradually and was approximately $800 per faculty member in 1996–97. These funds are inadequate to upgrade faculty machines on a timely basis, and departmental discretionary funds and individual-investigator research funds are still commonly used for this purpose. Matching funds for administrative computing are available annually on a competitive basis. Systems administration and network costs for faculty not covered by the sources above continue to come from SS&E, discretionary, or research funds.

Paying for systems administration is a significant problem for small academic and administrative units which are not able to afford a full-time person due to the size of their operations. The problem was addressed for administrative units by IT with the establishment of the System Administration Services (SAS) group in 1995 [2.6H9]. For a monthly fee SAS provides systems administration services to subscribers. Some small academic departments (Metallurgical and Materials Engineering and Mining Engineering, for example) have joined together to hire a system administrator who can handle faculty, staff, and student computing. For other small departments the problem persists.

An advantage of the current system is flexibility and autonomy for units which can cover their own costs. When the size of an academic program fluctuates, however, the ability of the department to maintain the student laboratories can be at risk. Also, since computing is the responsibility of individual units, savings from group purchases, shared software, and other cooperative arrangements are more difficult to realize.

The physical resources related to on-campus computing are good. Students are given access to the computer network through their home department except in departments with small numbers of majors (e.g., Social Sciences and Biological Sciences). These smaller departments do not manage their own computer labs but rather provide access to their majors through the IT-run labs, called the Pace labs. A goal of 10 students/computer in student computer labs has been reached in most labs. Faculty and staff who need computers are provided with hardware by their departments. Three major platforms are used on campus: IBM-compatible, Macintosh, Unix-based.

In 1994/95 MTU discussed establishing a supercomputing center on campus but due to associated costs opted instead to rely on external computers for high-performance needs [2.6H9]. Matching funds are available for researchers needing to use external facilities.

The network is almost never down. To ensure the quality of the network a constant program of infrastructure improvements is ongoing. Some of the computing improvements at MTU in the last 10 years are listed below:

• Fiber-optic backbone installed (1988–1991) [2.6H9].
• All campus buildings recabled and standardized in TCP/IP (1988–1991) [2.6H9].
• Satellite uplink installed (1990) [2.6H9].
• Satellite facilities converted to receive National Technological University Professional programs (1992) [2.6H9].
• Studio classroom/teleconference facility renovated for distance educated programs (1995) [2.6H9].
• IT partnered with JRVP Library to implement new Voyager library system (1992); this was the last link in decommissioning the IBM in 1995 [2.6H9].
• Implemented Banner administration system (1990) [2.6H9].
• Acquired an Instructional Television Fixed Service license from the FCC to provide wireless CATV services (1996) [2.6H9].
• Upgraded lecture halls with multimedia equipment [2.6H9].
• Implemented voice mail for students, faculty, staff (1996) [2.6H9].
• Implemented a new Admissions and Recruiting module to streamline the admissions process (1991) [2.6H9].
• Partnered with University Career Center to establish an electronic interviewing center [2.6H9].
• Upgraded the dormitories for communications, including Cable TV/Movie Channel, high-speed data connections, and enhanced telephone services (1995–2001) [2.6H9].
• Began moving the centrally located computer labs into the dormitories (1993) [2.6H9].

Through a period of dynamic change MTU has developed a management and financial structure which allows it to accomplish its purposes related to delivery of comprehensive information-technology services.

Patterns of Evidence—Criterion 3: Accomplishments

The question of whether IT and other departments are accomplishing their information-technology-related purposes can be rephrased using text from their Vision and Mission statements as follows:

1. Do departments provide quality services, integrate technology into curricula and make information technology tools available?
2. Is IT a leader in meeting the challenges of the future through integrating information and education technologies?

The University’s performance against these three measures is good, with room for improvement.

Do departments provide quality services, integrate technology into curricula, and make information technology tools available?

Most students, faculty and staff have access to state-of-the-art machines, software, and multiple platforms. As is expected at a technological university, computing is an important part of most curricula [see, for example, 2.6A, 2.6A1, 2.6A2, 2.6A3, 2.6A5a, 2.6A6], and student computing facilities are given high priority by most academic units. The self studies of the departments generally indicate that they are happy with the level of the hardware available to students and with the network. As previously mentioned students in small departments are served by the IT Pace labs. A weakness in the system is in providing support for faculty and staff in small departments [2.6B11, 2.6B1, 2.6C].

A good degree of satisfaction with accomplishing educational goals related to computing has been verified by external accreditation teams. In the ABET report prepared after the last visit in 1993, it was stated that "computer services at the university, the college, and department level appear to be adequate, reasonably accessible to faculty, staff and students, and are used extensively in the engineering courses"⁶. The team also noted excellent progress in several areas that were problematic in their previous visit. Similar satisfaction with computing was expressed in the last visit of the Forestry accreditation team [6.5A2 and 6.5B2].

Students, however, are dissatisfied with magnitude of the computing fees. Student representatives on the CAC Subcommittee on Fees with their faculty and staff colleagues work to ensure that all fee increases are adequately justified annually. The rate of increase in fees has diminished, and the fee levels may have stabilized.

Among the faculty and staff there has been a great deal of frustration with computing finances as funding for faculty and staff computing and support has been slow to grow. When IT was relieved of the responsibility of providing computer support to faculty and staff, no immediate replacement was available in many units. Even in engineering units where there was resident technological expertise, there was frustration at the absence of funding for faculty and staff hardware and support. At least four engineering departments mentioned in their self-studies or annual reports that support of faculty and staff computing was problematic [2.6A2, 2.6A7, 2.6A5a, 2.6A1]. This situation is gradually improving with the addition of computing support to departmental budgets on a per faculty basis and through the competitive administrative computing internal grants as mentioned earlier.

Is IT a leader in meeting the challenges of the future through integrating information and education technologies?

IT has been active in providing overall technological support at MTU and in the community. More needs to be done to integrate the technology now available with the curricula, however.

The primary mission of IT in the last 5 years has been to upgrade the hardware and software at MTU so that technology-based instruction is possible on campus. Excellent computing infrastructure has been delivered and is taken for granted by faculty and staff. New services brought to campus by IT which have experienced heavy use include e-mail, voice mail, and cable in the dorms [2.6H9]. New services which need to be more widely publicized and utilized include electronic classrooms, teleconferencing capability, distance-education-delivery capability, and Library databases.

To broaden the use of the technology available a series of departmental talks have been scheduled by IT in 1997 to introduce MTU faculty to the technical services available [2.6H9]. This new initiative is serving to bridge the gap between the technology which is newly available on campus and the use of the technology by the faculty in their classes. The Center for Teaching and Learning Excellence was reorganized and is charged with facilitating such interactions as well. In terms of off-campus service IT has been working with the K-12 Telecommunications Advisory Board (local school systems) to develop technology plans which benefit the local schools and college/universities [2.6H9].

New initiatives by IT described under Criterion 4 further testify that IT is accomplishing its purpose of being a leader in meeting the challenges of the future through integrating information and education technologies at MTU.

Patterns of Evidence—Criterion 4: Continuous Improvement

The key to being able to continue to accomplish purposes is to have effective procedures and policies. In the area of computer information technology we find that the procedures are adequate to allow MTU to continue to accomplish its purposes.

MTU has an effective system for managing rapid technological change in the Computer Advisory Committee and its subcommittees. These faculty/staff/student groups tackle issues such as large purchases, networking standards, lab fees, and lab quality. If any issue arises related to computing, it is studied by the CAC, and a workable solution usually arises. For example, in the last five years, 17 ad hoc committees have been formed by the CAC and/or IT to study campus-wide issues. The ad-hoc committees have studied printing, systems administration, high-speed computing, Macintosh issues, e-mail standards, classroom networking, and others. The committees are not always asked to prepare final reports, but those prepared are usually approved and implemented by the CAC and the CEx. This type of flexibility and consensus-building will serve MTU well in the future and allow it to react to unforeseen circumstances.

A threat to the computing capability of Michigan Tech is staff turnover, driven somewhat by serious salary shortfalls in comparison to the free market. In the last year, five out of six engineering departments have lost their systems administrators. Additionally, IT has lost 3-5 professionals, and several of the non-engineering departments have lost their systems administrators. As discussed in the IT self-study, this problem is common to universities [2.6H9]. MTU is even more at risk than most universities, however, because of the low population in the Houghton area.

To combat turnover, IT is instituting release time and funding for professional development and continuing education. Continuing education and travel to conferences for systems administrators are not allowable charges to the student-lab-fee accounts [1.5D1]. IT disperses a pool of matching funds (about $8,000 this year) to the Systems Administration Council for continuing education and conference travel. Other funds for system administrator professional development come from departmental discretionary funds.

One development which may ameliorate the computer-staffing situation is the recent announcement by the MTU School of Technology that they are implementing a curriculum for training systems administrators. The program will probably involve co-op work in IT or in the departments and may alleviate some of the shortage of qualified professionals in several years.

Finally, an important obstacle to increased salaries for computer professionals has been the policies of the Human Resources office which compares systems administrators to other professional staff on campus. The laws of supply and demand and market salaries make this comparison ill-advised, and change is being implemented.

To continue to develop information technology capabilities at MTU constant improvement and change is required. IT future plans include:

1. Acquiring and implementing remote computing technologies for delivery to on- and off-campus MTU students and faculty (1997) [2.6H9].
2. Enhancing the administrative accounting system with a WWW interface which will, for example, allow for fund accounts to be checked more easily [2.6H9].
3. Piloting of a calendar/resource scheduling system to reduce the time needed to schedule campus-wide meetings (1997) [2.6H9].
4. Developing methods to streamline the vitae information gathering process (1997) [2.6H9].
5. Adding electronic capabilities to the remaining seven lecture halls on campus without this technology (1998) [2.6H9].

With the CAC management system in place and IT reorganized along efficient lines, MTU is well paced to maintain its capability in information technology in the future.

Patterns of Evidence—Criterion 5: Integrity

Descriptions of technology available on campus have been found to be accurate. There have been occasional episodes of questionable management of resources for information technology in the dynamic 10 years between 1988 and 1997. Continued vigilance will ensure that high standards of management are maintained across the board.

The Provost’s policy on student-lab-fee income [1.5D1] states that all such income must go into a separate account and that expenditures from that account can only be used to support student computing. In their annual computer reports to the CAC, budgets must be included showing compliance with this policy. However, there is little accountability. In one well-publicized case¹³, a large engineering department charged $45,000 worth of faculty-network-connection charges to the lab-fee account and has not reimbursed it. This violation was caught by members of the CAC lab-fee subcommittee while they were studying a request from the department to increase the fees; new fees were disallowed, but the policy violation was not redressed. A mechanism for accountability of these student-computer- account expenditures should be implemented to ensure that they are expended in a way consistent with published policies.

A second episode is the previously mentioned actions by the dean of engineering in 1990 in which the costs of faculty computers, originally promised from the dean, were transferred to student accounts, driving up student computer fees¹⁶.

These episodes have been addressed by the establishment of the CAC committee structure and tightening of oversight from the Provosts office. Enhanced auditing of these accounts seems warranted.

SWOT Analysis

To summarize the state of computing services at MTU we present in this section enumerated lists of the strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats associated with this program.

Strengths

• A computer network that is almost always up, due to a strong Information Technology Department and generally excellent systems administrators.
• Successful, integrated, administrative computing system (Banner7).
• Convenient computer and Internet access for everyone on campus.
• A great deal of flexibility and local control by academic departments.
• A flexible, responsive administrative structure via the Computer Advisory Committee and its subcommittees.
• A good degree of integration of computing into most curricula.

Weaknesses

• Little oversight on spending of student computing fees.
• Inefficiencies due to lack of cooperation and resource sharing at a level higher than departmental.
• A difficult financial position for student labs in departments with small numbers of majors due to minimal student-lab-fee income.
• A lack of an instructional computing center and support personnel for helping faculty integrate computing and multimedia into the classroom.
• There is no promotion path or formal training procedure for departmental systems administrators.
• No on-campus supercomputing facilities; capability is available off-campus and is subsidized, however.

Opportunities

• Technology keeps getting faster and more powerful, although not cheaper.
• The World Wide Web has enormous potential for use in local classrooms and in distance education programs.
• The new systems administration educational program in the School of Technology may increase the pool of qualified computer professionals who wish to stay in Houghton after they graduate.

Threats

• Computer staff turnover, partly due to inadequate salaries, threatens both the Information Technology Department and every department on campus.
• Each academic department which operates an independent computer laboratory is highly vulnerable to a systems administrator loss.
• Enrollment fluctuations lead to further difficulties in budgeting in student computing laboratories, especially in small departments.
• Technology hardware and software has a very limited life-span. It is an ongoing challenge to maintain and replace computer equipment.

Recommendations for Action

Below are listed actions that the committee suggests be implemented to take advantage of the opportunities and to address the concerns listed in this report.

1. A mechanism of accountability for all student-lab-fee expenditures should be established, perhaps by the CAC. The mechanism should be independent of the lab-fee-increase processes and should be performed each year on every academic department.
2. A program to bring faculty together with pedagogical technology is needed. Perhaps this could be developed as a center located in the (new, high-tech) JRVP Library addition planned for the near future.
3. The salaries and continuing education opportunities for capable systems administrators needs to be monitored and adjusted.
4. Additional base-budget funding for faculty and staff computing support should be explored with the CAC’s recommendation of $1,000/faculty the target.
5. Human Resources should review the appropriateness of its policies regarding salaries for computer professionals. Computer professionals are in great demand nationwide, and MTU must compete in this market.

1. MTU ABET Final Statement, Michigan Technological University, Houghton, MI, 1993.
2. Personal Communication to Faith Morrison by Theresa Spence, Assistant Director of the Van Pelt Library, Michigan Technological University, Houghton, MI.
3. Personal Communication to Faith Morrison by Ann West, Information Technology Department, Michigan Technological University, Houghton, MI.
4. Personal Communication to Faith Morrison by Pauline Moore, Head of Reference and Instructional Services, J. Robert Van Pelt Library, Michigan Technological University, Houghton, MI.
5. Financial summaries provided by Provost’s Office, Michigan Technological University, Houghton, MI, 1996.
6. Accreditation Board for Engineering and Technology, Technology Accreditation Commission, Preliminary Visitation Report on Michigan Technological University, Date of visit October 11-12, 1993. p14.
7. R. Simpson, "Why Salaries Are on the Rise," Open Computing, Volume 12, Number 5, May 1995, Page 53.
8. "Historical Price Analysis by Title Code," statistics generated by the Ebsco Subscription Services for J. Robert Van Pelt Library, Michigan Technological University, Houghton, MI, January 31, 1997.
9. Personal Communication to Faith Morrison by Ellen Seidel, Head, Collection Management Department, J. Robert Van Pelt Library, Michigan Technological University, Houghton, MI.
10. Capital Outlay Budget Request for the Fiscal Years 1997-98 and 1998-99, Michigan Technological University, Houghton, MI.
11. Personal communication of Faith Morrison with members of the CAC Subcommittee on Fees, Michigan Technological University, Houghton, MI, 1996.
12. Computer Strategy Report, Mechanical Engineering-Engineering Mechanics, Michigan Technological University, Houghton, MI, 1995-96.
13. Article in Lode, student newspaper, 1996.
14. Personal communication of Brenda Helminen to Faith Morrison June 3, 1997.
15. Presentations viewed at the Association of College and Research Libraries Meeting, Nashville, TN, April 1997, as reported by Faith Morrison.
16. Personal communication to the Goal 6 Committee by Faith Morrison, Associate Professor of Chemical Engineering, Michigan Technological University, Houghton, MI 49931, and memos in her possession, 1997.