Technology Systems PPC Summary
The Department of Technology Systems (TSYS) houses 5 undergraduate and 2 graduate degree
programs in various technology areas. TSYS programs support ECU mission and strategic directions,
especially the economic development of Eastern NC.
TSYS prides itself in the creation and delivery of courses and programs that help drive the economic
prosperity of this region, as well as the entire state of North Carolina. Alliances with regional and
statewide business and industry allows our faculty to receive timely and beneficial input into our
programs to insure that our graduates are prepared to assume challenging positions, meet regional
needs, as well as compete in a global economy.
PRODUCTIVITY
Teaching:
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TSYS has UNC Category III funded programs that use 406 undergraduate and 186 graduate credit
hours per FTE.
Average SCH generation per faculty member in the department over a 3 year period is 517
credit hours. The average TSYS faculty member generates 1.25 FTE per year.
Average annual teaching load is 6 courses per tenured/tenure track (T&TT), and 8 courses for
fixed term faculty per year; contact hours range from 9 – 12 for lecture and lab-based courses
for T& TT faculty and 12 -16 for fixed term faculty. In addition, all faculty members are required
to maintain a minimum of 5 office hours each per week.
Number of Undergraduate students enrolled (2011): 882 (3 year average: 927)
Number of graduate students enrolled (2011): 152 (3 year average: 146)
Degrees awarded--Undergraduate (2011): 159 ( 3 year total: 448)
Degrees awarded--Graduate (2011): 37 ( 3 year total: 139)
Faculty Scholarly productivity: TSYS T&TT faculty have 435 entries in Sedona, of which more than 170
were refereed publications. The following table summarizes T&TT productivity from 2009 – 2011:
Item
Peer reviewed journal articles and proceedings
Books
Grant activity
Awards
Presentations
Industry consulting projects
Count
173
6
99
$1.62 million*
68
More than 200
*TSYS was also part of a $1.34 million 2006-2009 NSF grant.
Service Productivity: TSYS faculty members are engaged in local, state, national, and international
organizations. Activities include board memberships, editorships, NSF grant panels, external tenure
reviews, accreditation visits, and participation in dozens of unit and university committees. Listed below
are examples of departmental service highlights:
Advisory Boards
14
Technology Systems PPC Summary
Reviewer/Referee
Editorships
Departmental committees
College Committees
University Committees
Local/State/National
43
11
358
130
122
79
QUALITY
TSYS undergraduate programs are fully accredited by the Association of Technology Management and
Applied Engineering (ATMAE), formerly the National Association of Industrial Technology (NAIT).
Additionally, the department has earned a designation as one the National Centers of Excellence in
Information Assurance Education (CAEIAE) by the National Security Agency (NSA) and Department of
Defense (DoD). This Center status has attracted sustained funding from NSA/DoD over the past five
years. In addition to the CAEIAE, TSYS faculty plan to pursue a Research Designation under the NSA in
the near future.
Student Opinions of Instruction (SOIS), as well as grade distributions (average of 3.0 over three years) in
the department reflect sustained quality of our programs. Additionally, more than 100 undergraduate
students participated in research and capstone projects, service, and other competitive events.
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23 undergraduate students participated in research projects that led to their participation in the
undergraduate research achievement week, one team received an award for their work
One graduate student received national award for research presentation at the 2011 American
Society for Safety Engineers (ASSE) conference in Chicago
TSYS faculty research has been published by various journals and conferences in reputable organizations
such as the Association of Technology Management and Applied Engineering (ATMAE), American Society
for Engineering Education (ASEE), the Institute of Electrical and Electronic Engineers (IEEE), the National
Electronics and Distribution Association (NEDA), and the Association of Computing Machinery (ACM), to
mention a few. Recent works have been cited more than 150 times and downloaded at an average of
250 downloads per cited publication. Other highlights include:
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100 percent of tenured and tenure-track faculty members hold Graduate Faculty memberships
at ECU; majority of these members also hold graduate faculty memberships at Indiana State
University ( the host institution for our PhD Consortium)
TSYS faculty have received national and international recognition for their work through
accolades, fellowships, and partnerships
6 TSYS Faculty members are certified to conduct ATMAE and ABET (Accreditation Board for
Engineering and Technology) accreditation visits
4 faculty members conducted accreditation visits in the past year, one of them as Team Chair
TSYS faculty conducted 4 reviews for tenure and promotion for other institutions around the
country
Technology Systems PPC Summary
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Several TSYS faculty members were identified by graduates as the people “at ECU who made the
significant positive contribution” to their education
Our faculty members continue to support our students with professional, engagement and
career opportunities via student clubs such as ATMAE, APICS, MHEDA, PAID, SME, ASSE, ISM, to
name a few.
The department continues its outreach and engagement mission through active outreach to
regional industries that help boost economic development in Eastern North Carolina. Some of
the beneficiaries this year include Moen, Spirit Aero-Systems, PCB Piezotronics, Kapstone Paper
Products, Halifax Regional Medical Center, Pitt County Memorial Hospital, Habitat for Humanity,
and Pitt County Rebuilding Together.
TSYS continues to work closely with regional business and industry through problem solving,
training, and consulting projects that help boost economic development in the region
The department has several alliances with hi-tech industries : Cisco, Red Hat, HP, EMC, VMware,
Microsoft, SAP, NetLabs, and others that help us deliver current and emerging programs that
provide a competitive advantage for our students, as well as prepare them to compete in a
global economy
Our graduate degree was recently recognized as one nation’s “best buy” programs in Computer
Networking Management.
CENTRALITY
TSYS aligns very well with the strategic mission of the university, and contributes to more than 40
objectives in the ECU Strategic Plan. The Bureau of Labor Statistics projects continued demand for our
programs through the year 2018. Some highlights in this category include:
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Very successful state-wide degree completion program: The Bachelor of Science in Industrial
Technology (BSIT)
A new concentration in Health Information Technologies within our BSIT in collaboration with
the College of Allied Health Sciences
Faculty members who are active in workforce development for NC, especially in the Eastern
Region: Over 200 industry consulting projects in 3 years
Programs in high demand occupations, such as Network Systems. This area, which is part of our
Information and Computer Technology (ICTN) focus, is projected by BLS to have more than 53%
growth, (2nd highest) in the next decade
TSYS houses programs that are unique in the entire state, and serve the economic development
needs of the eastern region:
o BS in Design (DESN): Only ECU
o BS in Industrial Distribution and Logistics (IDIS): Only ECU
o BS in Information and Computer Technology (ICTN): ECU, UNC-P, UNC-C, WSSU
o BS in Industrial Engineering Technology (IET): Only ECU
o BS in Industrial Technology (BSIT): ECU, ECSU, NCA&T, WCU; ECU's online BSIT model is
the only one in North Carolina.
o Master of Science in Technology Systems (MSTS): ECU, NCA&T, ASU, WCU
o Master of Science in Occupational Safety (MSOS): Only ECU
Technology Systems PPC Summary
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The department shares 18 labs and resources with other departments, including Engineering,
Computer Science, and Construction Management
TSYS faculty have ongoing research collaborations with faculty from CS, CMGT, ENGR, Center for
Math, Science, & Technology, Education, Allied Health, Environmental Health, to name a few.
TSYS shares courses with 6 other programs in the university; a total of 11 TSYS courses are
required by other programs
TSYS has earned global recognition as a leader in online, lab-based undergraduate and graduate
degree programs
TSYS faculty are involved in the Governor’s Logistics Taskforce on developing strategies for
attracting industries to North Carolina
TSYS has articulation agreements with the Community College System and the NC Department
of Public Instruction. Other articulations include the National Defense University and Elizabeth
City State University
TSYS students work on capstone and research projects that directly impact regional business
and industry, as well as community organizations
TSYS faculty provide training and support for ITCS and other units around the university
TSYS is an active participant in a five university PhD Consortium program in Technology
Management
TSYS has collaborations with other universities outside the U.S.: University of Cairo, Strathmore
University in Kenya, and pending initiatives with universities in Spain, Taiwan, China, Kenya, and
South Africa
OPPORTUNITY
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Completion of our proposal for a Master of Science degree in Network Technology (MSNT)
which is now at the external review phase of the request for authorization to establish. This
unique program will contribute significantly to the state and national needs and help meet the
BLS projected job growth of 53% in this area
Continuation of our military education and outreach efforts, such as the Returning Soldier
program and FT Bragg Special Ops discussion to create a pipeline for soldiers to enter our BSIT
Strengthen ECU’s role and visibility on the Governor’s Taskforce on Logistics, as well as position
our faculty and students to contribute to North Carolina’s growth in this priority area
Strengthen our partnerships with Engineering, Computer Science, Construction Management,
Allied Heath, Health and Human Performance, and participation in the Honors College (we have
three new Honors course proposals that are currently pending)
Capitalize on revised IET curriculum that is now less rigid and has multiple entry points to allow
more students to join the program
Pursuit of research designation by the National Security Agency which will lead to new research
opportunities for the university
Continued leadership in regional economic development through sustained outreach and
engagement with industry and community organizations