This Is IT!
Volume 5, Issue 2, July 2009
Message from the
CIO/Vice President
While the Office of the CIO oversees many projects, initiatives
and planning, it would be impossible to accomplish much singlehandedly. Teamwork and collaboration is essential to maintaining
a stable technology environment. With this in mind, I would like to
start by taking this opportunity to express my sincere gratitude to all
Information Technology Division staff. I truly appreciate the dedicated service of all employees, from
administrators and managers, to support and frontline staff. Your hard work has helped maintain a
constant level of service and support through ongoing departmental changes. I particularly want
to thank everyone who worked so hard during the recent 1,900 PC Deployment Project. The
teamwork, communication and cooperation, not only from IT but other key departments, led to a
successful Phase 1 deployment that was completed ahead of schedule. Great job!
As a “service and support” Division, one of our primary objectives is to meet and improve
the level of satisfaction for our customers…students, faculty and staff. Therefore, we are working
to develop Service Level Agreements (SLAs) with each department to ensure we understand your
needs. As part of our annual planning session this fall, discussions will begin to start developing
SLAs. We hope the open format will allow us to discuss any issues or concerns and collect feedback
on a wide variety of services.
Over the last few months, the Network Systems and Telecommunications area have been
busy installing the new VoIP (Voice over Internet Protocol) phone system. The Administrative
Services Center Building A (Phase I) is complete and the Team will be heading to the Transmountain
Campus (Phase II) soon.
As you read through the rest of this newsletter, I
This is IT!
hope you enjoy learning about other initiatives, updates and
announcements that may be of interest. As always, I welcome
Message from the CIO/VP . . . . . . . . .1
your feedback or suggestions on how we can better serve
STS Spring Updates . . . . . . . . . . .2
PC Lifecycle Replacements . . . . . . . . .3
the District.
The
Best
Place
to
Start
Clickers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .3
Outlook Web Access Upgrade. . . . . . .4
Quick Facts . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4
Spring Faculty Development IT Team Effort . .5
Spring New Faculty Expo Pics. . . . . 5
Records Management Update . . . . . . 5
E-mail Security . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6
IT Congratulates . . . . . . . . . . . 6
IT Photo Gallery-2009 . . . . . . . . . . 8
I wish you an enjoyable and successful fall semester!
Fabiola Rubio
CIO/Vice President
El Paso County Community College District does not discriminate on the basis of race, color, national origin,
religion, gender, age or disability.
Photos by Fernie Garcia
This is IT Page 1
STS Spring Updates
Pan Chudabala
New STS Partnerships
This Spring, Student Technology Services (STS) established
new contracts with EPCC departments and businesses throughout
the El Paso region. Within the college, STS received funding from Dr.
Jenny Giron to partner with EPCC-TV. Currently, there are three STS
students working at the EPCC-TV studio. New contracts were made
with the Library at NW, the Professional Administrative Assistant lab
at TM, and Workforce Development at ASC. Plans are to expand
service to Career Services and the Counseling Center at VV.
One vendor outside EPCC that STS partnered with is
Management and Engineering Technologies International, Inc.
(METI), a professional services company providing Information
Technology and Engineering Support Services to the federal sector
and private industry throughout the United States and several other
countries. Another company is the Fiesta de las Flores Hispanic
Culture Center Inc., an organization that helps promote and raise
funds for the annual festival. By the end of Spring, STS will also be partnering
t i with
ith KCOS TV.
TV
Customer Service Training and Certification
On Saturday, April 4th, a group of 18 STS students (including the management team)
attended an all-day customer service training workshop. Training was provided by Estela Ortiz,
Program Manager of Workforce Development. The training covered building customer satisfaction,
telephone etiquette, stress management, and various elements of quality service. They also
learned about the differences between individuals in the workplace and conflict-handling which was
especially helpful for the management staff. Certifications were awarded to those who attended
the training.
STS is planning to offer another session whereby the students will be nationally
certified, and receive a customer service license for three years. This will not only benefit both
students and the departments where they work, but also equip them with knowledge that will help
them succeed in the future.
Safety Training
On Friday, March 6th, a group of
STS students attended mandatory Safety
Training provided by Nancy Tharp, Interim
Risk Manager. Students had a good time
while learning a lot about safety issues and
how to prevent hazards from happening
at work.
United Through Reading
STS is currently volunteering at
the United Service Organization (USO)
with the United Through Reading (UTR)
program. UTR program families stay
connected with video-recorded book readings by the soldiers, to be enjoyed while their loved ones
are stationed away from home.
Throughout the months of March and April, STS students have been assisting with
the recording. This has been an on-going STS project with the UTR program for approximately two
years.
This is IT Page 2
PC Lifecycle Replacements
Marco Fernandez
As part of the computer lifecycle replacement process,
1,900 computers are being replaced this summer with new HP
computers in classrooms, computer labs and libraries District-wide.
This replacement insures that EPCC students always have access
to the latest in technology.
The deployment of new computers is being carried out
in two phases. Phase 1 consisted of deploying a total of 1,124 PCs
from May 18 through May 28 (164 at Mission Del Paso Campus,
243 at Northwest Campus, 334 at Rio Grande Campus, and 383 at
Transmountain
Campus). Phase
2 will consist of
deploying a total
of 776 PCs at the Valle Verde Campus and
ASC from August 10 through August 14. The
previous deployment was done in the summer
of 2005.
Staff from the Information Technology
Division, including Technology Support
Operations, Network Systems, Academic
Computing Services, and Student Technology Services are installing and project-managing the
new computers. Other departments that have a key role in the project include the EPCC Police
Department, Property Control, Shipping and Receiving, and the Physical Plant. The Integrated
Technology Committee approved the replacement of computers with funding provided by the
Student Technology Fee.
(See more photos on page 8, IT Photo Gallery.)
Clickers
Claire Buisson-Rodriguez
Student Response Systems, or
“Clickers,” were demonstrated during Faculty
Development this past January by Chris Cochran,
Qwizdom® North Texas Representative for Sales
and Training. With a Clicker in the hand of
each student, the instructor can get immediate
feedback: total answers for yes/no, true/false,
and multiple choice questions; requests for help
from students; and trigger a quick visual
pop up on screen of a tally of the class
responses.
The teacher can also project a test
onscreen and students can transmit their
answers with their individual clickers. The
teacher can also inject a question apart
from a prescribed test and single out a
student on the screen or privately on their clicker. This new technology empowers
teachers to handle large classes with quicker interactive responses to lectures
or tests. It uses a PC, software compatible with PowerPoint, a projector and
screen, student clickers, and the instructor’s remote. It replaces paper in the
classroom it with digitally stored data, allowing for deeper discussions and more teaching time.
A pilot group test is scheduled to begin at EPCC in the Summer of 2009.
This is IT Page 3
Outlook Web Access Upgrade
The Information Technology Department is pleased to announce that the College e-mail
system (Microsoft Outlook / Exchange) was upgraded over the winter break. As part of the
upgrade, your mailbox quota has
been increased by 25%!
To help you find and use many of
these new features, the Technology
Resource Center has designed
a new Quick Reference Guide
available at the IT Home page under
E-Mail/MS Outlook Help (http://
www.epcc.edu/IT)
OWA 2007 (Outlook Web
Access) is the web-based version
of Outlook that many employees use
to access their e-mail accounts from
home or anywhere that provides
Internet access and a web browser.
A link to a Microsoft tutorial (OWA
2007 Online Tutorial) that explains some of the new features of OWA 2007 is available at the same
page where you find the Outlook Quick Reference Guide.
For access to the resources in this article and more information please visit the EPCC
Microsoft Outlook / Exchange website at http://www.epcc.edu/it/faqs/MicrosoftOutlook/
tabid/11234/language/en-US/Default.aspx. If you have any questions, please call the IT Service
Desk at extension 6440.
Quick Facts
Phishing is a scam where Internet fraudsters send spam or pop-up messages to lure
personal and financial information from unsuspecting victims. To avoid getting hooked:
• Don’t reply to email or pop-up messages that ask for personal or financial information, and
don’t click on links in the message. Don’t cut and paste a link from the message into your Web
browser — phishers can make links look like they go one place, but that actually send you to a
different site.
• Some scammers send an email that appears to be from a legitimate business and ask you to
call a phone number to update your account or access a “refund.” Because they use Voice over
Internet Protocol technology, the area code you call does not reflect where the scammers really
are. If you need to reach an organization you do business with, call the number on your financial
statements or on the back of your credit card.
• Use anti-virus and anti-spyware software, as well as a firewall, and keep them updated.
• Don’t email personal or financial information.
• Review credit card and bank account statements as soon as you receive them to check for
unauthorized charges.
• Be cautious about opening any attachment or downloading files from emails you receive,
• Forward phishing emails to spam@uce.gov – and to the company, bank, or organization
impersonated in the phishing email. You also may report phishing email to reportphishing@
antiphishing.org. The Anti-Phishing Working Group, a consortium of ISPs, security vendors, financial
institutions and law enforcement agencies, uses these reports to fight phishing.
• If you’ve been scammed, visit the Federal Trade Commission’s Identity Theft website at
ftc.gov/idtheft.
The above article is taken from http://www.onguardonline.gov/topics/phishing.aspx
This is IT Page 4
Spring Faculty Development IT Team Effort
The Information Technology Division sponsored over 20 workshops and participated
in sessions during Spring 2009 Faculty Development Week. Some of the topics covered in
the workshops were:
• Computer Literacy: Making Sense of IT
• Enhance Teaching Experience by Using Technology in Your Classroom
• Excel 2007: Basics
• Excel for Grades
• Expanding Excellence
• How Can We Help You? IT Service Desk 101
• Intro to Using Smart Start Course Sites
• PowerPoint 2007: Basics
• Say Hello to Office 2007
• Smart Start Network Clinic
• Smart Start Network: Technology That Helps!
• The Semester Starts Next Week! Does Your Online Course Need a Final
Tweak?
• What Are Clickers? Explore the Student Response System by Qwizdom
• What’s Up With OWA?? Introducing OWA 2007
• Word 2007: Basics
• Workshop of 1st Year Tenure Track
Presenters came from Academic Computing Services, AVP Instructional Resources
and Technology, EPCC-TV, IT Service Desk, IT Web Team, Student Technology Services,
Technology Resource Center, and Technology Support Services. We appreciate the
team effort that supported our students, faculty, and staff during the Spring 2009 Faculty
Development Week.
Spring New Faculty Expo Pics
Records Management Update Transmountain Scanning Station
T
Bonnie Prieto
B
In March of this year, the Transmountain Counseling Office
b
began imaging. They have successfully scanned, indexed and saved the
ccompleted Advising Forms from their new Scanning Station. (See photo.)
C
Counselors can use the images to assist the student in their needs, and
if a student goes from one campus to another, any counselor can pull up
th
their record to see all of their counseling files. This technology will follow
a
all counseling offices in the district.
The EPCC Production Banner Documentation Management
S
Suite
it (BDMS) application
li ti houses this information within the “Registration Info” Document Type.
Counselors have view–only access to transcripts and specialized admissions, registration
information, change of major, petitions, add/drop, and academic suspensions.
This is IT Page 5
E-mail Security
Richard Buller
The most important thing to tell everyone is that, in
accordance with EPCC Procedure 2.05.01.34, “Electronic Mail
Services, Personal and Broadcast E-mail and E-mail Restrictions,
the following provisions of Section I.E.3.b. apply. The following
activities are prohibited because they impede the functioning of
network communications and the efficient operations of electronic
mail systems:
1) The sending or forwarding of chain letters;
2) The sending of unsolicited messages to large groups, except as required to conduct
College business; and
3) The sending or forwarding of e-mail that is likely to contain computer viruses.
IT Congratulates...
Women’s Diamond Awards
The First Annual Women’s Diamond Awards of 2009 was held
April 1st and sponsored by Diversity Programs. It is a salute to those women
who selflessly carry on daily activities and have made significant impacts or are
a great inspiration, both professionally and personally.
Top Diamond award was given to Fabiola Rubio,
CPA, who was recognized for providing leadership as the CIO in the use of
information technology resources and support throughout the College in several
administrative positions, including Acting President. She reflects her dedication by
her statement found on the CIO webpage: This is an exciting time for the College
and our vision for the future is simple... to prepare our students, through the best
technologies, to face an increasingly complex and information-rich world.
Honorees recognized from IT were: Dr. Jenny Giron, Kimberly
Harrison, Lorraine Hoefner, and Deborah Toynes.
EPCC Employee Recognition
This past April, the El Paso Community College celebrated the anniversaries of employees
with a luncheon, a gift, and the remainder of the day off. We would like to recognize our IT staff
that hit their hallmark status of service with the College.
5 Years
20 Years
25 Years
Maria Ortega
Yvonne Almanza
Gerardo Chacon
Edmundo Vasquez
Raquel Viramontes
Claire Buisson-Rodriguez
Dr. Jenny Giron
Lorraine Hoefner
David Licano
Fabiola Rubio
10 Years
Eduardo Contreras
Sara Moncayo
Cecilia Stroesse
30 Years
Dalila Chavez
This is IT Page 6
IT Congratulates... (continued)
Employee of the Year
Rosa Gonzalez
The Professional Staff Association Employee of the Year
Committee is delighted to congratulate Charles Morgan who was
elected the Professional Staff Association Employee of the Year!
During his tenure as Manager Support Center, Charles has
provided assistance and support to colleagues and students alike. His
daily tasks contribute to making life at EPCC easier and more efficient
and his participation/service in PSA activities is not only generous but
instrumental.
Employee of the Month
Mark Negrete, Media Producer for EPCC-TV, was
honored as the ASC Employee of the Month for March 2009.
Mark began working for EPCC in March of 2004 where he has
produced several videos for Faculty Development. He is the
producer for Computer Train and Inside EPCC which also runs
on KCOS TV.
Highlights from his nomination include: “His extensive
editing, production experience and commitment to achieving
only the very best for the College-district have earned him the
respect and admiration of all those who work and know him.”
Scholarships for STS Students
Pan Chudabala
This semester, two STS
students received scholarships
through EPCC. In February, STS
nominated Brenda Meza for a
National scholarship sponsored
by Microsoft through the League of
Innovation. The Terry O’Banion
Student Technology Award, a
5,000 dollar- scholarship, was
awarded to Brenda.
A few weeks later, You
Mi Shin, STS student, received
a 500 dollar- scholarship from the
American Association for Women in the Community College (AAWCC).
This scholarship is for the summer semester and was awarded to You
Mi in late March.
This is IT Page 7
IT Photo Gallery - 2009
PC Lifecycle
This is IT Page 8