ITC – Multimedia Classroom Committee March 11, 2009 11:45am, N. Copernicus 204 Minutes Present: Brodeur, Doan, Menoche, Pocock, Rudzinski, Washko I. Call to Order II. Minutes of Previous meeting This was the first meeting of the semester. There were no previous minutes. III. Announcements There were no announcements. IV. Old Business This was the first meeting of the semester. There was no previous business. V. New Business 1. Since this was the first meeting of the semester, the committee began with a discussion of the committee charge, review of past practices, expenditure guidelines, budget restrictions, deployment timelines, and faculty survey issues. Washko/Pocock described concerns with past deployments with the primary goal of preventing future issues. Washko stated that the total budget allocated to the committee was $139,500. Approximately $92,000 of the total is already reserved for the purpose of replacing 40 projectors and adding additional data jacks to improve management of the new projectors. The total remaining for use by the committee this semester is approximately $47,500. Washko stated that these were Bond funds which were available now, but which needed to be allocated by 6/30/2009. It was recommended that deployments occur over the summer. Discussion concerning the requirements for eligibility of requested funds resulted in the committee agreeing that all requests for funds for spaces used for classes would be considered, regardless of the location of the deployment. This was to clarify the eligibility requirements which in the past, sometimes implied certain sections of the academic community might not be eligible based upon the room location or purpose. Relating to the process of requesting funds for multimedia classroom projects, Rudzinski presented the FY2010 Budget Change Summary provided by the UPBC on 3/10/2009. That document also listed Multimedia Classroom projects. The committee decided to review the process by which Multimedia Classroom projects were requested and provide input to the ITC at some as yet undetermined future date. Pocock presented an overview of the typical cost of multimedia technologies used in the classroom. The approximate costs follow: “Black box” Data drop installation Projection installation Projector Screen Smartboard Extron switcher unit $400 $400 $1200-$1500 $1750 $400 $2000 $3500 Pocock also stated that there are 140 multimedia stations supported by his department. That total did not include other areas of multimedia classroom technology purchased by (and mostly supported by) other departments on campus. The committee discussed the importance of improving the quantity and quality of feedback from faculty regarding their experiences in utilizing the Multimedia classroom technology used at the university. Rudzinski presented the (albeit dated) 2007 Instructional Technology survey results to the committee. The committee, acknowledging the importance of quality feedback, recommended a multi-pronged approach to soliciting feedback from the faculty. Menoche recommended that “Informational Flyers” be prominently posted next to each multimedia station on campus. These documents would ask for feedback (both positive and negative) from the multimedia station users. It was hoped that this method would also obtain feedback from those part-time faculty who are generally more difficult to contact. Additionally, chairpersons of each department on campus would be contacted with a polite request to include the “Informational Flyer” notification as an agenda item in their next departmental meeting. Doan offered that individually meeting with each department during their departmental meetings might provide improved quality and quantity of data. The committee decided that Rudzinski would contact the department chairperson’s with an offer to meet with their departments at a mutually convenient time. Committee members would share the responsibility (as their schedules permitted) to meet with these departments. Washko recommended a deadline of mid-April for feedback to the committee. Washko also recommended that since this first committee meeting occurred in March, it would be in the best interests of the committee to start the data collection process earlier in the academic year (September). In this way, enough time would be available to solicit quality faculty feedback. The action items resulting for this meeting follow: 1. Rudzinski will develop a draft of an “Informational Flyer” for review by the committee. After review, the document will be posted near each of the multimedia stations on campus and will also be used as a basis for discussion as an agenda item during departmental meetings across campus. 2. Rudzinski will contact the Dean’s office in each school, to request permission to contact each department chairperson in the school requesting their faculty’s input regarding multimedia in the classroom at the University. 3. After receiving permission, Rudzinski would then provide the “Informational Flyer” to the department chairperson’s and also ask if they were amenable to a brief visit by a committee member to discuss multimedia classroom technology at their next departmental meeting. VI. Adjourn – The meeting was adjourned at 11:55am Respectfully submitted, Henry Rudzinski ITC Multimedia Classroom Committee Chairperson/Secretary