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 Inside the Head of Kathy Lang, CIO, Marquette University
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Email article
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Q. If you could instantly fill a gap between education and technology, what would it be?
A. I would provide hands-on training to ensure that all faculty members are technologically savvy so they would be able to embed pedagogically appropriate technologies within the curriculum to enhance the learning process for students.
Q. How do you emphasize the importance of technology within?
A. Technology is embedded into all aspects of education, both inside and outside the classroom. In the classroom, "smart” classrooms have become the norm – a "smart” classroom usually has a computer/projector/sound system/wireless access, etc. built in to the classroom. All of the classrooms at Marquette have network connectivity (including access to Internet2, the national research network), and about 80 percent of them are technology-enabled. One of the main technology applications that supports the learning process is the use of a course management tool, which allows for the extension of learning outside the classroom. This tool allows faculty and students to communicate electronically via discussion boards. There are electronic quizzes available, students can submit homework online or collaborate with others for group projects, etc. One student told me recently that if e-mail went down he wouldn't mind, but if Desire2Learn (our course management system) went down he wouldn't be able to get to any of his class information. More and more of the students' work is done via the network, whether it's on the Internet or using online library resources. Clearly this can be seen by the continual increase in the demand for Internet bandwidth. From an administration perspective, technology is used to apply for admission, register for classes, check grades, get financial aid information, do academic advising, and many other functions. However, it's important to note that we still have people available to help students face-to-face. Technology hasn't replaced the importance of student (and colleague) interaction from a human perspective.
Q. Describe the basic criteria you look for in a positive initiative.
A. The first thing I do is address some basic questions such as, "What problem are we trying to solve?” and, "What are we really trying to accomplish?” I want to have a basic understanding of the true business needs before we jump to technology. The strategy may end up as a business process change rather than a new technology. Then I work with the staff to determine if that technology already exists in some form on campus. If so, can we use it or modify it to meet the broader needs? If not, we start to look at what others are doing, both in higher education institutions as well as the broader business community. Education tends to be behind the curve in implementing various IT best practices compared to industry. I rely on my staff to help me watch those trends to see what we can use here to improve our services to the campus community, both for students and faculty. We often adopt IT strategies from other types of industries before other higher education institutions, including a formal Project Management Office and the ITIL framework for service management.
Q. Regarding innovation within education specifically, are you seeing the trend toward more, less, or the same?
A. Regarding academic technology used to improve the learning, teaching, and research components of education, I see the trend toward much more innovation. One example is the addition of more hybrid classes (classes that meet face-to-face for part of the class but use technology for the remainder of the class). I also see a lot more collaboration between my staff and the faculty, specifically research faculty, as we try to better utilize and support the technology currently used and try to expand our research capabilities by using grid computing to connect with other research universities and institutions. The use of high-performance computing and video conferencing facilitates a much broader extension of the academic environment.
Q. What job prior to Marquette truly prepared you for your leadership role as it is today?
A. My career has been a progression of expanding leadership roles. I've been in management within higher education for more than 20 years and have always tried to look at it from a business perspective. Since IT is involved in all areas of the university, I have to look at the situation from a big picture perspective so we identify the opportunities and are wary of potential risks and challenges along the way. I've always believed my role is to determine the "right” thing and then work with my team and the rest of the organization to make it happen.
Q. On a professional level, who truly inspires you?
A. Strong leaders always impress me. Also, many of my staff both impress and inspire me. I have a great group of people who are very dedicated to not only keeping all our technology systems and services running every day but devising innovative uses of technology to improve those services. I marvel at some of the great ideas that have come directly from them, such as the innovative way we have integrated MS SharePoint within our Project Management methodology so that not only the technical staff but any business/functional area member working on the project has access to all the information about the project via the Web.
Q. What green initiatives take precedence and why?
A. Marquette University certainly is pursuing sustainability efforts through the use of technology all over campus. This past summer, we upgraded our pay-for-print service for students so they can scan documents and have them sent to their e-mail accounts rather than printing them. We take advantage of collaboration tools such as MS SharePoint and are implementing a system that allows faculty and staff to do desktop audio and video conferencing with multiple people either on or off campus via the Internet. We're investigating virtual desktops but only piloting them at this time.
Q. What advice would you have for anyone getting into IT?
A. There's a lot more to IT than just sitting in front of a computer and being a "techie.” Focus on building your communication skills, both verbal and written, and interpersonal skills, as well, since so many IT positions work very closely with other people.
Q. What's your poison when it comes to personal technology?
A. I love my tablet computer – the smaller and lighter, the better (and I like being able to take notes in my own handwriting and save digitally).
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