Welcome to the First Edition of the Office of Information Systems Newsletter!
The intention of the OIS newsletter is to inform the Arkansas Tech community about the progress in our department. Our Director is Ken Wester, and we are divided into three different areas of technical service:
1) Support Services, led by Associate Director Theresa Motley, is the first stop for all questions regarding technology solutions. Our 24/7 call center supports e-mail, password assistance, and guidance with Blackboard, Tegrity, Respondus, Turnitin, and other systems. We service desktop computers and equip labs with applicable hardware and software.
2) Networked Systems, led by Associate Director Steve Milligan, provides and manages the university’s information systems infrastructure and services. This includes virtual computers, servers, storage systems, routers, switches, physical cabling and wireless access. Classroom technology and multimedia systems along with digital signage and video streaming also fall under networked systems
3) Administrative Systems, led by Associate Director Carol Adkison, specializes in maintaining the enterprise software applications that help Arkansas Tech operate more efficiently. This includes work with Blackboard, Banner, OneTech, ARGOS, Xtender, ePrint, Workflow, and many other supporting applications. Administrative Systems is also responsible for the planning, development, and support of in-house software.
We all look forward to keeping you up-to-date on the developments in each of these areas.
Meet our Featured OIS Staff Member: Jeff Mumert
Jeff Mumert is one of our senior Customer Service Representatives for the Campus Support Center. When you call 968-0646 you are likely to hear his friendly voice ask, “How can I help you?” Jeff is knowledgeable in all areas of technical support, and he is always eager to assist you with your needs. Please never hesitate to call for help!
Jeff is a proud Alum of Arkansas Tech University. He received his bachelor’s degree in Information Technology in 2011 and began working in our Support Center soon after. Prior to that he was a student worker for the circulation desk in the Pendergraft Library. His career is off to a great start right here at Tech. Jeff cares about his work and our campus and participates as a member of Tech’s Staff Senate where he is currently serving a three-year term. You might catch him somewhere on campus racking up those Blue and You Challenge points too.
Jeff is active in his Church and serves as a camp sponsor at Budd Creek Baptist Camp during the summer. He enjoys participating in Relay for Life fundraising activities for the American Cancer Society. His hobbies include weightlifting, guitar, and video games. Jeff is also an avid baseball fan with the Seattle Mariners as his favorite team.
Holiday Closure
The Campus Support Center will be closed for the Memorial Day holiday on Monday, May 25th. We will reopen at 12 a.m. on Tuesday, May 26th.
What’s New in OIS?
Account Management System (AMS) Rollout
On June 1st, the Office of Information Systems has plans to publish a publicly available web service for self-administering OneTech password changes and first time account activations. The new “Account Management System” will offer 3 methods for self-administering accounts:
- Activate Account is designed for users who have never logged in to the Arkansas Tech network before and need their account activated. This option typically applies to all first time students, faculty, and staff.
- Change Password is designed for users who need to change their existing password.
- Forgot Password is designed for users who have forgotten their password.
The activate account and forgot password methods utilize a series of self-identifying questions for authentication. Further authentication implemented in the AMS is a series of security questions designed to secure user account access and management. The AMS will work with all major browsers on all platforms including mobile devices and tablets.
Password Policy and Security Changes
With implementation of the AMS, we will also be rolling out our new Password Policy as approved by the Executive Council. This new policy includes the following changes:
- Passwords will be required to be changed every 90 days. (This was previously 120 days.)
- You cannot reuse any of your last six passwords. (This was previously your last three passwords.)
- Users will be required to change their password after their initial login.
- There will now be a security setting that will force the computer to lock after 15 minutes of inactivity.
- Banner and associated systems will continue to auto logout of applications after 120 minutes of inactivity.
Office 365 Email Migration
In order to continue improving email and collaboration services, the Office of Information Systems has begun migration of mailboxes to Office 365. The migration of faculty and staff mailboxes to Office 365 began on May 11th and will be completed by June 1st. For more information about Office 365, visit our knowledge base at: https://support.atu.edu/link/portal/16084/16101/ArticleFolder/106/Office-365.
We have included the remaining Office 365 schedule below:
| 5/22/2015 | |
| Biological Sciences | Payroll |
| Bookstore | Physical Sciences |
| Lakepoint | Post Office |
| Natural and Health Sciences | Purchasing |
| 5/26/2015 | |
| Behavioral Sciences | History and Political Science |
| College of Arts and Humanities Dean’s Office | Music |
| English | |
| 5/27/2015 | |
| Center for Executive Leadership | Engineering |
| College of Applied Sciences Dean’s Office | English Language Institute |
| College Student Personnel | Graduate College |
| Computer and Information Science | IMSSO |
| Curriculum and Instruction | Math |
| Education | |
| 5/29/2015 | |
| Academic Advising | eTech |
| Art | Library |
| ASBTDC | Speech Theater and Journalism |
| Assessment | Student Support Services |
| College of Business |
If you have questions about any of the content in our newsletter, feel free to direct those to the Campus Support Center at campussupport@atu.edu or 479.968.0646.