Computer Science Information Systems (CSIS)

 

2003-2005

 

Description

 

·        Continue to support Department and College-wide faculty in developing state-of-the-art classes and experiences for our students.

• Continue to work collaboratively with other departments to develop new courses supporting technology across the curriculum.
• Continue to upgrade all CSIS classrooms with new computers at least every three years with top-of-the-line computer models. This policy has had the distinct advantage of allowing the “retired” CSIS lab computers to remain useful to other components of the College. Even though a great deal of progress has been made in utilizing the three existing CSIS labs, there is significant student pressure and very little free lab time left for additional sections and scheduled maintenance.
• Upgrade faculty office computers to match the configuration of the lab machines.
• CSIS requires one new lab room to meet program growth requirements, especially in the networking area including wireless technology and computer hardware. To ease the utilization impact somewhat, the Department plans to continue to offer distance online or hybrid courses, or collaborative learning opportunities. With continued Instructional Computing support for these classes the Department will be able to expand the traditional hours of instruction.

·        The convergence of computer technology with all forms of digital media presents new challenges and opportunities for the Department and the College, as a whole. New servers and digital communications technologies will be necessary during the next three years.

 

Curriculum Impact

 

Computer technology has arguably been the fastest growing and changing area of our culture and economy over the past few years but has currently responded negatively to the downturn in the economy. Keeping the curriculum current in this economy to meet new emerging community needs, is  a challenge. Specifically, new programs in Internet technology (such as the Webmaster certificate) which have previously had high enrollments are now experiencing a downturn in student interest. Media networking, multimedia, video games programming, collaborative and distance learning, certification (such as the 3COM and proposed Microsoft certification programs), artificial intelligence and robotics are in development or are being updated to enhance changes in our existing programs and meet student needs.  In order to successfully enter the job market, it’s essential that CSIS majors develop their skills and abilities using current technology and systems. State-of-the-art facilities and systems must be available to provide incentives for students to enroll in Grossmont programs. The proposed systems will be capable of supporting current and projected systems and software found in industry, thus directly supporting and enhancing student success. In addition, faculty will be able to take advantage of new teaching modalities as we explore the challenge of making education accessible to all.

 

Approximate Number of Students Served

 

CSIS has about 5000-6000 seats occupied per annum.  Some of these students are taking more than one class. This does not include students in other departments that use the CSIS labs. Although the CSIS department has seen an increase in FTES over the past few years, it has become evident that unless we offer the skills business and industry are demanding we will continue to see a downturn in student enrollment.    .

 The three on-campus CSIS labs were upgraded during the summer of 2002.  At the same time, the operating system was upgraded to Windows 2000, putting CSIS in a good position to offer the latest in current software applications such as Office XP, Macromedia MX products and the newer versions of the Adobe products.  Hardware and software tools will continue to be upgraded to provide our students with opportunities to gain the skills they will need in order to succeed in the classroom and in the workplace. 

 

Support Impact

 

CSIS needs at least two new full time faculty and a number of new adjuncts who are currently employed in the industry to work with the new curriculum that is being developed.  An additional classified support position is required to manage the increasing number of servers that are supporting the new curriculum.  Currently, this is being done by faculty, with help from the lab specialist.  As the number of servers increases and as more faculty teach in these areas, support must be centralized. 

 

 

Year 1 (2003-2004)

 

Objectives

 

• Maintain the currency of the CSIS department in existing courses and its ability to offer new programs relevant to community needs in rapidly emerging areas of high technology. Keeping current in this explosive field requires significant expenditure of both time and money.
• Continue to meet the needs of students in both job attainment and transfer to the four-year universities. Experience has proven that not doing this on a continuing basis, results in lower enrollments. We need to keep moving forward into new areas in order to attract new students.
• The CSIS Department continues, on an ongoing basis, to plan to equip classrooms with new technology to support advanced and new course offerings.  These classes will include expanded offerings in  Internet support, management and administration and in networking including wireless technology, databases, computer hardware and video games programming.
• Upgrade the faculty office computer to match the configuration of the lab computers resulting in greater productivity and ease with which faculty can transfer their courses to the CSIS classrooms. 
• As the CSIS department continues to offer more online courses, students in these classes are expected to require access from off-campus to the specialized servers and software.
• Continue to upgrade and maintain the CSIS website and to keep the student showcase area current with the latest student assignments as supplied by the instructors.

 

Action to Meet Objectives

 

• As College support from the IS and ICC departments has become available, the Department has been able and will continue to implement the above objectives.  CSIS will be looking to develop a new location to offer networking, including wireless, and hardware classes that cannot easily be supported in the present labs.
• The Department plans to acquire and configure the hardware and software server system necessary to offer a true collaborative learning environment. Hosted on the Internet and modeled after currently available systems, the server will be used to meet the needs of distance learning students.
• The Local Area Network serving CSIS classrooms will be upgraded to allow IP Multicast, segmentation based on classroom requirements, and implementation of virtual LAN and wireless technologies. The purpose of the upgrade will be to support the technologies required to offer collaborative learning experiences as well as to take full advantage of new media.
• A streaming media (video, audio) server will be acquired, installed, and configured to allow the classroom presentation of new instructional materials. Initial candidates for study and evaluation include Microsoft’s Netshow and Cisco’s IP/TV. Titles and materials will be acquired to support current and new class offerings.
• As our online course offerings expand, faculty need to be trained in distance learning management software. The CSIS department will continue to support faculty who are eager to develop new course content to add to our existing curriculum.
• Actively market our new programs and recruit new students.
• Work in collaboration with local business and industry to develop a wireless technology lab and the curriculum to support the technology.

 

Year 2 (2004-2005)

 

Objectives

 

·        The CSIS Department continues, on an ongoing basis, to plan to equip classrooms to support advanced and new course offerings.  These classes will include expanded offerings to our existing courses and new classes in .NET and wireless technology,

·        Continue to meet the needs of students for both employment and transfer to four year universities by providing classes to support new industry and educational standards.

·        Continue to support faculty with new technology and upgrade their office computers to meet the needs of  this instruction.

·        Continue to expand  online courses in both new and existing curriculum. Explore new industry technologies and add new courses to support those technologies.

·        Maintenance of a current software library and timely upgrades of lab hardware and servers is imperative to meet the needs of new and emerging technology.

 

Action to Meet Objectives

 

·        Hire a second lab specialist to maintain added servers and new hardware and software.

• As our online course offerings expand, faculty need to be trained in distance learning management software. The CSIS department will continue to support faculty who are eager to develop new course content to add to our existing curriculum.

·        Actively market our new programs and recruit new students.

·        Replace digital cameras, laser printers, scanners and multimedia hardware that are more than 3 years old with the latest generation.

·        Replace and upgrade old software with the latest versions.

·        Continue to work collaboratively with other departments to develop new cross-listed courses.

 

 

 

 

 

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