Time: 10:00 – 12:00

Location: McHenry Library 481

I. Welcome and Introductions

§ Members Present: Bob White, Pat LeCuyer, Larry Merkley, Charlie McDowell, Mark Cianca, Kathleen Dettman, John Rodrigues, Scotty Brookie, Bob White

§ Members absent: Bruce Cooperstein, Terry Schalk, Bill Hyder

§ Guests Present: Peter McMillan, Janine Roeth, Beth Riddle, Tad Reynales, Magge McCue

§ Staff Present: Max Ritchie, Fana O’Halloran

II. Cats Overview – Pat LeCuyer

Pat presented the group with a comprehensive overview of the services that CATS provides, including their cost, relative health, and a future vision for those services.

After the presentation the following points were made in response to questions:

Capacity to do research and development was identified as a significant problem. CATS spends relatively little on IT research and development. The only area within CATS where staff is allocated specifically to R&D is in networking. Filling the vacant Applications Development & Support (ADS) Director position will help some in the areas of applications systems research and development.
Organizations of our size run IT divisions with annual budgets typically in the $20 to $30 million range. CATS has a budget of roughly $12.5 million, roughly 3% of the $380 million total budget. UC Davis represents an example of a campus that is much larger, with special programs including a medical school, and stronger fund sources, and operates with an annual budget of about $38 million, plus large annual one-time project commitments.
The wiring of new buildings and labs is paid for as part of construction, and electronics are funded by network rates that are derived from the campus community. If the laptop initiative comes to fruition, it could relieve some costs associated with new and current labs.
Partnerships with the Engineering and Arts divisions help offset costs for CATS Instructional Computing lab operations. Other partnerships are being sought.
The Campus Cabling Upgrade (CCU) wiring project will be a large expense for the campus. This will remain true even if the campus decides to install a wireless infrastructure.
Instructional Computing recently completed a survey of 653 students that use various labs on campus. One of the major issues that came out of the survey was inadequate student computer lab availability. It was suggested that there be a designated room with wireless access that could serve as another lab and encourage students using laptops. This room could possibly be in the library.
Currently there is not enough money allocated for IT security. However, CATS is adding an additional security administrator in the network rates next year.
The relatively modest level of the proposed vision for various CATS units was noted, and Pat was asked whether or not CATS has the resources to implement the vision elements. In core-funded areas, CATS can make small incremental changes, but lacks the resources for any of the major upgrades identified in its vision. It was also noted that, if the forthcoming budget doesn't contain funding for critical initiatives/projects, CATS would be forced either to abandon those projects or make cuts in other areas. It is possible that revenues from network rates, which will be discussed at the next meeting, could meet some of these infrastructure needs.
Pat noted that because of UCSC's relatively small size, CATS suffers from a "reverse economy of scale." That is, it must implement and maintain large systems (e.g. PPS, FIS), which are a much larger percentage of its budget than they would be for a similar organization at a larger campus.
There was discussion about performing a cross-campus comparison study of central IT units, to see if CATS is adequately resourced in a system wide context. Although developing comparable data sets may prove to be difficult, Fana O’Halloran is beginning to work on this task.

Next steps:

Larry and volunteers will make visits to divisions to assess their IT components, the Instructional Technology Group and the Network Rates/Services Review Committee will present their findings, and the Web Presence group will provide an update on their work. All of these will affect CATS and will be discussed at future meetings.
It was suggested that a network and telecommunications advisory committee be formed to help establish priorities and make recommendations for changes. This will be discussed at a future meeting.

III. Wireless Presentation – Tad Reynales

Tad provided the group with an overview of some possibilities for establishing a wireless infrastructure on campus. He will provide a live demonstration at a future meeting. The same presentation will be given to the Network Advisory Committee, who may submit a formal proposal for the Wireless Project to ITC in the fall.

IV. Other Committee Business

Unresolved issues from today's discussions - Actions needed?
New Business?

V. Next Meeting: Thursday, May 16, 2002, 10:00-12:00, Bay Tree Conf. Room A