Don Harris answers questions at an Information Services group meeting in September.

A Message from Don Harris

Our new CIO shares his first impressions of the University of Oregon

Don Harris
VP for Information Services and CIO
cio@uoregon.edu

It has only been a matter of a few short weeks but I am already forming some strong first impressions of the University of Oregon.

My impressions have come as a result of what I have nicknamed my "grand rounds" activity of visiting as many people as possible during my first 30 days on the job. During this time I have met with Computer Center staff, taken tours of labs and classrooms across the campus, talked with IT support personnel and Deans in almost every school, professional staff in the Library, and faculty who are using IT resources in interesting and innovative ways in teaching and research.

My first observation is a confirmation of something I sensed when I visited the campus in the spring, that the University of Oregon is a special place with a warm and welcoming community. My travels across campus these past few weeks have connected me with a number of talented individuals who work hard in support of the work of the university. In my conversations I have found an openness to discuss the issues as well as a desire to work together toward improving the IT services that we offer our faculty, students and staff. I have found these discussions refreshing and look forward to building partnerships in the coming days that will help us further the work of the university.

I have also been inspired these past few weeks by the possibilities for new academic initiatives being planned in several schools. One theme that certainly is present in these discussions is the expansion of the reach of the university within the state as well as throughout the world. Looking to offer new programs in Portland is exciting; thinking about expanding collaborative arrangements with universities around the world is exhilarating!

Of particular interest to me is the involvement the university has with the Association of Pacific Rim Universities. As we track possible academic collaborative arrangements in this association and others, we will need to identify IT components necessary to support these new programs.

Although many faculty and most students have been enjoying their summer break during my first few weeks on campus, I have had a chance to become aware of ways IT resources are being used in the education program. As we all are aware, students coming to the university today are very different in their orientation to technology than those just two or three years ago. This year's incoming freshmen are very comfortable using all manner of IT gadgets and programs, and some creative faculty are using this familiarity with technology to engage their students with course material in new and interesting ways. As I look toward this new academic year, I am excited about working with faculty to explore the options for utilizing IT resources in ways that, hopefully, will not only engage students, but also lead to deeper understanding of course content.

As the chief information officer for the university, I am charged with providing leadership in the use of information technology resources throughout the institution. In a decentralized environment like ours, I understand that open communication is vital to this role. Thus I plan on continuing my "grand rounds" activity in the coming weeks--listening to the needs and identifying the opportunities for our campus. During this time I also hope to begin to build strong relationships with key constituents that will lead to partnerships on major initiatives in the coming days.

This is an exciting time to be at the University of Oregon and I look forward to working with you in the days to come.