Collaboration Across Divisions

In many institutions, academic technology has moved from IT to academics or the library. Often there are prioritization conflicts and competing demands for infrastructure dollars, configuration requirements, and the needs of faculty in the classroom. In these struggles, IT is usually the “enforcer,” seeming more resistant to make changes or be innovative. At the same time, IT thought leaders exhort us to learn the business of our organization to be relevant in these changing times, and the business of the academy is teaching and learning. Over the past three years, Trinity College and Wesleyan University have begun re-evaluating how academic technology services are provided within IT, and how they align with faculty needs. In this session, we will talk about crossing functional lines, developing both informal and formal institutional partnerships, and aligning resources from different areas in the institution to provide the best possible outcomes.