RU Home
DoIT Web Site
Technology Support
IT Policies & Procedures
DoIT News Archives

Division of Information Technology
P.O. Box 6888
Radford, VA 24142
Phone: 540-831-5173
Fax: (540) 831-6217
Email: cio@radford.edu

Division of Information Technology (DoIT)
Radford University

Banner Admissions Module Implementation Successfully Achieved

Radford University's Banner Implementation Teams successfully achieved another implementation milestone for the Banner system in August with the introduction of Banner Admissions. In conjunction with the office of Undergraduate Admissions and the college of Graduate and Professional Studies admissions staff, DoIT defined the processes, forms, reports, codes and rules that drive Banner Admissions and transitioned from the legacy systems. The process began in September 2008 and the successful "Go Live" occurred on Aug. 7.

The launch of the Admissions Banner module is part of Project RUDI (Radford University's Database Initiative), a multi-year project which began in January 2007 and is designed to review, replace and enhance the university's administrative information systems. These core systems include undergraduate and graduate admissions, financial aid, registration and records, student housing, advancement and fundraising, financials, budget and human resources. Together, these systems provide the business processing, data retrieval, reporting and self-service functions critical to providing essential services to faculty, staff, students, prospective students, alumni and the entire university community.

“Those who have contributed to the successful launch of Banner Admissions deserve a big 'Congratulations,' " said Randa McDonald, project director. “To accomplish a successful implementation and keep their offices going during the transition was a major achievement by the staff of the Admissions Office and the College of Graduate and Professional Studies.” McDonald said the work was accomplished through the combined efforts of the staff of the Admissions Office and the College of Graduate and Professional Studies: Amy Jarich, Rebecca Conner, Carrie Callahan, Brian Quesenberry, Minnie Carper, Opal Merchant, Becky Alls; the technical team: the Enterprise Systems staff – John Ford, Don Duncan, Paul Lusk, Jim Graham, Debbie Johnson, Gregg Shadel, Jackie McNabb, Jeff Brewster, T.J. Tamagni; Data Base Administrators: Aaron Weeks and Ron Rojewski; the RUDI Steering Committee and the Executive Committee.

The Banner Admissions team sought out the common process flows, worked to make them more efficient and overcame inherent applicant processing differences between the undergraduate and graduate application processes. The teams, committees and individuals dedicated to implementation were able to achieve additional efficiencies by automating time-consuming manual processes, such as the online application process. With Banner, the application load is electronic and automated to load on demand using the applications collected from CollegeNET. Previously, this process was a manual data entry process that has now been replaced with an automated process. Functionality will also be introduced this fall that will allow applicants the ability to view and track receipt of their admissions materials via the MyRU Portal.

The successful implementation has resulted in notable new functionalities:
• electronic acceptance of and loading of test scores from College Board and other sources;
• effectively tracking and communication with future prospective applicants with the online recruiting module for Undergraduate Admissions;
• scanning and capture of documents via Xtender, and linkage to individual applicant records in Banner for immediate access and review.

Brad Tilley Joins DoIT as Information Security Officer

DoIT welcomes Brad Tilley, who joined the division as Information Security Officer on Aug. 17. With nine years of experience in general IT systems administration and two and a half in IT security, Tilley brings valuable expertise to DoIT, including knowledge of U.S. and Code of Virginia law, an understanding of information security and privacy issues and broad systems programming and networking experience.

Tilley comes to RU from Virginia Tech, where he was an IT security analyst. He holds a bachelor’s degree in corporate communications from Virginia Tech, where he graduated Phi Beta Kappa. He also holds the SANS GIAC Certified Forensics Analyst (GCFA) and STAR Payment Card Industry (PCI) certifications.

Security Awareness Training Required

To provide a secure information technology environment and ensure users fulfill their responsibilities to protect systems and data, the Commonwealth of Virginia requires users to complete annual IT security awareness training. To satisfy this requirement, all University employees will be required to complete security awareness training by December 31, 2009, a requirement documented in the IT Security Awareness Training Policy available under the “IT Policies & Procedures” link on the CIO web site.

DoIT has made available an online tool called Managed Ongoing Awareness Tools (MOAT) which allows faculty and staff to access this required training at their convenience. MOAT provides security awareness training based on Virginia Information Technologies Agency (VITA) standards and guidelines. All RU faculty and staff will be contacted by email within the next two weeks with additional details and instructions on accessing this system so the training requirement may be completed.

Customizing MyRU Enriches Portal Experience

The MyRU portal provides users with a wealth of information and resources. By customizing it, users can enhance the functionality of their MyRU portal. News feeds from The Roanoke Times, Washington Post, ESPN and many others can be added, for example. By adding commonly used web pages to the Bookmarks channel of MyRU, users can access their bookmarks from any computer by logging into the MyRU portal. The Bookmarks channel is located in the bottom right of the main Welcome tab and it can be added to any page.

To view a demo on using bookmarks, go to Using Bookmarks and then click the “Play” button in the center of the screen. (Note: This demo does not include audio.)

Customizing the “MyStuff" tab will provide users with a tab that can be uniquely tailored to his or her preferences. Users can pull channels from any of the MyRU tabs and place them on the MyStuff tab and then add news and information channels that aren’t displayed by default to create their own home page. For example, the MyStuff tab can be configured so that it features their individual RU Express and leave balances, news feeds from RU News, The Roanoke Times, ESPN, the Tartan, plus local weather.

Go to Customizing the MyRU page and click on the “Play” button in the center of the screen to view a demo. (Note: This demo does not include audio.) For additional help in customizing MyRU, contact the TAC at 831-7500.

Technology Assistance Center Plans Service Survey

In order to provide the best service possible to RU, the Technology Assistance Center (TAC) will be distributing a short, seven-question survey to those requesting its services. The survey is automatically generated using the DoIT’s Service Desk Express problem management software. Our sampling rate is currently set for 80% of all resolved tickets and an individual will not be sent a survey more than once within a 30 day period. User feedback is important and will help DoIT and TAC meet the continually changing IT service needs of the RU community.

Technology Assistance Center Now Located in Heth Hall

The TAC has moved to the 1st floor of the newly-renovated Heth Hall. Members of the RU community are encouraged to stop by for assistance Monday through Friday from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. From the lawn entrance to Heth Hall, the TAC is located to the right of the main lobby past the office of Financial Aid. Telephone assistance for classroom issues is offered from 7 a.m. to 9 p.m. at 831-7500.

Ask IT Provides Additional Layer of Tech Service and Assistance

Reporting a computer issue is now just a mouse click away. DoIT has launched a new service called Ask IT that uses the problem management software Service Desk Express. RU faculty and staff computer users can create tickets, check the status of existing tickets, and review the latest IT alerts. Ask IT also provides a built-in knowledge search that can meet the assistance needs for many of RU’s windows-based software packages. To use AskIT, log in to MyRU, click the “Employee” tab and Ask IT will be found at the bottom of the “Quick Links” channel.

How to Access Outlook Email Without the VPN

With the latest upgrades to the campus email system, users can now access their email via Outlook 2003 and Outlook 2007 from off campus without using the VPN. To do so, a slight configuration change must be made to users’ Outlook configurations by adding the appropriate HTTP proxy settings. Upon making this change, email between your computer and the mail server will utilize an encrypted HTTPS connection to the mail front end server when accessing from the user’s off-campus computer.

For detailed instructions on configuring Outlook to utilize the proxy server, click on the document titled “Check RU Email in Outlook Without the VPN” available at http://www.radford.edu/itrdocs.

Software/Hardware Assistance for
Computer Labs and Multimedia Classrooms

DoIT encourages faculty who are utilizing multimedia classrooms and/or computer labs during this semester to confirm that appropriate software and hardware is installed. If additional software must be installed in either the computer labs or multimedia classrooms, please contact Academic Technologies at acadcomp@radford.edu or 831-7522 and allow 48-72 hours from initial request for installation.

For training on the multimedia podiums, please call 831-7500 to schedule an individual training session. Young Hall now features the newest generation of the multimedia components and they are freshly-installed, so these individual training opportunities will be valuable.

Printing Costs and Procedures Announced for
General Purpose and Departmental Computer Labs

Effective August 31, printing costs for campus users will increase, due to economic pressures and the desire to keep the RU campus green by minimizing paper consumption. Black and white printing has increased from $.01 to $.05 and color printing has increased from $.10 to $.50. All lab printers will now default to print front and back to further conserve paper. Duplex printing will be charged at $.07 per page for black and white and $.52 per page for color. It should be noted that these rates are in line with what other universities are charging.

For large printing jobs, faculty and staff are encouraged to use their department resources or use RU’s full-service printing department for production needs. RU Printing Services can be contacted at 831-6267.

All RU faculty, staff and students are given a free $5.00 printing allocation each fall semester. To increase individual allocations, users can visit the Walker Technology Center or the front desk at McConnell Library. Be advised that the previous practice of users providing reams of paper as a way to increase their individual allocation will no longer be accepted. Please see the Printing FAQ for specific details.

Course Aliases Update

Course aliases are created so that faculty can email their classes without having to guess who is officially enrolled. Whenever a student registers or drops a class, the course alias is automatically updated. The course aliases for fall have been created and will be updated weekly for the remainder of the semester.

The format for course aliases is: “Ru-CourseNumber-SectionNumber-Semester@radford.edu,” where Semester is either: fall, spring, sum1, sum2, sum3 or may (note: they are not case-sensitive.) Below are examples of course aliases:

• ru-engl440-02-fall@radford.edu
• RU-MATH101-12-SUM3@RADFORD.EDU

Computer Lab Reservation Information

As technology becomes more integrated into the classroom, the demand for computer labs is increasing. The Walker Technology Center has three computer labs that can be made available for occasional instruction. The labs may be utilized for testing, software demonstrations, group collaboration and also to give students in-class computer time for projects.

To reserve the labs, log onto myRU > Employee Tab > and click on Lab Reservations in the Quick Link box to the right of the screen.

As the labs fill up fast, faculty are encouraged to book them at the beginning of the semester. To see if times are available and reserve labs, please call Walker Technology Center at 831-7522 for assistance. For a complete listing of all general purpose and departmental computers labs, please visit DoIT’s Computer Lab website.

Duplex Printing Set for All Network Printers

Effective September 14, all university printers managed through the DoIT printer server and that are capable of duplex printing will be set to print in duplex by default. Currently the default setting is single side printing. The purpose for this default setting is to conserve resources by minimizing paper consumpton. The default duplex can be manually changed for specific print jobs if needed. For instructions on how to change this, please contact the TAC at 831-7500.