Nebraska Information Technology Commission: Meeting Minutes

EDUCATION COUNCIL

NEBRASKA INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY COMMISSION
Friday, September 17, 1999, 9:00 a.m.
Conference Room, Richard D. Winchell Student Center
1000 Galvin Road South
Bellevue University
Bellevue, Nebraska

APPROVED MINUTES

MEMBERS PRESENT
Mr. Keith Bartels Lincoln Public Schools	Dr. Mary Wise (alternate) Metro Community College	Mr. Jeff Johnson Centennial Public Schools
Dr. William Berndt UN Medical Center	Mr. Con Dietz (alternate) Creighton University	Mr. Art Tanderup Tekamah-Herman Public Schools
Mr. Wayne Bell (alternate) ESU 10	Dr. Jack Huck Southeast Community College	Mr. Alan Wibbels ESU 10
Mr. Larry Bock Blair Public Schools	Dr. Don King (alternate) Chadron State College	Dr. Woody Ziegler York Elementary School
Mr. Rick Koch (Non Voting Representative) Bellevue University	Dennis Linster (alternate) Wayne State College	Dr. Kent Hendrickson (alternate) UNL
Mr. David Wagaman (Non Voting Liaison) DASDept	Mr. Peter Ford (Non Voting Liaison) NET	Ms. Carna Pfiel (Non Voting Liaison) CCPE
MEMBERS ABSENT
Dr. Dean Bergman, NDE; Vacancy, K-12 Private Parochial Teacher

CALL TO ORDER: The meeting of the Education Council of the Nebraska Information Technology Commission was called to order at approximately 9:05 a.m. by co-chair Dr. Huck. Roll call was taken - twelve of sixteen members were present at time of roll call. A quorum was present in order to conduct official business. Dr. Huck announced that notice of the public meeting was given by electronic means. The meeting date, time and location was posted to the NITC web site on September 7, 1999.

APPROVAL OF AGENDA: Dr. Berndt asked that Item #10A NEB*SAT Historical Perspective be moved up on the agenda and be presented after Item #6 NITC Report. Dr. Wise moved and it was seconded by Mr. Bock to approve the agenda as amended. Roll Call Vote: Ziegler-Yes, Wibbels-Yes, Tanderup-Yes, Linster-Yes, Bell-Yes, King-Yes, Huck-Yes, Dietz-Yes, Wise-Yes, Bock-Yes, Berndt-Yes, Bartels-Yes. Motion carried.

APPROVAL OF MINUTES: Dr. Berndt moved and it was seconded by Mr. Tanderup to approve the August 19th minutes as presented. Roll Call Vote: Ziegler-Yes, Wibbels-Yes, Tanderup-Yes, Linster-Yes, Bell-Yes, King-Yes, Huck-Yes, Dietz-Yes, Wise-Yes, Bock-Yes, Berndt-Yes, Bartels-Yes. Motion carried.

MEMBERSHIP: Mr. Rolfes announced the addition of Dr. Sheila Stearns, President of Wayne State College, as the newest member of the Education Council. Dr. Stearns will be introduced at the October 15 meeting that will be hosted by Wayne State College. Mr. Rolfes also informed the Council that the membership previously held by Ms. Susan Fees, Omaha Catholic Schools, has not been filled by the diocese. Mr. Wibbels asked that Ms. Linda Engel from Nebraska City Public Schools be recognized as an alternate for Mr. Tanderup and Mr. Johnson.

PUBLIC COMMENT: There was no public comment.

NITC REPORT: Mr. Winkle briefed the Council members on the NITC meeting that was held August 30, 1999 in North Platte. The Statewide Technology Plan was the main order of business and is currently linked to the NITC website in its most current form. Mr. Winkle reported:

Section 1, which includes the NITC Goals, Council priorities, and the Customer Service Plan, was approved by the NITC and is now complete.
Section 2, which includes the Coordination of Advisory Groups and the Council charters, was approved. The only change includes expansion of the Technical Panel to include the State of Nebraska Chief Information Officer and the Executive Director of the Nebraska Information Technology Commission with a provision for official voting alternates.
Section 3, Technical Infrastructure, was approved. This includes the procedures for recommending standards and guidelines for technical infrastructure.
Section 4, Planning and Project Management, was discussed by the Commissioners and will be revised for the November NITC meeting.
Section 5, Implementation Plan, will be written to include the Council Action Plans and other related action plans.

Jeff Johnson arrived at the meeting at 9:21A.M. Dr. Kent Hendrickson and Ms. Carna Pfeil arrived at the meeting at 9:23A.M.

EDUCATIONAL TELECOMMUNICATIONS COMMITTEES:

Membership: Dr. Huck suggested that item #10B be discussed prior to Mr. Wagaman's presentation. Mr. Wibbels gave a summary of the Education Council report to the NITC which explained the NITC amendment to the Telecommunications Committees' memberships. The NITC added a voting Department of Education member to the working groups of Operations and Training Advisory in place of other nominated members and added two additional voting seats to the Policies, Procedures, and Planning Subcommittee which would include a Department of Education member for K-12 and another member from Higher Education.

Mr. Bock moved and it was seconded by Mr. Dietz to accept the NITC amendment to the Education Council Telecommunications Committees. Additional questions were asked by the members and explanations were provided by Mr. Winkle about the NITC action. Roll Call Vote: Ziegler-No, Wibbels-No, Tanderup-No, Linster-No, Bell-No, Hendrickson-No, King-No, Johnson-No, Huck-No, Dietz-No, Wise-No, Bock-Yes, Berndt-No, Bartels-No. Motion failed.

Mr. Tanderup moved and it was seconded by Dr. Hendrickson to remove the Department of Education and Coordinating Commission for PostSecondary Education as voting members from the Policies, Procedures and Planning subcommittee, returning the positions to non-voting liaison status, and keeping in accord with the NITC's earlier wishes that regulatory and oversight agencies maintain a non-voting role. Roll Call Vote: Ziegler-Yes, Wibbels-Yes, Tanderup-Yes, Linster-Yes, Bell-Yes, Hendrickson-Yes, King-Yes, Johnson-Yes, Huck-Yes, Dietz-Yes, Wise-Yes, Bock-Yes, Berndt-Yes, Bartels-Yes. Motion carried.

Mr. Winkle asked for volunteers from the Council to discuss this matter at greater length with interested members from the Commission. Mr. Tanderup and Dr. Berndt volunteered.

NEB*SAT Historical Perspective: Mr. David Wagaman, DAS Budget Division, was asked by Dr. Huck to provide a historical perspective on the NEB*SAT process prior to the Education Council launching its telecommunications committees. Mr. Wagaman outlined his presentation to include three points; the NEB*SAT System, the NEB*SAT Council, and NEB*SAT Funding.

The NEB*SAT System was organized in 1989 through a Governor Kay Orr initiative. The Nebraska launch into satellite technology was chosen because of the increasing expense of maintaining unreliable microwave technology, avoidance of Iowa's multimillion dollar terrestrial fiber investment, and the cost-effective opportunity to lease excess capacity on the transponder while delivering Nebraska public programming.

The NEB*SAT Council was organized in 1990 to translate goals into working policy. Among them, A) To expand access to educational opportunities, K-16, and to aid industry with training; B) Avoid duplication of hardware while prioritizing programming; C) Increase efficiency via the establishment of multiple program sites; D) Enhance interoperability through the development of technology and hardware standards; E) Put education and industry on the cutting edge, thereby enhancing economic development; F) Plan and coordinate the state's investment into infrastructure; and G) Collaborate with DAS to avoid unnecessary duplication within the state's many systems of communication.

NEB*SAT Funding resulted in a lease of a satellite transponder for $1.2 million per year for 10 years, provided uplinks and downlinks across the state, and allowed for NET to provide staff for engineering and scheduling of the network. The classroom equipment was appropriated to the participating schools whereas the Codec's and network switching equipment was purchased, inventoried, and maintained by NET. NEB*SAT Funding also included $130,000 per year for distance learning training grants. The vision of NEB*SAT was to meet the needs of K-16 learners and industry while A) maximizing access; B) Increasing efficiency; C) Avoiding duplication through statewide collaboration; and D) Resolving problems which arose through use of the network; and E) Continuing to develop cooperative education programs.

Mr. Wagaman identified recurring themes that might increase the probability of future success: A) Numeric prioritization of projects; B) Better assessment and accountability; C) Documentation of business case; and D) Improved efficiency. Several members commented on the wisdom and practicality of the early NEB*SAT organization. Dr. Reba Benschoter, UNMC, shared NEB*SAT Phase One through Phase Nine reports which detailed early planning and expenditures.

Committee Charges: Dr. Huck reviewed the duties of the three telecommunications committees and asked that staff make arrangements for each of the committees to meet at their earliest possible convenience. Mr. Rolfes reminded the Council that Operations and Policies, Procedures, and Planning must meet prior to October 15 so that the deficit technology requests may be prioritized and recommended to the NITC prior to their November 10 meeting. It was suggested that the responsibility, "Maintaining the Distance Learning Guide" be transferred from the Policies, Procedures, and Planning Subcommittee to the Training Advisory Working Group as it had been in the past.

2000-01 PROJECT PRIORITIZATION PROCESS: Michael Winkle reported to the Council that the Legislature and the Governor are expecting to see only deficit technology requests in the mid-biennium. The submission process would closely follow the steps used in September-October,1998 which included staff and technical panel reviews and then an Education Council prioritization.

PRESENTATION: VIDEO-ON-DEMAND PROJECT: Gwen Nugent, NETCHE, and Bill Ganzel, NET presented information on Phase 2A of a Video-On-Demand (VOD) Project which would allow four schools (Orchard, Sutherland, Columbus Sunrise Elementary, and a school to be determined) to access compressed video from an NET server via the World Wide Web. Phase 1 of this project had been appropriated and spent to purchase MPG 1 technology. Phase 2 of the project had been appropriated but never spent.

Dr. Berndt left the meeting at 10:53AM.

This proposal asks that authority be given the project directors to redirect $37,303 of Phase 2 money to prepare videos for delivery through RealMedia and QuickTime in addition to MPG1. If successful, the project directors would return to ask for redirection and spending authority of the remaining $146,000. Mr. Bock moved and it was seconded by Mr. Tanderup to approve redirection of Phase 2 VOD money to purchase the necessary hardware and software. Roll Call Vote: Ziegler-Yes, Wibbels-Yes, Tanderup-Yes, Linster-Yes, Bell-Yes, Hendrickson-Yes, King-Yes, Johnson-Yes, Huck-Yes, Dietz-Yes, Wise-Yes, Bock-Yes, Bartels-Yes. Motion carried.

PRESENTATION: NETC DEFICIT REQUEST TELECOMMUNICATIONS PROJECTS: Mr. Peter Ford, NET, gave a brief overview of the 1999-2001 projects(9) that would be withdrawn from mid-biennium consideration. He further previewed the four proposals that would be submitted to the Education Council and to the Technical Panel prior to October 1.

STATEWIDE TECHNOLOGY PLAN-Education Council Priorities/Barriers/Action Plans: Mr. Rolfes shared that only four Council members had responded via e-mail with modifications or comments about the 8-11-99 document. He recommended that the Council consider aligning its format with the Community and State Government Council prior to presenting it to the NITC. Dr. Huck suggested that the subcommittee responsible for the earlier document meet again to revise the Action Plans and Barriers for the October 15 meeting. Members agreed. Mr. Rolfes will coordinate the subcommittee meeting arrangements.

Mr. Larry Bock left the meeting at 11:53 AM.

OTHER: Ms. Anne Byers, Community I.T. Manager, asked for volunteers to join the Community Council in working on several joint education activities related to lifelong learning. Dr. Huck identified the relevance that this activity had with the Education Council Priorities and Action Plans and called for volunteers only from the subcommittee. Mr. Alan Wibbels and Dr. Richard Gilliland were volunteered.

NEXT MEETING: Friday, October 15, 1999 @ 9:00AM, Wayne State College was verified as the next meeting date and time with the possibility of a delayed start due to the deliberations of the Policies, Procedures, and Planning Committee. Mr. Rolfes agreed to coordinate this subcommittee meeting and inform the Council members of any necessary changes.

ADJOURNMENT: Dr. Huck adjourned the meeting at 12:09 PM.

Minutes taken by Tom Rolfes, Education Information Technology Manager, and reviewed by the staff of the Office of the CIO/NITC.

Meeting Minutes