TECHNICAL PANEL
Nebraska Information Technology Commission
Tuesday, February 8, 2005, 9:00 a.m.
Varner Hall, 3835 Holdrege
Lincoln, Nebraska
APPROVED MINUTESMEMBERS PRESENT:
Mike Beach, Nebraska Educational Telecommunications Commission
Brenda Decker, Chief Information Officer, State of Nebraska
Steve Henderson, Department of Administrative Services, State of Nebraska
Christy Horn, University of Nebraska, Compliance Officer
Kirk Langer, Lincoln Public Schools
Walter Weir, University of Nebraska
CALL TO ORDER, ROLL CALL, AND MEETING NOTICE
Mr. Weir called the meeting to order at 9:05 a.m. The meeting notice was posted to the Nebraska Public Meeting Calendar and the NITC web sites on January 19, 2005 and that the meeting agenda was posted to the NITC web site on February 3, 2005. All members were present at the time of roll call.
PUBLIC COMMENTMr. Weir announced and congratulated Brenda Decker who was appointed as the new CIO for the State of Nebraska. Steve Schafer was acknowledged as the first CIO for the State of Nebraska and was thanked for his service.
APPROVAL OF JANUARY 11, 2005 MINUTESMr. Henderson moved to approve the January 11, 2005 minutes as presented. Mr. Beach seconded the motion. Roll call vote: Beach-Yes, Decker-Yes, Horn-Yes, Langer-Yes, Henderson-Yes, and Weir-Yes. Results: 6-Yes and 0-No. Motion was carried.
Standards and Guidelines - Groupware Architecture: Lotus Notes Standards for State Government Agencies - Recommendation to the NITC
This agenda item was tabled.
PROJECT REVIEWS - SECRETARY OF STATE RECORDS BOARD GRANT - ONLINE PROPERTY TAX PAYMENT SYSTEM
Ms. Decker moved that the Technical Panel, having reviewed the State Records Board grant application entitled "Online Property Tax Payment System" (PDF 295k) and based on the technical information provided, finds that:
- The project is technically feasible.
- The proposed technology is appropriate for the project.
- The technical elements can be accomplished within the proposed time frame and budget.
Ms. Horn seconded the motion. Roll call vote: Weir-Yes, Henderson-Yes, Horn-Yes, Langer-Yes, Decker-Yes, and Beach-Yes. Results: 6-Yes and 0-No. The motion was carried.
PROJECT REVIEWS - SECRETARY OF STATE RECORDS BOARD GRANT - KEARNEY COUNTY ENHANCED WEB PAGE
Mr. Beach moved that the Technical Panel, having reviewed the State Records Board grant application entitled "Kearney County Enhanced Web Page" (PDF k084) and based on the technical information provided, finds that:
- The project is technically feasible.
- The proposed technology is appropriate for the project. However, the Technical Panel recommends a closer examination of the use of existing hardware. We are concerned that as usage increases the existing systems and bandwidth might not be sufficient to keep up with demand.
- The technical elements can be accomplished within the proposed time frame and budget.
Ms. Horn seconded the motion. Roll call vote: Horn-Yes, Langer-Yes, Henderson-Yes, Weir-Yes, Beach-Yes, and Decker-Yes. Results: 6-Yes and 0-No. The motion was carried by majority vote.
PROJECT REVIEWS - SECRETARY OF STATE RECORDS BOARD GRANT - SSC ELECTRONIC FILING SYSTEM
Ms. Horn moved that the Technical Panel, having reviewed the State Records Board grant application entitled "SSC Electronic Filing System (South Sioux City)" (PDF 2MB) and based on the technical information provided, finds that:
- The project is technically feasible.
- The proposed technology is appropriate for the project. However, the Technical Panel recommends a closer examination of the use of existing hardware. We are concerned that as usage increases the existing systems and bandwidth might not be sufficient to keep up with demand.
- The technical elements can be accomplished within the proposed time frame and budget.
Mr. Henderson seconded the motion. Roll call vote: Langer-Yes, Horn-Yes, Decker-Yes, Beach-Yes, Weir-Yes, and Henderson-Yes. Results: 6-Yes and 0-No. The motion was carried by majority vote.
INFORMATIONAL ITEMS
Accessibility, Christy Horn. Accessibility will be important in distance education. At the April Technical Panel meeting, Ms. Horn will provide a presentation regarding website tools to assess accessibility. Ms. Horn will check the Network Nebraska web site for accessibility.
CAP, Brenda Decker. At last month’s meeting, there was a presentation from a scheduling software vendor. A contract has been signed for redundant Internet1 service – Level 3. The second access path out of Lincoln will be awarded soon. A request has been received from ESU 10 regarding costs for Network Nebraska. A meeting was held in North Platte regarding the benefits of Network Nebraska for Mid-Plains Community College. Network Nebraska is looking to expand into Tier II communities and will be looking at more expansion within next 60-90 days.
Security Work Group. No report today. Mike Carr, Security Officer, University of Nebraska, commented that an RFP has been developed to do a security audit.
Statewide Video Synchronous Work Group, Mike Beach. The Work Group has not met formally but has been involved in discussions of the white paper. Scheduling software options, tracking legislative bills and funding options are topics of focus for the work group.
WHITE PAPER DISCUSSION: “CONVERTING DISTANCE LEARNING NETWORKS TO A HIGH BANDWIDTH FLEXIBLE INFRASTRUCTURE” (PDF 371k)
Persons in attendance for the discussion (persons with * provided remarks):
Nigel Buss, North/Northeast Consortia*; Mike Carr, University of Nebraska; Mike Danahy, ESU 2*; Charles Doyle, SNDLC*; Wayne Fisher, NDE; Susan Forslund, ESU 3; Roger Hahn, Nebraska Information Network*; Gene Hand, Public Service Commission; Dennis Linster, Wayne State College*;
Don Mihulka, University of Nebraska; Scott Neff, Dark Fiber Solutions*; Mike Ough, ESU 2; Bill Phillips, ESU 3; Tom Rolfes, NITC*; Shirley Schall, SWDLC*; Al Schneider, ESU 5; Jayne Scofield, DAS-DOC; Deb Swanson and Travis Wagner, Qwest Communications; Michael Winkle, NET*; Diane Wolfe, ENDLC*; and Jeff Wooters, ESU-NOC*
Mr. Beach and Mr. Rolfes provided background information and a history of the white paper’s development. At a meeting held on November 5, 2004 in Kearney with consortia members, it was by consensus to put concerns and issues in a white paper. The paper is still in draft form. The white paper would be used as a communication tool to legislators and policy makers. It will be beneficial to use in conjunction with NDE’s legislative bills. After today’s discussions, next steps will need to be discussed and taken.
Individuals provided information on the progress, successes and shortfalls of distance education in their sector and/or area of the state. Some of the issues and areas of concern raised were:
- E-Rate - jeopardizing the benefits of e-rate filings;
- Shift of local and regional control to a state entity;
- State negotiation of costs;
- Consortium member districts will lose their control over which classes are offered and to whom;
- Diversity of the distance education enhancement task force regarding representation of K-12 districts;
- Confidentiality of transport;
- Quality of audio and video services;
- Lack of available competition for bidding process in some areas of the state;
- Bandwidth costs – paying for what is needed versus what is available;
- Scheduling priorities;
- Equipment costs and lifetime funding. It is a requirement to keep paperwork for seven years. This will increase administrative costs;
- In addition to the NITC, the Technical Panel and CAP, it was recommended to include the signatures of the stakeholders involved within the final draft of the white paper.
After discussion, it was agree to take the following next steps:
- An E-rate task force will be organized. Mr. Fisher will take the lead.
- Individuals are to provide “specific” changes to the document to Mr. Rolfes by February 18th so that changes can be made and the document can be reviewed by CAP (Collaborative Aggregation Partnership) and the Technical Panel prior to the NITC March 15th meeting.
- Marketing efforts. Individuals in attendance were asked to communicate these efforts to their sectors.
OTHER BUSINESS
There was no other business.
NEXT MEETING DATE/TIME AND ADJOURNMENT
The next meeting of the NITC Technical Panel will be held on Tuesday, March 8, 2004, 9:00 a.m. at Varner Hall, 3835 Holdrege, in Lincoln.
With no further business, Ms. Decker moved to adjourn the meeting. Mr. Henderson seconded the motion. All were in favor. Motion was carried by unanimous voice vote.
The meeting was adjourned at 11:38 a.m.
Meeting minutes were taken by Lori Lopez Urdiales and reviewed by Rick Becker and Tom Rolfes, Office of the NITC.
Meeting Minutes