NDSU’s Technology Fee Advisory Committee has awarded funds to four campus technology projects. This spring, the committee sought proposals for information technology projects designed to improve the quality of education and campus life for students at NDSU.
With approval from Marc Wallman, vice president for information technology, the following projects received funds:
• Digital Projected Scenery and Effects
Project director: Mark Engler, theatre arts
Video projectors, computers and software acquired through this project will be used to incorporate digital design elements into theatre arts productions and curriculum. Projected video has become an important design element in live entertainment and requires specialized equipment and software to create a projected set or other digital design. The project will provide NDSU students who wish to pursue a career in the entertainment industry, the opportunity to train with this technology and be better prepared to find jobs or continue their education in a graduate program.
• Expanding the Reach and Function of Distance Education
Project director: Stefanie Meyer, public health
Distance education is an increasingly important option for the Master of Public Health program and other graduate and undergraduate programs at NDSU. The pedagogical style for many instructors in professional and graduate programs features discussion more than traditional lectures, so a system that supports this teaching style for both in-person and distance learning, is an innovative solution for multiple program needs. The technology made possible through this project will increase the flexibility of uses of A. Glenn Hill Center classrooms.
• Visual Aid Equipment for the Focus of Meat Production and Safety Training for Beef, Pork and Lamb at the NDSU Meat Lab, Farm to Table Initiative
Project director: Eric Berg, animal sciences meat lab
The project will provide up-to-date equipment and software to animal science students in meat science courses, as is required by industry for employment. Students will be able to complete coursework and understanding of meat science and food science on campus while in class, instead of having to travel to learn them, which is standard capability at our peer institutions.
• Wonders of Weather Observation Form
Project director: Adnan Akyuz, North Dakota state climatologist
This will be the first and only social cloud collection project in the United States. NDSU students, working with computer science faculty and Information Technology Division staff, will create a secure web server for the program to reside. Students in the new Wonders of Weather general education course will conduct hands-on experimentation, observations and discussion of day-to-day weather and record their observations on the new dedicated website. The archive will be open to the public, with the potential of participation by community schools and individuals.
Questions regarding the Technology Fee Advisory Committee may be directed to chair Rian Nostrum at rian.nostum@ndsu.edu or 231-7890, or to the Office of the Vice President for Information Technology at 231-5646.
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