June July 2014 Insight Report

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P E P P E R D I N E I N F O R M A T I O N T E C H N O L O G Y

M O N T H L Y R E P O R T

NEW THIS ISSUELeadership...................................................................................................................2-5

Jonathan See named CIO of the Year by the Los Angeles Business Journal

University Business magazine honors Pepperdine University for being a

“ModelofEfficiency”

ITLeadershipsharetopfiveITFY15initiatives

IT staff members wish Jerry Hoover a happy retirement

New IT Staff Members...................................................................................................6

Charmon Swaringer & Sharon Letkeman

IT Updates......................................................................................................................7

BusinessIntelligencelaunchesUniversityAnalyticsfor

Pepperdine Leadership

Service Updates...........................................................................................................8

Pepperdine’sEndpointProtectionservicedistributesSophosAntivirus

Information Security Corner.......................................................................................9 Mayphishingresultsreleased-ALWAYScheckthewebaddressbefore

submitting your password

Technology & Learning...............................................................................................10 Anothersuccessfulsummerfacultyprofessionaldevelopmentsession

Benchmarks & Accountibility....................................................................................11

Information TechnologyPepperdine Help Desk

Available 24/7(310)506-HELPor(866)767-8623

IT Websitecommunity.pepperdine.edu/it

http://community.pepperdine.edu/it

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INSIGHT | JUNE & JULY | 2014

J U N E & J U L Y 2 0 1 4L E A D E R S H I P

Jonathan See Named CIO of the Year by the Los Angeles Business Journal

Jonathan See, Pepperdine’s Chief Information Officer (CIO), was recognized as CIO of the

Year by the Los Angeles Business Journal, along with 53 other from various industries includ-

ing health care, finance, and academia, for his great work in aligning information technol-

ogy initiatives seamlessly with the business of Pepperdine. He was nominated by his peers

and was selected by a committee that took notice of his expansion of the Technology and

Learning group who assist Pepperdine faculty enhance learning with technology.

“It is a deep honor to be recognized for my work alongside 53 fellow CIOs across various

industries in the Los Angeles region,” said Jonathan See. “It is also a very exciting time to be

a CIO, especially in higher education. To have the opportunity to introduce and integrate

technology within teaching and learning at a great institution like Pepperdine and produce

great value for our students is truly exciting. I can not do what I do today without a great IT

team and the support and collaboration I receive from my Pepperdine colleagues.”

P E P P E R D I N E I N F O R M A T I O N T E C H N O L O G Y

M O N T H L Y R E P O R T

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University Business Magazine Honors Pepperdine University for Being a “Model of Efficiency”

Pepperdine University is one of nine colleges and

universities nationwide being honored by University

Business magazine in its summer 2014 “Models of Effi-

ciency” national recognition program. Sponsored by

Higher One, a company that provides financial ser-

vices and data analytics to colleges across the U.S.,

the Models of Efficiency program recognizes innova-

tive approaches for streamlining higher education

operations through technology and/or business pro-

cess improvements.

Pepperdine was recognized for its use of Adobe

EchoSign a web-based program that collects digital signatures for documents and contracts.

Last August, the IT division used EchoSign to collect employee signatures for the yearly Code of

Ethics form. In the past, the process involved emailing the form to all 80+ IT staff members, who

were instructed to print, wet-sign, and deliver (in person or via intra-campus mail) the form back

to IT Administration. This process often took 2-3 weeks before all signatures had been collected.

In 2013, all employee signatures were submitted in a single day.

“EchoSign has helped Pepperdine cut costs and improve productivity, giving faculty, and staff

more time to work on activities that directly benefit students,” commented Jonathan See, CIO.

In addition to Pepperdine University, summer 2014 Models of Efficiency honorees included: Mad-

ison College (Wis.); Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University (Fla.): Fairfield University (Conn.); West-

ern Michigan University; Illinois Institute of Technology; Drexel University (Pa.); Houston Community

College (Texas); and The University of North Carolina at Greensboro.

To learn more about the Models of Efficiency recognition program, please visit www.university-

business.com/moe.

L E A D E R S H I P

http://www.universitybusiness.com/moe

http://www.universitybusiness.com/moe

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L E A D E R S H I P

IT Leadership Share Top Five IT FY15 Initiatives

After reviewing the 2014 TechQual feedback from Pepperdine faculty, staff, and students, IT Leader-

ship Council (LC) members have planned out the major FY15 projects for the division. The LC mem-

bers appreciate the community’s participation and look forward to implementing the new initiatives.

The IT division will tackle 20 plus projects for the new fiscal year. See below for the top five initiatives.

- Add faculty photos in Sakai for better collaboration with students

This project will add Pepperdine official ID photos for all faculty into Courses (powered by Sakai). This

feature is helpful to establishing a sense of connection between learners and teachers, especially

with hybrid or online courses.

- Make Gmail more compatible with Outlook mail for better faculty/student collaboration

This project will allow Pepperdine’s Google Apps environment to sync with Microsoft Outlook calen-

dars. This will allow faculty members to schedule a meeting or set office hours that can be seen by

students in the Google environment.

- Improve WiFi in highly-populated student areas

This project will remediate locations with WiFi problems by replacing the existing technology with new

access points in high-density student areas. IT staff will also conduct a wireless redesign for buildings

like RAC/AC and partial redesigns in locations with coverage/interference problems.

- Launch eSign, an easy-to-use electronic signature processes

eSign allows Pepperdine users to securely send, digitally sign, and approve forms from department to

department. This application utilizes three applications: Adobe’s EchoSign for collecting digital sig-

natures, Pepperdine’s Nolij application for storing documents, and Pepperdine Large Attachments

Server Accellion for securely sending electronically signed documents.

- Host Peoplesoft in the cloud for speedier upgrades and less Peoplesoft portal downtime

The PeopleSoft Cloud Hosting project will securely host PeopleSoft services in the Oracle cloud, which

will provide speedier updates, less maintenance downtime, and cost savings to University.

To learn more about these or other IT projects, please contact IT Communications at

[email protected].

mailto:techcomm%40pepperdine.edu?subject=

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IT Staff Members Wish Jerry Hoover a Happy Retirement

On June 30, 2014, IT staff wished Jerry Hoover, director of Client Services a

happy retirement. Jerry began his career here at Pepperdine back in 1992

as development systems supervisor in the Pepperdine Advancement depart-

ment. Back then he was responsible for running long reports detailing alumni

giving information. Jerry can fondly tell you that technology was much differ-

ent back then and those reports took an exceptionally long time.

Prior to Pepperdine, Jerry spent 18 years as the chief information officer at

Franklin and Marshall College (F&M), a pre-med, pre-law four-year private col-

lege in Lancaster, Pennsylvania.

During his time with IT, Jerry was responsible for overseeing the Seaver College

Tech Liaisons, the Audio-visual technology team, the Help Desk, Anytime Support, the Canon copier per-

sonnel, and IT staff at all of the graduate campuses of Pepperdine University. These groups consistently

receive high praises from those that they serve.

“Jerry Hoover is perhaps the most impressive man I have ever known. His integrity is impeccable. He worked

harder than anyone I have ever met, never made mistakes or missed deadlines, and always treated peo-

ple fairly and honestly. If you are a Pepperdine student, professor, or staff member, then you have benefit-

ed from Jerry’s diligence,” commented Gerry Flynn, senior director of IT Administration and Client Services.

“On the rare occasion that someone would report dissatisfaction with our services, Jerry would respond in

person trying to ameliorate the situation and to amend processes if need be.”

After being at Pepperdine for more than 22 years, Jerry said he is most proud of is the POM program for

the client services.

“The Concepts of Proactivity, Ownership, and Measurement (POM) are the three key ingredients to suc-

cessful projects, tasks, and services for the IT division,” commented Jerry. “These concepts are the basic

foundation of all the initiatives done and yet to be done by the Continuous Service Improvement (CSI)

Pepperdine IT core team and associates. CSI should be everyone’s desire each and every day they come

to work at Pepperdine.”

To continue his long legacy of delivering phenomenal customer service to the Pepperdine community,

Jerry hopes to see more and more IT personnel master some of the 41 people skills he has documented

during his time in IT. He strongly believes these soft skill competencies will always be useful for every IT em-

ployee, no matter what role they play at work or at home.

L E A D E R S H I P

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Charmon Romelle Swaringer Joins WLA Graduate Campus Team

L E A D E R S H I P

Charmon Romelle Swaringer will serve as client technologies ana-

lyst at the West Los Angeles Graduate Campus. Charmon will assist

technical support with various hardware and classroom technol-

ogy issues as well as consult with faculty, staff, and students on

Pepperdine’s learning management system, Courses (powered by

Sakai).

“Charmon brings a professional perspective, a fresh enthusiasm

and a passion for new technologies,” commented Jose Juan Her-

nandez, manager of Graduate Campus Tech Support. “We are

very thankful to have her as a colleague and are looking forward

to her continued contributions to the department.”

Charmon came from the University of Pennsylvania after receiving her masters with a concen-

tration in policy and practice. She is currently pursuing her doctorate in educational leadership

at Pepperdine. Charmon is passionate about teaching business leaders new technologies to

optimize their workplace structure. In her free time she enjoys spending time with her family and

friends.

Sharon Letkeman joins the Enterprise Information Systems (EIS)

team as a senior business analyst for PeopleSoft Campus Solutions,

specializing in the areas of financial aid and student financials.

Sharon comes to Pepperdine with 20 years of experience on fi-

nancial aid and recruitment systems, both in the areas of devel-

opment and business analysis. Her extensive history in financial aid

will be a tremendous asset to the PeopleSoft team and to the Uni-

versity.

“Financial aid is one of the most complex, demanding areas of the PeopleSoft system – and at

the University in general,” commented Lisa Welch, lead business analyst, PeopleSoft Campus

Solutions. “It has been exceedingly difficult in the past to find applicants with relevant experience

for this position, so when I saw Sharon’s resume I jumped at the opportunity. We are so fortunate

to have found someone with her level of expertise and she is already proving to be an asset to

the team.”

Please join IT in welcoming Charmon and Sharon to the Pepperdine Community.

Sharon Letkeman Joins the EIS Team

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I T U P D A T E S

Business Intelligence Launches University Analytics for Pepperdine Leadership

On June 3, 2014, Pepperdine’s Business Intelligence (BI) department

launched University Analytics, an online dashboard and reporting tool,

which allows University executive leadership an easily accessible view of

Pepperdine data (e.g. enrollment, admissions, and financial aid) in order to

support better decision making.

Currently, University Analytics allows the deans and provost the ability to

view interactive reports on Pepperdine admissions; providing over 60 ways

to drill down into Pepperdine data e.g., ethnicity, gender, and home loca-

tion.

The data is directly pulled from the PeopleSoft student administration sys-

tem. The BI group, Novita Rogers, Henry Lai, Tom Layman, and Ory de la

Rosa and Server Engineering’s Brian Aasen and Ken Noone worked togeth-

er to get this robust application up and running in a very short time.

The next two phases of this application will include incorporating Pepper-

dine records and enrollment data and financial aid data respectively. To

learn more about University Analytics, please contact IT Communications at

[email protected].

mailto:techcomm%40pepperdine.edu?subject=

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IT will soon be will deploying the new Endpoint Protection service for

all Pepperdine-owned computers. This new service will monitor mal-

ware activity and take corrective measures to minimize malware ac-

tion and data loss. On July 14, 2014, the Device Management Service

began installing the Sophos antivirus client on Pepperdine-owned

Windows computers and removing the old antivirus, Trend Offices-

can. Installation on Macintosh computers will follow thereafter. Suc-

cessful installation will be marked by Sophos shield icon (pictured to

the left) on your computer.

You may be prompted to reboot your computer to complete the installation process.

Please be aware of the following pop-up messages or windows. These messages/win-

dows should disappear on their own. For more information, please visit:

http://devicemanagement.pepperdine.edu/.

Pepperdine’s Endpoint Protection Service Distributes Sophos Antivirus

S E R V I C E U P D A T E S

http://devicemanagement.pepperdine.edu/

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The Information Security Office released Pepperdine’s monthly phishing test results for May. These tests

are like any other fire drill or earthquake drill and are made to help the community to STOP and THINK

“What do I do when I receive an unexpected email asking for information?” Remember the two skills!

Two anti-phishing skills at http://phishing.pepperdine.edu are:

1. If an unexpected message seems suspicious, delete it; if you can’t decide, contact the sender.

2. Never submit your password before ensuring that the web address begins with “https” and ends the

pepperdine.edu.

As you can see in the charts below, 1 out of 3 students fell victim to the fake phishing scam. While,

nearly 8 out of 9 faculty and staff avoided being phished. However, people in the red and blue slices

are still not looking at the web address and submitting their passwords.

“This means - if it was a real phishing message - their access to University data and resources is open to

criminals who copy the graphics from our login websites,” commented Dr. Kim Cary, Chief Information

Security Officer. “You wouldn’t let yourself become a victim by not looking before crossing the street on

foot or changing lanes in your car. Don’t become a victim of cybercriminals! ALWAYS check the web

Students

May Phishing Results Released - ALWAYS Check the Web Address Before Submitting Your Password.

I N FO RMA T I ON S E C U R I T Y

Staff

http://phishing.pepperdine.edu

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T E C H N O L O G Y & L E A R N I N G

Another Successful Summer Faculty Professional Development Session Completed

The Technology and Learning team and

faculty mentor Dr. Stella Erbes from Seaver

College completed another successful

summer Faculty Professional Development

Program where 16 faculty and staff mem-

bers came together to learn ways to

enhance their teachings with technology.

Faculty participant Dr. Chris Heard from

Seaver College said, “I learned more than I expected to learn! It was like summer camp for ped-

agogy and technology.”

Pedagogical topics ranged from how the brain works to teaching methods that engage stu-

dents, such as how game-like learning can motivate learners, and how better usage of graphics

in a PowerPoint can make presentations more memorable. In addition, various teaching technol-

ogies such as web conferencing, advanced tools in Courses (powered by Sakai), social media

such as Twitter, Google Apps, and Polling Everywhere were demonstrated to engage students

and measure learning.

Faculty Participants:

Dennis Lowe - Graduate School Education and Psychology

Timothy Dong - Seaver College

Chris Heard - Seaver College

Chris Stivers - Seaver College

Jennifer Smith - Seaver College

Lynn Newman - Graziadio School of Business and Management

Barry Fike - Seaver College

Ann Ching - School of Law

To learn more about Technology and Learning’s other teaching initiatives, please visit:

http://community.pepperdine.edu/techlearn/.

http://community.pepperdine.edu/techlearn/

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Documents

June July 2014 Insight Report