In October 2004 Lehigh University received the highest institutional award bestowed by EDUCAUSE, the premier professional organization for managing information technology in higher education. For Systemic Progress in Teaching and Learning, the award recognized the implementation of the Lehigh Lab stating that “the effective integration of proven techniques, the commitment to organize support structures around these techniques, the clear evidence of long-term institutional resource commitment, and the incorporation of assessment focused on learning outcomes, make the Lehigh Lab a model worthy of emulation and deserving of the …Award.” This external benchmark affirmed both the direction and accomplishments of the first Strategic Plan. All of the LTS units pulled together to win this award. The sustained commitment of university leaders and our many campus partners were also significant. We believe, however, that the true “winners” are the students, faculty, and staff for whose benefit all these services exist.
Lehigh Lab. The Lehigh Lab is organized around the concept that the entire university is a laboratory for learning. Specific components of this vision that have come to fruition include the Technology Resource Learning Center, Digital Media Studio, the Faculty Fellow rotating position, the initiation of an information literacy program, and the increase in instructional design and faculty development support for online and traditional courses. The expansion of course management software functionality and the addition of other new tools have further enhanced the breadth of support for the Lehigh community. The 2020 Program allowed LTS to upgrade classroom technology dramatically so that 85% of Lehigh’s classrooms are now technology enabled.
Linderman Library. Accomplishments from the first Strategic Plan are obvious around us, and some of them are also works in progress. Most visibly, the historic Linderman Library is in the midst of its transformation into a humanities showplace and an intellectual center for the campus. Soon its seminar rooms, state-of-the-art technology, enhanced navigation and climate control, café commons, group study rooms, and its general and special collections will be ready for the use of present and future generations.
Campus Portal & Digital Library. The virtual gateway to Lehigh University, the campus portal, is now in full operation with customized versions for First Year students, Admitted students, and (soon) Alumni. The MyLibrary portal component, providing a discipline-based platform for Lehigh’s burgeoning electronic information resources, combines with a growing array of Digital Library Projects to provide convenient, personalized integrated access to print and electronic resources.
Computing. Computing continues to be a core strength of Library and Technology Services with regular life cycle replacement of machines and printers in campus computing sites. In 2002 there were no flat panel displays in our public sites and now the first generation of flat panel displays are being replaced. From high performance computing clusters, workstations and grid computing to support for handheld devices, LTS has addressed the varied and increasingly complex computing needs of the campus. The campus wireless network was both expanded and secured – another step toward “anytime, anywhere” access.
Infrastructure. None of these programs and resources would be deliverable and sustainable without our significantly improved network infrastructure, courtesy in large part of the 2020 Program. The secure and reliable technology environment that Lehigh enjoys has resulted from the replacement of all academic and residential network switches and of the entire cable plant in several research buildings. Firewalls at multiple levels and redundant equipment and services have been installed. In the Distance Education area we have moved to mpeg 4 satellite technology. Another level of functionality and future reliability has been achieved through the currency of our enterprise systems, life cycle replacement funding for these systems, and the implementation of the new business continuity plan.
These are a few highlights from the first Plan; there have been just too many accomplishments to list all of them in this space. Although it’s gratifying to look back and see growth, the most significant achievement is that these initiatives provide a solid foundation for an exciting thrust into the future to serve the Lehigh University community to an even greater degree. Finally, we gratefully acknowledge the vision and leadership of Gregory Farrington, Lehigh University President from 1998 to 2006, during the time the first Strategic Plan was formulated and implemented.
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