Innovation Support

Brian Finnegan, Executive Director

In cooperation with the other OIIT teams, Innovation Support plans, designs, develops, and tests initiatives that are in the forefront of new technology. Innovation Support collaborates with USG institutions, the University System Office, and other OIIT teams to investigate new technologies, design solutions, and develop applications for both hosted and institutional services. Innovation Support is responsible for developing necessary modifications to applications that are used across the System for instruction, administration, and reporting. These enterprise applications must work together seamlessly—especially when one or more are upgraded or new programs added. A few illustrations follow:

• Baseline Banner, the student and financial aid information system, is modified to handle requirements of Georgia’s HOPE scholarship program, to address federal and state reporting needs and regulatory requirements, and to add functionality to meet the needs of institutions.

• PeopleSoft is modified to ensure proper communication between academic and financial systems, to address federal and state financial and human resource requirements, and to add functionality to meet the needs of institutions.

• Data marts in USG Data Warehouse have been developed and are being updated to produce information used for decision-making and regulatory reporting.

• Innovation Support is working with external partners, USG campuses, and other OIIT teams to build the Georgia ONmyLINE Registration System, the gateway to online and distance education offerings in the University System of Georgia.

Innovation Support collaborates with USG institutions, as well as other OIIT Operations and Services teams, to develop reliable, workable modifications and integration.

• GeorgiaBEST (Georgia Banner Enhanced Student Team) uses baseline modules and System-wide enhancements to Banner, the student and financial aid information system that handles data about admissions, registration, fee payment, transfers, financial aid and HOPE, accounts receivable, transcripts, housing, and other functions. For more information, see the Banner Production Support web site.

• GeorgiaFIRST (Georgia Financial, Information and Reporting Systems for Tomorrow) uses the PeopleSoft Financial Management System, model software for accounting, purchasing, payments to vendors, and capital asset management. For more information, see the GeorgiaFIRST web site.

• GeorgiaFIRST uses the PeopleSoft Human Resource Management solution to handle and track employee data such as faculty and staff information, payroll, and benefits. For more information, see the GeorgiaFIRST web site.

• The Georgia ONmyLINE registration system is the gateway to distance education offerings from all of the colleges and universities in the USG.

• The USG Data Warehouse is the data repository and enterprise reporting system that provides information essential for campuses and the USG for policy decisions and accountability using the following data marts: Academic, Pre-school through College (P-16), Educator Preparation, Financials, and Human Resources/Faculty. For more information, see the USG123 web site.

• GeorgiaVIEW (Vista Implementation Enterprise-Wide) uses the Blackboard Learning System-Vista (BbLS-V) Enterprise License as the USG’s learning management system for both web-based and face-to-face courses. For more information, see the GeorgiaVIEW web site.

• The Student System Consolidation project consolidates the Banner technical environment into one secure, reliable, central location to host selected USG institutions by centralizing database administration and System support functions. For more information, see the Student System Consolidation section of the Banner Production Support web site.

• Reports developed for Board of Regents’ units, State agencies, and the Legislature provide information essential for making decisions. Examples include reports on student enrollment trends, supply and demand for Georgia’s work force, financial aid patterns, Georgia Student Finance Commission requests, and others.

A major outcome is that administrative data, services, and technology tools are accessible to constituents, including students, faculty, administrators, legislators, parents, alumni, and regulatory agencies.