Faculty/Staff Computer Upgrade Policy

This policy has been in effect in practice since 1997.

PROCESS
Each spring, Information Technology solicits all faculty and administrative department heads for computer requests for the coming year to be submitted around April 1 so summer scheduling can be completed. Academic department heads are asked to deal with requests for any staff within the department as well as help ensure that new faculty requests are dealt with. The Dean of Faculty asks all new faculty, in their contract letters with the College, to contact I.T. to discuss computer needs as soon as the contract is finalized.

Decisions about computer upgrades are made using a combination of factors:

1. The rationale of the requestor detailing what her current computer won’t accomplish that a new one would.
2. The known computer skills of the requestor (these may be gathered from personal experiences or by discussing the interactions of Help Desk staff with the individual).
3. The amount of time since the last upgrade. Generally, faculty computers are replaced after 3-5 years, staff computers after 3.5 to 5 years. No automated replacement of computer equipment is done, however. Thus, no one is “due” a new computer without satisfying items 1 and 2.
4. The date the request was submitted

About 60-70% of the computer replacement budget is expended between June 1 and September 1. Beginning the day after commencement, we start working on faculty computer replacements. Faculty have priority for summer replacements and generally we complete those requests before moving on to staff computers. Requests are handled in the same order they were received unless certain equipment hasn’t arrive on campus yet.

COMPUTER SELECTION:
It is our goal to buy as few different models of computers each year as possible so we have replacement equipment and repair knowledge to adequately deal with all the hardware. Exceptions are occasionally made and carefully considered. Normally, we match computer hardware to the user and do not give the user the option to select their own computer hardware. This saves in both purchasing power and repair costs.

We are currently standardized on Dell computers. We select a new standard model desktop every 6 months or so as the model year changes. We generally don’t select the newest chip as our standard, thus avoiding the 10-20% premium paid for this.

Regarding laptops, we purchase a single model in bulk, along with Crummer for their students, once each year by going through a bid process.

I.T. provides each full-time employee with a standard computer and printer. Other peripherals such as larger monitors, scanners, larger or non-standard printers, etc. must be covered by departmental funds.

NON-FULL-TIME FACULTY/STAFF OR STUDENT COMPUTERS:
Computer requests for either non-full-time employees or for student use are made to I.T. if used computers can fill the need. If not, these requests need to be made as part of the regular budget cycle to the appropriate department or division head. Shared computers are made available for adjuncts and visiting faculty at no charge where appropriate; all other used computers carry a fee of $150 to cover the software installed on them (most always a newer version than the equipment being replaced).

LAPTOP COMPUTER REQUESTS:
Because laptops cost almost double the cost of desktops with the same capabilities and are generally not expandable, laptops are normally not provided to staff. Faculty are provided with laptops when requested in order to be able to use them in the classroom. Laptops may be taken home and on faculty travel but their primary purpose is to provide office and classroom computing and Internet/e-mail capability at Rollins.

Staff who request laptops must:

1. demonstrate how the use of a laptop is job-related and not just a tool to do work at home since the College does not provide computer support at home.
2. either commit to a fourth year of use or to pay ones year’s cost of these machines because the lifespan of a laptop is at least a year shorter than a desktop

DISPOSAL OF COMPUTERS:
By College policy, I.T. cannot donate computers; we must make every effort to maximize the value of this equipment. An online computer surplus sale is offered from the Campus Only Access tab of FoxLink. Equipment is priced to match its expected length of service- for example, if a laptop should last 4 years and has been used for 3 years, we would generally charge ¼ of the original price for the equipment. Exceptions are made when features have been added, or when there is a large quantity of the same equipment. Desktops are usually priced substantially lower than laptops because of their initial price and their expected lifespan.

REQUESTING COMPUTER REPLACEMENTS:

Instructions for requesting computer replacements are available as follows:

Academic Departments (faculty and staff)

Administrative Departments

Today is Wendsday, June 13th.

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