Student Technology Fee Operational Guidelines AY 2019-2022
This document serves as the operational guidelines for the University and Associated Students to follow in administering the Student Technology Fee (or STF, or Fee) for the length of its term. Changes to these principles may be made at any time with the agreement of both the University and the Associated Students (AS) Executive Board.
Background
The mission of the Student Technology Fee is to provide Western students with adequate and innovative technology experiences by:
- Broadening/enhancing the quality of the academic experience,
- Providing additional student access to technology, and
- Increasing the integration of technology into the curriculum.
During fall quarter 2017, the Associated Students (AS) Executive Board appointed a committee to consider the amount and uses of a new Student Technology Fee (STF) recommendation to be voted upon by the student body in spring of 2018.
The committee recommended that the fee remain at $35.00 per quarter, with the funding reallocated to the following purposes:
- $15.00 for computer lab renewal and replacement
- $ 6.75 for the Student Technology Center
- $ 5.15 for wireless network renewal and replacement
- $ 4.35 for Student Technology Fee proposals
- $ 2.00 for the Digital Media Center (DMC)
- $ 1.75 for a print quota with 50 prints per quarter
Consistent with this recommendation, the AS Executive Board presented the following referendum to the students:
“Shall the students of Western Washington University recommend the renewal of the Student Technology Fee at a rate of $35.00 per quarter (not increasing or decreasing) for students with 6 credits or more and $17.50 per quarter for students with 1 to 5 credits? This proposal will be reevaluated and voted on again in 4 years. This fee will include:
- $15.00 for Computer Lab Renewal and Replacement
- $ 6.75 for the Student Technology Center
- $ 5.15 for Wireless Network Renewal and Replacement
- $ 4.35 for STF Proposal Fund
- $ 2.00 for Digital Media Center
- $ 1.75 for Print Quota”
The referendum passed.
Fee Administration
The Student Technology Fee is broadly administered through the Office of the Vice Provost for Information Technology/Chief Information Officer (VPIT/CIO), with accountability for use of the Fee to both the university President and the AS Executive Board.
The VPIT/CIO creates annual reports detailing the use of the Fee.
The Student Technology Fee (STF) Committee is a joint committee of the Associated Students (AS) and Information Technology Services. It reports to both the AS Executive Board and the VPIT/CIO.
Annually, the Committee serves in two key ways.
- The committee oversees the STF Tech Initiatives proposal process (12.43% Fee allocation) by:
- reviewing abstracts and inviting proposal submissions;
- reviewing resulting proposals, including conducting site visits with principal contacts; and
- recommending funding for the proposal allocation to the University President and AS Executive Board.
- The committee reviews any proposed changes to the Fee’s student-approved funding allocations, and makes final recommendation to the AS Executive Board for approval.
Student Technology Fee Committee Membership
The STF Committee is comprised as follows:
- Associated Students Senate pro tempore (Chair)
- 3 students at-large (appointed by Associated Students Board)
- Vice Provost for Information Technology/CIO, or Information Technology Services designee
- Faculty representative from the Academic Technology Committee
- Faculty Senate at-large representative [appointed by the University Planning and Resource Council (UPRC)]
Fee Revenue
Based on peak enrollment for Academic Year 2018, the estimated annual revenue from the Student Technology Fee could exceed $1.5 million.
|
Potential STF Revenue Based on Academic Year 2018 Main Campus, Peak Headcount |
|||
|
Term |
# Students |
Fee |
Total |
|
FALL 2017 |
|||
|
1-5 Credits |
342 |
$ 17.50 |
$ 5,985.00 |
|
6+ Credits |
14,515 |
$ 35.00 |
$ 508,025.00 |
|
WINTER 2018 |
|
|
|
|
1-5 Credits |
386 |
$ 17.50 |
$ 6,755.00 |
|
6+ Credits |
13,815 |
$ 35.00 |
$ 483,525.00 |
|
SPRING 2018 |
|
|
|
|
1-5 Credits |
458 |
$ 17.50 |
$ 8,015.00 |
|
6+ Credits |
13,000 |
$ 35.00 |
$ 455,000.00 |
|
SUMMER 2018 |
|
|
|
|
1-5 Credits |
1,273 |
$ 17.50 |
$ 22,277.50 |
|
6+ Credits |
1,854 |
$ 35.00 |
$ 64,890.00 |
|
TOTAL |
$ 1,554,472.50 |
Consistent with the spring 2018 AS referendum passage, the STF funds are allocated as follows, and the allocations are reviewed as shown.
- 42.86% (or $15 of the $35 Fee) to updating student computers labs on a four-year refresh cycle.
- The STF funds computer-lab computers that meet the following criteria:
- Computers that are dedicated to general-purpose computing
- Computers that support computer labs, such as those controlling printing or monitoring of computer lab-usage statistics
- Examples of computers not supported by STF lab replacement funding are computers that control other specialized equipment.
- The STF funds computer-lab computers that meet the following criteria:
- The level of STF lab-replacement funding is limited to the amount necessary to provide university-standard PC or MAC workstations, as defined on the ATUS website.
- Students must not be charged course or lab fees for the use of computers purchased with the Student Technology Fee. However, STF funding can be applied to computer labs where course/lab fees are used for the licensing of applications above and beyond Western’s enterprise software suite, or to support specialized hardware requirements that are beyond the university standard.
- The STF requires that all STF-funded labs run the LabStats software to monitor utilization of lab workstations. The STF covers the central licensing of LabStats.
- In AY 2019, Academic Technology & User Services (ATUS) is conducting a comprehensive computer lab survey. Pending thorough analysis of lab use, the labs funded by the STF may change after AY 2019. Any recommended changes in lab funding would require approval by both the STF Committee and the Associated Students Executive Board.
- If the number of computer labs is reduced, any excess funds for the replacement cycle are added to the Student Technology Fee Tech Initiatives portion of the STF fund, unless reallocated to another purpose by agreement of the AS Executive Board and the University.
- 19.29% (or $6.75 of the $35 Fee) to the Student Technology Center (STC).
- For the current fee cycle, this also includes website publishing services and loan-pool repair.
- 14.71% (or $5.15 of the $35 Fee) to Enterprise Infrastructure Services (part of Information Technology Services) for renewal and replacement of the wireless network.
- Each spring, Enterprise Infrastructure Services will present its plan for the following fiscal year to the STF Committee for review.
- Each spring, Enterprise Infrastructure Services will present its plan for the following fiscal year to the STF Committee for review.
- 12.43% (or $4.35 of the $35 Fee) to Tech Initiatives proposals.
- This portion of the fund is for vetted proposals from Western students, faculty and staff.
- This portion of the fund is for vetted proposals from Western students, faculty and staff.
- 5.71% (or $2.00 of the $35 Fee) for the Digital Media Center (DMC).
- 5.00% (or $1.75 of the $35 Fee) to the print quota system.
- This will provide each student with 50 prints per quarter.
Chart dollars based on approximately $1.55 million in fee revenue.
Fiscal Management
Each fiscal year a separate fund is created to capture and expend the STF fees collected for the related academic year. [This process began in FY 2010, when fees collected for the academic year (Fall Quarter 2009 through Summer Quarter 2010) were awarded during spring of 2010.]
Note that for purposes of the Student Technology Fee, an academic year includes fall quarter, winter quarter, spring quarter and the subsequent summer quarter.
The separate fund for each STF academic year remains open and active until all funds are spent. This can take several years. However, most activity occurs in the first two years.
- During Year One:
- The fee is collected from students.
- The fee is spent—per the approved allocations—on wireless upgrades, the Student Technology Center, the Digital Media Center, and the print quota.
- During Year Two:
- The fee is spent—per approved allocations—on computer lab upgrades and the Tech Initiative awards. Computer lab upgrades are accomplished during the summer when there are relatively fewer students on campus. Tech Initiative projects, which have been awarded by the STF Committee the previous spring, are also completed during the summer as much as possible.
- Note that because not all fees will have been collected during the STF Committee’s deliberations in the spring, a conservative estimate is used for the funds available for Tech Initiatives awards. This means that all available fees might not be awarded/spent during a particular academic year.
All Student Tech Fee expenditures include activity codes for accurate tracking of expenses against the allocations:
- STFLAB for computer lab renewal and replacements
- STFSTC for Student Tech Center – Student Wages/Consumables/Other
- STFLPR for Student Tech Center – Loan Pool Repair
- STFWEB for Student Tech Center – Website Publication Services
- STFWIR for wireless network renewal and replacement
- STFPxx for Student Technology Fee Tech Initiatives proposals
[where “xx” is the number of the proposal (e.g., 01, 02, 03)] - STFDMC for the Digital Medical Center
- STFQPT for the print quota
Should the Student Technology Fee end at some point, any remaining funds would be expended by joint agreement of the University and the Associated Students Board of Directors.
Accountability
Reporting
The VPIT/CIO maintains reports and documentation detailing the annual Student Technology Fee funds. These records include:
- A summary of the amount of fees collected during the fiscal year
- A list of computer labs that were renewed, including types of computers and cost for each
- A list of the wireless network expansion or renewal areas and expenses
- A report of the budget for the Student Technology Center
- A list of successful Tech Initiatives awarded by the Student Technology Fee (STF) Committee
- An estimate of any unspent funds, which are then available for another use.
(See also last bullet of "1. Computer Labs" under "Fee Revenue" above.)
(new in AY 2019) The STF Committee strives to make funding recommendations based on meaningful data. When reasonably possible, the STF Committee requires organizations to track usage of new equipment purchased through the Tech Initiatives/proposal allocation, and to report the resulting data to the STF Committee 1) on request, and 2) when submitting similar future proposals to the committee.
Representation
(new in AY 2020) On the STF Committee, the at-large faculty representative should be from a different college each year on a rotating schedule. The ATC faculty representative should be from a college different than the at-large representative’s college.
Conflict of Interest
(new in AY 2020) To avoid possible conflict of interest on the STF Committee, or its appearance, a faculty member will not vote when the item is an abstract or proposal from the faculty member’s academic department.
Students on the committee should vote regarding all abstracts and proposals, regardless of their focus of study.
Amendments
This document may be amended in two ways:
- by two-thirds (2/3) vote of the STF Committee with approval from the AS Executive Board and in consultation with the VPIT/CIO,
or
- by a majority vote of the AS Executive Board in consultation with the VPIT/CIO.