See the two messages below. They are about the U's new Chief Information Officer (CIO). Even if you have nothing to do with the U at this time, you should consider that it is the major place around here where people learn about computing -- people you might hire, who might work with you, or who might end up hiring you someday. The importance of universities as training grounds that have a life-long influence on computing choices is not lost on the corporate software industry, and they have the money and interest to take advantage of the situation. I am very impressed with the new CIO's qualifications. What do you think? It seems to me that this is a good opportunity to try to persuade him to think more in terms of promoting Linux systems and free software on campus than have our previous CIOs. Another really important goal (related to Linux/FOSS) should be to promote computing systems that rely more on local staff and less on global corporations. Enhancement of computing freedom for our faculty, staff and students should be a priority. What happened to our shell accounts and web servers and so on? Were they really a huge security risk that our IT staff couldnt' handle, or was that just the excuse corporate lobbyists used to persuade university IT administrators to dump Linux/Apache in favor of corporate solutions? Can IT staff be persuaded to accept their new corporate overlords because of the promise of a reduced work load? And then can those same IT staff be layed off as a cost-saving measure now that their labor is not as badly needed and some guy in India can answer our phone calls on the cheap? Where will all of this be going? In my view, *now* would be a good time to do something. I am interested in hearing your views. I plan to write to the new CIO about my concerns and I hope some of you will do the same. Thanks. Best, Mike -------------------------------------------------------------------------- Date: Tue, 3 Jan 2012 17:00:00 From: President Kaler & Senior Vice President Jones <noreply at umn.edu> To: Michael B Miller <mbmiller at umn.edu> Subject: Vice President and Chief Information Officer Appointment Dear Members of the University Community: We are pleased to announce R. Scott Studham as the University of Minnesota's new vice president and chief information officer, pending approval by the Board of Regents in February. Scott has served as the chief information officer at the University of Tennessee since 2009, where he was responsible for the strategic direction and management of the university's information resources. View his vitae online (PDF): http://ecommunication.umn.edu/t/278784/28503712/94587/0/ As the new vice president and chief information officer, Scott brings his experience with enterprise application integration and enterprise resource planning implementations in complex, distributed organizations, and with implementation of technology services for multi-campus environments. He has been the project manager or chief architect for a top 10 supercomputer six times during the course of his career, and is an internationally recognized researcher in the area of high performance computing. Scott has published in CIO Magazine, Scientific Computing, and multiple IEEE peer reviewed journals, and has been called upon by the U.S. Congress to provide testimony on information security on multiple occasions. We believe Scott has an extraordinary vision for building on the existing strengths of the Office of Information Technology (OIT) to ensure the strategic and operational excellence of both academic and administrative information technology to support and advance all aspects of the University's mission. Scott will begin in his new position on February 13, 2012. We want to thank the vice president and chief information officer search committee, and especially co-chairs UM-Rochester Chancellor Stephen Lehmkuhle and Vice President for Human Resources Kathy Brown. We also want to thank Ann Hill Duin, associate vice president and associate chief information officer, for taking on this interim leadership role for the past six months and for continuing to serve until Scott arrives. Ann will return to her position as associate vice president and associate chief information officer at that time. Finally, we express our appreciation to everyone who took the time to participate in the interviews or on-campus forums, who watched them online, or who filled out the online evaluations of the finalists. Your input was invaluable. We look forward to working with Scott, OIT, and all of you to continue to position the University of Minnesota for excellence. Sincerely, Eric W. Kaler President Robert J. Jones Senior Vice President for System Academic Administration ---------------------------------------- This message was sent by the President of the University of Minnesota and the Senior Vice President for System Academic Administration to all University faculty, staff, and students. -------------------------------------------------------------------------- Date: Mon, 13 Feb 2012 15:09:02 From: Information Technology <oca at umn.edu> Reply-To: crag0006 at umn.edu To: Michael B Miller <mbmiller at umn.edu> Subject: Town Hall Meeting with VPCIO Scott Studham *** Town Hall Meeting with VPCIO Scott Studham *** Dear IT Colleagues, I am excited to join the team here at UMN. Over the next few months I hope to get to know each of you. During this first week I want to get your personal input and have an open forum discussing whatever thoughts or topics you may raise. It is important to me to do this right away so your input is included early on in my education about UMN IT. While I am too new to be able to provide detailed answers, I will commit to answering any question as honestly as possible, my team and I will follow up as needed. I hope the IT community will join me for a town hall meeting this Thursday, February 16 from 11:00 a.m. to Noon in Coffman Memorial Union (http://www1.umn.edu/twincities/maps/CMU/) Theater (room 110) where I plan to share a little about myself and my approach to leadership and then answer any questions you may have. If you want to send in your questions in advance please use this online form: http://www.surveymonkey.com/s/75F2NKY. Light refreshments will be served after the event. No R.S.V.P. is necessary. If you are unable to join us in person, please join us via LiveSteam: http://www.livestream.com/umntv. I look forward to being a part of the UMN IT team and to working with you all. Please forward this message to any IT colleagues I may have missed. Best regards, Scott Studham Vice President and Chief Information Officer University of Minnesota Google users: add this event to your calendar: http://z.umn.edu/6hq -------------------------------------------------- To ensure continued delivery, add oca at umn.edu to your safe senders list or address book. Visit our Web site: http://www.oit.umn.edu Visit the University of Minnesota: http://www.umn.edu Mass email privacy statement: http://www.privacy.umn.edu/mass-email/ This email was sent by Information Technology at the University of Minnesota, Suite 305, 2221 University Avenue S.E., Minneapolis, MN 55414. Copyright 2012 University of Minnesota. All rights reserved. The University of Minnesota is an equal opportunity educator and employer.