News

On June 10, 2020 over 100 Berkeley staff assembled virtually, as campus IT teams received usability feedback on their projects.

Dear Students,

We are pleased to announce the launch of the Student Technology Equity Program (STEP). Aimed to assist students with demonstrated need, this program provides laptops, mobile hotspots, drawing tablets, and noise-canceling headphones that may be required for them to fully engage in remote instruction in Fall 2020. 

Apply for STEP

If you are an undergraduate or graduate student in need of hardware or internet access:

If necessity is the mother of invention, more than a few winners of the campus’s first-ever Berkeley Changemaker Technology Innovation Grants found inspiration in the teaching and learning challenges posed by the COVID-19 pandemic.

Dear campus community,

We are pleased to announce the appointment of Jenn Stringer as UC Berkeley’s Associate Vice Chancellor for IT and Chief Information Officer, effective June 29, 2020. Jenn’s candidacy was the unanimous selection and recommendation of a CIO Search committee leading an internal search to replace current CIO Larry Conrad, who is retiring at the end of the month. 

Dear campus community:

It is with mixed emotions that we announce the retirement of Larry Conrad, Associate Vice Chancellor of Information Technology and Chief Information Officer, at the end of June. Larry joined UC Berkeley as CIO in 2013 after a distinguished career as CIO at the University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, and, previously, as the CIO at Florida State University. A nationally recognized leader in higher education IT, Larry held several leadership roles in EDUCAUSE and Internet2.

Technology alone can't protect our computers and information. Following best practices is an excellent way to protect yourself, your family, and the UC Berkeley community. The Information Security Office has put together a Ransomware Toolkit to help keep you safe from ransomware attacks. These items are intended to be quick and easy to use for anyone on campus. 

Colleagues,

Dear OCIO/IST friends,

Over 400 people from around the UC system joined the UC IT Town Hall on May 5, 2020. If you missed it, you can watch the town hall now.

Interim UC CIO Mark Cianca opens the session with some interesting stats about Slack usage. 

The featured speaker was Michael Dennin, professor of Physics and Astronomy at UC Irvine, who discusses how UCI is leveraging data systems and data analytics in the student success space.

Colleagues,

We are in the final days for getting Sautter Award Applications and your UC Tech webinar proposals submitted.

One IT Colleagues,

Colleagues,

As you may know, the campus has created an IT Recovery Committee as part of the larger Cabinet-led planning effort for the fall semester that was announced by the Chancellor in early May

To the One IT community,

Please join me in congratulating two colleagues who were awarded the Excellence in Management (EIM) award last week! 

Like many colleges and universities across the country, the demand for technical teams to expand existing services or build new services in support of the campus community during COVID-19 has been at a steady hum.

Sheltered in place in West Covina, in her family’s tiny two-bedroom apartment, UC Berkeley junior Cindy Mendez Moreno tries to muster motivation to study in the dark, while her parents and three sisters sleep. Only then is it quiet, with space to work at the kitchen table.

Tommy Gardner, a philosophy major with unreliable Wi-Fi at his Berkeley apartment, found himself losing network connection, and his sanity, midway through several online quizzes. He also missed homework deadlines when his outdated computer glitched.

Join the May 5, 2020, UC IT Town Hall with Michael Dennin, professor of Physics and Astronomy at UC Irvine. He will discuss how UCI is leveraging data systems and data analytics in the space of student success. His particular focus is on use of Learning Management System data, especially in a world with more remote teaching and a greater use of technology in general.

Dear Colleagues, 

The Berkeley Information Security Office (ISO) invites comments on a proposed new Roles and Responsibilities Policy. This policy consolidates information security-related roles and responsibilities from UC Berkeley and UC’s systemwide Electronic Information Security Policy, IS-3. It applies to all individuals who use or access UC Berkeley institutional information or IT resources.

Interested in learning more about accessibility? Now is a great time to dive in, W3C has extended their online course Introduction to Web Accessibility through May 30, 2020

Colleagues,

Due to the postponement of our in-person UC Tech Conference event in August 2020 (to August 9-11, 2021 - save the date), we are currently working to coordinate a series of three UC Tech 2020 virtual webinars:

Dear One IT Colleagues,