ITIN Collaboration and Group Know-How
The IT Innovation Network (ITIN) community – 150+ schools across 39 states – continues to exemplify the power of collaboration and shared problem-solving, as demonstrated by two recent asynchronous email discussions. In both cases, NITIC staff forwarded a question posed by a single ITIN faculty member to the entire community of over 600 faculty members and asked for replies. Frequently those who reply make an offer to connect off-line for further discussions.
One question asked about the modality of converting a program to seven-week terms. How successful is that format? This question received 26 replies from programs that have already successfully moved to shorter terms, several offering extensive details on the benefits and challenges of that approach.
The second question focused on the end of VMware education licenses and the possible unavailability of a suitable solution for virtual labs. In particular, there was a worry that a Proxmox solution would not be ready in time for the Fall 2025 semester. This question received 20 replies, many of them sharing the worry of the original poster. Clearly, many programs are facing this same stressful situation, so much so, in fact, that NITC was asked to prepare a summary sheet of those 20 responses so everyone could benefit. That document is available for free to ITIN members.
Most recently, NITIC utilized the group know-how to gather examples of AI academic integrity policies currently in use at colleges and departments across the nation. The goal with this email discussion is to use the information collected to create a template of suggested best practices that NITIC can disseminate through its website. This resource will serve as guidance for those interested in developing or refining their own policies. The policies and guidelines shared from this discussion will be compiled and shared with ITIN schools and faculty to drive the conversation of AI policies.
If you’re an IT faculty member interested in connecting with a group of like-minded IT educators, please consider joining the ITIN community. There’s no better way of posing a problem or question to 600+ faculty across the country to take advantage of that wealth of experience and know-how. It’s free to join ITIN. Learn more here.