Students and Case Studies

This ECAR case study complements the 2008 ECAR study by Philip J. Goldstein, Leading the IT Workforce in Higher Education. Developing the IT Workforce at the University of South Australia describes both the commitment of the University of South Australia (UniSA) to its workforce and the information technology organization’s successful effort to create and foster a high-performing IT team. Since its formation in 1991, UniSA faced exceptionally stiff challenges in transforming itself from a technical institute and college of advanced education into a comprehensive research-oriented university. This evolution brought with it workforce misalignments in both the academic and professional staff. With its longstanding and explicit commitment to equity and a great deal of foresight, UniSA’s leaders have established the institution’s reputation as an employer committed to the well-being of academic and professional staff even in the face of major competition in the turbulent financial environment and the local employment market.

Citation for this work: Dodds, Ted, and Richard N. Katz. “Developing the IT Workforce at the University of South Australia” (Case Study 2). Boulder, CO: EDUCAUSE Center for Applied Research, 2008, available from http://www.educause.edu/ecar.

This case study, written by three Net-generation college students, describes how exposure to digital literacy early in life has influenced the college experiences and lives of tomorrow's digital cognoscenti. As a companion to the ECAR Study of Students and Information Technology, 2005: Convenience, Connection, Control, and Learning, this case study illustrates to those who supply technology to our institutions' students what will pass muster with some of our more digitally precocious students.

This case study examines the rationale and design of the Computing Center at Cox Hall at Emory University and the ways in which the Center supports innovative teaching and collaborative learning. Using creative and flexible designs and technologies, the facility supports multiple learning environments, teaching styles, and collaboration activities.