Policy on USM Institutional IT Policies,
Including Functional Compatibility with the State IT Plan

University System of Maryland, Board of Regents

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BACKGROUND:

Senate Bill 682 specifically outlines the requirements of the University System of Maryland Board of Regents Information Technology Plan concerning information technology policies and standards:

THE BOARD OF REGENTS SHALL DEVELOP AN INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY PLAN FOR THE UNIVERSITY SYSTEM OF MARYLAND THAT INCLUDES INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY POLICIES AND STANDARDS, INCLUDING POLICIES AND STANDARDS FOR INFORMATION MANAGEMENT AND TELECOMMUNICATION SYSTEMS, THAT ARE FUNCTIONALLY COMPATIBLE WITH THE STATE INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY PLAN ESTABLISHED UNDER TITLE 3, SUBTITLE 4 OF THE STATE FINANCE AND PROCUREMENT ARTICLE.

The University System of Maryland is specifically exempted from Title 3, Subtitle 4 of the state finance and procurement article. This exemption implies that the USM may develop its own unique policies and standards for effective management of information technology, provided that they are functionally compatible with those in the State Information Technology Master Plan (ITMP).

Unlike a typical state agency, where the majority of internal users of IT services are employees, in the USM the majority of internal users are students. Increasingly, the computers connected to our networks and accessing our services are not USM-owned computers, but personally owned computers. Furthermore, a typical state agency will focus IT policies around agency business processes. In the USM, the focus is also on our mission activities of teaching, learning, and research. These activities naturally require a flexible approach to policies and standards, and many of the activities inherently push the envelope of current technology.

PURPOSE:

The purpose of this policy is to establish a framework, as required in Senate Bill 682, for creating institutional IT policies, standards, guidelines, and operating practices that address the requirements of policies articulated in the State IT Master Plan, where applicable. Equally critical, this policy fosters the development of additional IT policies, standards, and guidelines indigenous to the higher education administration and mission activities of teaching, learning, and research.

GUIDELINES:

USM institutions shall develop, document, and maintain information technology policies, standards, guidelines, or operating practices that are functionally compatible with the statees ITMP policies and standards, where applicable. The state has identified policies and standards in the areas of information technology management, hardware and software standards, networking, systems development, web services, and security.

The USM IT Coordinating Council (ITCC) will provide copies of the current applicable state IT policies and standards as well as checklists and guidelines to assist the USM institutions in developing functionally compatible policies, standards, guidelines, or operating practices. The USM CIO in consultation with the ITCC will also propose and develop additional IT policies and standards as necessary for consideration of the Board of Regents Technology Committee and subsequently to the full Board of Regents.

STATEWIDE PROCESS:

As outlined in the Statewide Policy Implementation Guideline, state IT policies will be reviewed semi-annually and forwarded to the State IT Advisory Committee (ITAC) for review and comment. Official announcements of state policy publications and changes will be made via ITAC.

USM ACCOUNTABILITY:

Each USM institution will establish procedures for annually reviewing and certifying the functional compatibility of its IT policies, standards, guidelines, and operating practices with the State IT Master Plan. These certifications will be filed with the USM CIO and reviewed by the USM ITCC.

TIME-LINE:

The certifications by the USM institutions will be filed starting August 15, 2002 and every August 15^th thereafter.

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