New Home, Expanded Hours for Tech Center

© Jessica Hagy. Used with author's permission.

Issue 44, Fall 2009

by John Farquhar

Beginning fall quarter, Western students will enjoy the new location, equipment, and expanded hours of the Student Technology Center as the result of several intersecting projects.

As part of a renovation project moving ATUS service centers and offices from Miller Hall to Haggard Hall, the Tech Center has moved from Haggard 121 to the second floor of Haggard. Because of its co-location with the Library’s Reference Desk, students will find convenience in the increased technology services in proximity to library services with which they are already familiar. Specialized equipment provided by the Tech Center, including color printers, photo printers and video editing equipment will become more accessible too, since we can now remain open during all open library hours.

In addition to moving to the new location, the Tech Center is pleased that students voted to renew our source of funding through an increase in the Student Technology Fee. Approved by 88% of WWU student voters, the new technology fee will allow us to add eight weekend hours to our existing 60 hours of operation.

Finally, the STC is the recipient of an additional grant from the Student Tech Fee Committee that provided funding to upgrade the teaching lab in Haggard Hall 245 to dual-boot iMac computers. These computers are configured to allow users to choose either the Mac or Windows operation system.

There are several exciting possibilities for a full dual-boot teaching lab. In this space, we can now teach a hands-on class of up to 33 students any of our supported Mac programs like iMovie or Final Cut Express. We can also teach a class of 33 students using a classic Windows program like SPSS. Or, we can teach one of our popular Photoshop classes and allow the individual to choose the operating system with which they feel most comfortable.

As always, we encourage faculty to let us know how our facility or staff can assist in developing their students’ information literacy and supporting their academic technology needs. Visit us on the web (www.wwu.edu/techcenter) or on the second floor of Haggard near the Library Circulation and Reference Desks. You may also call us at 650-4300 to speak to our front desk, or call John Farquhar at 650-6538 for discussions of future needs and collaborations.

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