Institution-wide Information technology planning at Weber State University (WSU) began in the early 1990's with recognition of the major technology-based changes in society then underway. It was becoming increasingly clear that information technology was becoming essential to the fulfillment of WSU’s mission, including educating students in the present and preparing them to effectively use information technology throughout their lives.

In February, 1994, EDUTECH International was hired to produce an assessment of computing at WSU. One EDUTECH recommendation was that the university’s senior administration should form a policy committee to serve as both instigator and enabler of strategic planning efforts for information technology. It was clear from the scope and potential impact of the planning effort that it must encompass all information technology activities. An IT Policy Committee was formed, and the effort commenced to develop a framework and process for planning for information technology.

The campus-wide planning effort involved approximately fifty people, including faculty, student and staff representatives. The initial framework attempted to separate WSU’s existing systems from the kinds of information processes the university community dealt with. Six processes were identified:

1. Communication — including all communication activities across campus as well as printing services,
2. Student Records Services — all student-related processes such as registration and advising,
3. Financial and Accounting — all processes related to managing and investing money,
4. Teaching and Learning — academic and non-academic instruction, learning and research,
5. Facilities Management — processes related to scheduling, maintaining, and allocating university space resources,
6. Human Resources — employee-related processes including hiring, tracking, paying, and evaluating.

At the end of the initial "plan-to-plan" effort, a document that described the stakeholders, institutional priorities, and future vision of IT as it related to the six areas above was developed and published. Concurrently, a campus-wide strategic planning effort was underway, which resulted in the development of a strategic vision for the entire university. (For a summary of the information technology-related issues identified in this process, see the University WSU Strategic Vision for Information Technology linked at left.)

EDUTECH also recommended several major changes in WSU’s information technology infrastructure. First, campus-wide computing committees were restructured. The major existing committees were eliminated, except for the Faculty Senate’s Academic Resources and Computing Committee (ARCC); a high-level Information Technology Policy Committee was formed (ITPC); and an Administrative Information Technology Committee (AITC), counterpart to the ARCC, was formed. Second, the university’s older VAX equipment was replaced with newer DEC processors: a 7610 designated for academic computing, a 7620 for administrative computing. Two DEC Alpha processors were added: a 2100 for administrative systems development, and a 2100 for an Internet/communications server. Last, the position of Chief Information Officer (CIO) was created and a national search was conducted. The new CIO was hired and joined WSU in October, 1994.

The new CIO restructured a number of technology-related departments and formed the Information Technology Division (IT Division). He also began to work with representatives of the various committees (including representatives of the University Strategic Planning Task Force) to complete the "plan to plan" work begun earlier and to develop an operational information technology planning framework.

The initial planning framework envisioned academic and administrative information technology plans produced by the ARCC , AITC and the new IT Division. These plans were to be developed in two phases, first strategic and second operational.  This philosophy was reflected in subsequent planning cycles.  The 1994-95 written plan was limited to a report of how the university's Higher Education Technology Initiative (HETI) funds from the Utah System of Higher Education (USHE) were used.