IT guiding principles for UC Berkeley

Adopted by the e-Berkeley Steering Committee, June 2004.

Thanks to everyone who participated in the development of these principles through committee work and web input!

The University of California, Berkeley is complex in both its organization and its technology, requiring that competing information technology (IT) needs be carefully evaluated to ensure the optimal use of limited resources. Information technology decisions makers must therefore balance:

innovation vs. stability/reliability
standardization vs. autonomy/experimentation
accessibility vs. security/privacy
consensus vs. efficiency in decision making
centralized vs. distributed services
proprietary vs. open source

In this context, the following principles emerge:

• SUPPORT FOR TEACHING AND RESEARCH: We will provide a responsive IT environment that enriches and enhances learning and creativity.
• INTEGRATION AND INCLUSION: Information technology will help UC Berkeley fulfill its teaching, research, and public service mission—to create, apply, and share knowledge with the citizens of California and the world—by allowing members of the campus community to communicate, collaborate, learn, and disseminate, within and across disciplines and campus borders.
• SECURITY AND RELIABILITY: Increasingly, the intellectual property and resources of our students, faculty, and staff are in electronic form, requiring that the campus IT infrastructure be stable, safe, and secure.
• UBIQUITY: We will ensure essential connectivity for the entire campus, with basic standards of support for all departments and classrooms.
• EASE OF USE: Campus applications, systems, communications devices, and classroom technologies will be integrated and easy to use.
• ALIGNMENT: Campus priorities will drive UC Berkeley's IT strategies and investments. Information technology requirements differ among fields, and UC Berkeley will strive to allocate resources appropriately and accountably, anticipating and adopting IT innovations and standards where beneficial to the campus as a whole.
• INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY EXCELLENCE: Teaching, research, and public service require information technology that meets the highest standards of excellence. We will evaluate the quality of IT with the same rigor as the rest of our university programs.

Printable version of this material: IT Guiding Principles for UC Berkeley, June 23, 2004 [PDF]