Printing
Paying for printing used to be a big a hassle. We're trying to make that as simple as possible. By including printing in the tech fee, we're making it so the vast majority of students don't have to think about the funds in their print account. Only 4% of students who print will have to put extra money into their account by going to the Student Help Desk in Lamoni or the Grabske Library in Independence. Once every session (Fall, Spring and Summer) that you have classes, 10 days before your earliest class starts we'll top off your print account so it has $25 in it. This is covers more than double the printing of the average student while still allowing you to print as much as you're willing to pay for.
Projects
The tech fee creates a fund purely focused on technology projects that benefit students. Also, the money is spent on the campus it comes from so both Lamoni and Independence students get what they paid in. Only students based on the Lamoni and Independence campuses pay this part of the fee. This covers a wide range of things from Wi-Fi, to projectors in classrooms, to adding new security cameras.
Permanent Academic Records
You may need a transcript tomorrow or 80 years from now. Graceland has to store your records forever. Part of the technology fee goes to the student information systems that do this. Yes, you're currently paying for us to store Frederick Madison Smith's academic records and some student in the future will pay to store yours. Because we pay one vendor a fee based on our current enrollment, we found we needed funding directly tied to each student.
Labs & Software
The tech fee pays for lab computers on both campuses. This includes the computer hardware, the network connection and the software like Microsoft Office and Adobe Creative Cloud. As a part of this all students get a Microsoft Office 365 account. All lab computers are replaced on a four-year lifecycle.
Brightspace, Office 365 and Adobe
Graceland uses Brightspace as an online learning platform. Online and face-to-face classes use Brightspace for online resources. Microsoft Office 365 is given to all students and Adobe Creative Cloud is available to students in the labs.
Security
The tech fee provides and maintains the security cameras in student areas like the residence halls, Newcom Center and student parking lots. Other funds pay for the cameras in less student-centered areas.