Approved by the Equipment and Network Committee 2003 Sep 29.
Charter: The purpose of the Equipment and Network Committee is to act as an advisory council to the Chair and faculty of the Department of Computer Science on matters concerning network administration, computer/network security and the hardware and software needs of the department (and methods of satisfying said needs). The committee will meet to discuss changes to, or the development of, department policies regarding the design, use, development and security of the Computer Science network and other topics as directed by the Chair. The authority and decision making ability of this committee is derived from the Chair of the Department.
Organization: The committee will be comprised of members of the faculty and staff of the Department of Computer Science. The Chair of the Department will appoint members to the committee and assign a Chair. The Network Administrator will have ex officio membership in this committee. Members of this committee should have a rudimentary knowledge of computer and systems administration as well as computer operations. Committee members will solicit and gather issues for discussion from faculty, staff and students and call meetings on an "as-needed" basis. Minutes will be kept and recommendations made to the Chair of the Department in writing. All proposed policies shall be published to the Computer Science Faculty for consideration and comment. Minority reports may be attached to committee proposals by any member of the committee.
Member Responsibilities:
Committee Chair: The Department Chair will appoint The Chair of the Committee. The Committee chair shall call meetings, assign individuals to sub-committees, and establish procedures and guidelines for the assessment of individual topics assigned to the subcommittees.
Committee Members: Each person assigned as a member of the committee shall participate in meetings called by the Chair of the Committee. It is the responsibility of each member to make recommendations to the committee on future equipment/software needs, policy changes, new regulations from the University, state, and federal authorities, and keep abreast of current technology advances. Each committee member shall have voting rights on items of debate during committee meetings. Each committee member shall be afforded an equal opportunity to discuss matters during regular committee meetings. A majority vote of all members of the committee is required on all actions recommended for adoption by the department, except that 2/3 supermajority of all members of the committee is required to modify this Organization and Charter document.
Policy Generation: In order to foster respect for, and compliance with, the policies generated by this committee, the following procedural guidelines will be followed:
The committee will maintain a well publicized method via which members of the department may make requests and recommendations regarding new policies or modifications to existing policies.
Prior to the formal submission of proposed policies to the Chair and/or faculty for consideration, the committee will publish to the faculty, staff and students, in a regular and well publicized manner, a draft proposal or proposals. The committee shall then allow a minimum of 10 working days for consideration and comment. Thereafter, a further meeting shall be held to discuss the concerns of the Computer Science community and, if possible, a final vote taken. Any modification made to the proposal will require an additional 10 working day period of consideration and comment.
Coincident with the submission (in writing) of formal proposals (and any minority reports) to the Chair for consideration, the formal proposal shall be published to the faculty, staff and students for consideration and comment.
All policies generated by this committee shall be published in the format and manner set forth by the departmental Bylaws or, if not specified by the Bylaws, in a manner determined by the Chair with the assistance of this committee.
Other Committee Duties and Responsibilities: Apart from addressing concerns of the users of the Department’s network and computer systems, the committee shall also have routine responsibilities as described below:
Five Year Plan: Each year, the committee will meet within the first 30 days of the fall term and review and modify the Department of Computer Science Computer Equipment and Network five-year plan. This plan shall be a comprehensive guideline to the Department Chair and Network Administrator for planning infrastructure and logistical support needed for equipment, software, and communication equipment for the subsequent five years. Each year, at the prescribed time, the plan will be reviewed and modified to fit changing requirements, resources, and advances in technology.
Department Security Policy: The committee shall be responsible for initially drafting and presenting to the faculty for vote a comprehensive policy on computer and network security that complies with federal, state and local law, applicable university polices, and departmental requirements. It will thereafter be responsible for researching, drafting and presenting any needed modifications to said policy. The policy will address issues affecting general computer and network usage within the department and exceptions to those rules, if any.