Whether a current or prospective student,faculty or staff member or alumnus, getting information about the University of Tennessee at Martin will be easier with the implementation of a new program funded by a five-year, $1 million grant.

The grant was one of five awarded in the nation and the only one awarded to an educational institution in Tennessee.

Known as the CampusEAI Oracle Portal Grant Program, the initiative will provide an integrated, one-stop-shop for the campus community. A wide range of information will be consolidated on a single Web platform projecting a comprehensive view of UT Martin.

The bottom line is persons wanting specific information about the university will just be a couple of clicks away when they visit the UT Martin Web site. The current plan is to have the first phase of the system operational by the end of 2004. It will be an ongoing project that will change as needs change.

"The Oracle grant is another good example of UT Martin staff going the extra mile to secure the necessary funding to keep us on the cutting edge of technology," said UT Martin Chancellor Nick Dunagan. "Even though state funding is static or declining, our faculty and staff are continually looking for opportunities to improve our service to students, alumni and the communities we serve. I'm very proud of their efforts."

The Division of Academic Affairs sponsored the initiative.

"Most of the top universities have this type of system," said Dr. Thomas Rakes, UT Martin vice chancellor for academic affairs. "This portal is a preview of what is to come. It allows us to leap forward in access for our Web presence."

The CampusEAI Oracle Portal Grant Program is designed to underwrite all external costs associated with the implementation of the portal system which integrates with online learning, administrative, business and student services systems.

The grant covers software, training and project management costs necessary to install and operate the portal. UT Martin's match is $19,750 per year.

"The UT Martin portal will provide a single sign-on or online entry point for students into the various systems such as the student information, course management and e-mail systems, which will make access easier and more secure," said Shannon Burgin, director of UT Martin Information Technology Service, who is supervising the project. "There will be targeted areas on the portal for prospective, transfer and current students and the system will offer the flexibility to customize information to meet individual needs."

The portal also will provide an online forum for fraternities, sororities and other organizations to make announcements and have discussions, communicate and collaborate, and give easy access to calendars, announcements and news.

Likewise for other groups - faculty, staff and alumni - the system will provide the same easy access to topics of interest and customization capabilities, scheduled for completion in the later phases of the project. And, it will provide a mechanism to maintain departmental Web content. Department personnel may utilize the portal to disseminate information as much as they choose.

"This grant will move UT Martin into the next level of support for information sharing and communications," said Burgin.

"This will be the medium of choice for delivering online information about UT Martin. Also, it will improve the business processes and knowledge management throughout the university."

The portal development process began in mid-October following awarding of the grant in August. Ultimately, all UT Martin departments will be involved in some aspect of the portal as its Web content through www.utm.edu is migrated into the portal.

A large team is overseeing the project with team members working on specific segments. Various department personnel will be involved as the project progresses.

The portal project team, in addition to Rakes and Burgin, includes Amy Belew, Tim Taylor, Ken Blankenship, Bob Bradley, Bruce Harrison, Larry Holder, Jennifer Abney, Steve Holt, Craig Ingram, Steve Lemond, Shannon Vincent, Brenda Wright, Terry Lewis, April Baker, Bobbie McClain, Melissa Bonds, Brian Davis and Bud Grimes.

Harrison, IT administrator III for Information Technology Service, helped Burgin write the grant. Taylor, IT administrator II for Information Technology Service, will head the implementation team with assistance from Belew, IT administrator II for Information Technology Service.