IT Strategic Initiatives

Email Announcement (sent 10/27/25)

Dear faculty and staff,

The annual IT Strategic Initiatives request process is now open for fiscal year 2027 (July 2026 - June 2027). This process is the yearly opportunity for departments, offices, and units to request major software projects or AV/tech improvements. You may submit requests using this form, which requires a Smith login. The deadline for submissions is November 25, 2025. Read the rest of this message for important details about what can be requested, how requests will be reviewed, and about the information session on November 6. 

DETAILS

For the purposes of this process, major IT strategic priorities are defined in one or both of the following ways: 

• The adoption, replacement, or significant improvement of campus software. Examples in recent years include the selection and implementation of a new Faculty Activity Reporting software system, in partnership with the Provost’s office; and the adoption of a new software system for space management, in partnership with Campus Planning. Any plans for adopting major new software systems or improving existing systems should be submitted, regardless of who is implementing or funding the effort.  

• Significant, greater than incremental upgrades or improvements to the AV/technology in shared campus spaces. Examples in recent years include outfitting several conference rooms around campus for hybrid meeting capabilities. Note that any requests for this kind of AV/tech improvement will be reviewed within the larger capital projects prioritization process led by Campus Planning. 

For the purposes of this process, major IT strategic priorities do not include the following, all of which can be reviewed and handled as a regular help ticket to ithelp@smith.edu, in line with existing campus policies, support and prioritization models: 

• Bug fixes or small feature improvements to existing campus software

• General requests for AV support for campus classrooms & meeting spaces

• Requests for software used by a small number of individuals

• Requests for individual computing or media equipment

• Consultation on how to use or improve existing Smith IT tools and services

• Other small-scale help or consultation requests or questions

Requests for support for FY27 Major IT Initiatives will be accepted through November 25, 2025. 

REVIEW PROCESS

Requests will be reviewed by ITS in November-December 2025, in consultation with campus partners. The first pass of the review will be to determine whether Smith already has a technology solution that can meet some or most of the documented needs. 

Requests that proceed beyond that first step will be evaluated according to four criteria: mission enablement, lifecycle costs, ease of sustainability (technically and financially), and user experience. 

Requests regarding academic software and classrooms will be discussed with the Committee on Educational and Research Technology and the Classroom Committee, respectively. 

The relevant president's team member(s) will be consulted in the final process to decide which items will be put forward for consideration for FY27 funding and support. 

Note that 1) some types of requests may require extended study and assessment before they can be put forward for funding, and so may not be ready for consideration for FY27; and 2) we expect to have very limited funding for new initiatives in FY27. Finally, if you submit a request, please ensure that your department's senior leader/chair is aware of and supports the request you are submitting as a top priority for your area.

INFORMATION SESSION ON NOVEMBER 6

If you would like to learn more about this process and the kinds of requests that can be submitted, plan to join the virtual information session on Thursday, November 6, 2025, focused solely on the FY26 IT Strategic Initiatives request process. You can register for this session at: 

http://go.oncehub.com/FY27ITStrategicInitiativesRequestProcess

Registration information for this session will also be shared in eDigest beginning the week of October 27, 2025. 

I hope to see some of you in the information session, and the ITS team and I look forward to hearing your ideas.