Seeking CCC ICT and Information Systems Transfer Model Curriculum and C-ID Input

Dear CCC Information Technology and Information Systems Faculty,

 

Please forward this message on to other faculty at your college.

I am contacting you from the Course Identification Numbering System (C-ID). We are pleased to announce that two Transfer Model Curricula (TMCs) and several course descriptors are now available for your review. Your role in providing your professional responses to these drafts is critical to ensure widespread consensus about the most appropriate preparation for students earning an associate degree in either Information Systems or Information and Communication Technologies and then transferring as IS, CIS, MIS, ICT or IT majors to CSU. 

The Information Systems Faculty Discipline Review Group (FDRG) felt it appropriate to forward two TMC drafts for vetting by the stakeholders of the C-ID process. While the Information Systems TMC Draft is very similar to the previously approved Business TMC, some FDRG members felt it important to forward a separate TMC draft that specifically outlines the lower division requirements of Information Systems/ Management Information Systems concentrations within B.S. degree programs in Business Administration. The FDRG also submits for vetting an Information and Communication Technologies (ICT) TMC Draft that reflects a recent state- and nationwide trend toward an ICT-focused curriculum. Note: The FDRG will closely evaluate the feedback obtained during the vetting process to determine if one or both Draft TMCs should be considered for final acceptance by the Intersegmental Curriculum Workgroup (ICW).

The TMCs are developed in response to Senate Bill 1440 (Padilla, 2010)–by teams of intersegmental discipline faculty. However, before any TMC and the courses within it can be finalized, we need input from you and your colleagues. Are these the right courses? Is the course content in the course descriptors sufficient? What revisions should be made in both the TMCs and the C-ID course descriptors?  

Please go to the “TMC” tab at www.c-id.net in order to provide feedback (by June 15, 2013) on both the Information Systems and Information and Communication Technologies TMCs. Your comments regarding areas needing improvement, as well as where you are in agreement with the draft TMCs, are both appreciated. 

The direct links to the surveys are:

· http://www.surveymonkey.com/s/InformationSystems_TMC

· http://www.surveymonkey.com/s/InformationCommunicationTechnologies_TMC 

Once finalized, California community colleges will develop their associate degrees for transfer following the TMCs. For more information about the development of TMCs and the role of C-ID, please click here: http://c-id.net/degreereview.html.

In addition, we ask you and your colleagues to log on to the C-ID website and provide feedback on the draft C-ID course descriptors. You might find this to be a good topic for a department meeting---to discuss these drafts and provide feedback. Please leave your feedback by June 15, 2013.

Go to www.c-id.net

• Select the “Descriptors” page from the menu on the top of the website.
• Choose the "Comment on Descriptors" link.
• Click the “Register Here” link if you haven't already registered for access to the review area.
• After registration, a confirmation email with your password will be e-mailed to you immediately. You must click the confirmation link contained in that email message to enable your password so that you can log in to C-ID’s review area. Your e-mail message will be sent by noreply@c-id.net, so please check your spam mailbox if you do not receive it and add this address to your safe sender list.
• Use your email address (username) and password to login to the review area.
• Read the draft descriptors in your discipline area or related areas having impact on your discipline.
• Comment on the draft descriptors, indicating what you feel could use improvement, or any other feedback you think would be relevant or useful. Please note it is just as important that you comment when you are in agreement with the descriptors.

We will keep your email address on file and send you email updates when additional or revised descriptors become available for comment in your discipline. 

Once the C-ID descriptors are finalized, colleges will be asked to submit their Course Outlines of Record to C-ID, to ensure courses in TMC-aligned degrees are aligned. Your articulation officer will facilitate the submission of course outlines.

It is imperative that your voice is recognized in this vetting period...and we thank you for your participation!

 

Faculty are encouraged to sign up for the discipline listservs to receive relevant communications. To sign up, please go to http://www.c-id.net/listserv.html. Please note that listservs have been created for those disciplines that are currently active in C-ID. More listservs will be created as more disciplines are added. If you don’t see your discipline, we encourage you to visit the website often as more disciplines will be added in the future.

 

Please send general questions to info@c-id.net. 

Best Regards,

 

Holly Demé

Program Specialist

Academic Senate for California Community Colleges

555 Capitol Mall, Suite 525

Sacramento, CA 95814

phone: 916.445.4753, ext. 108

fax: 916.323.9867

Read More

NetApp Delivers Storage and Data Management Expertise for the White House Military Credentialing and Licensing Initiative

 

NetApp Certified Storage Associate (NCSA) Certification Offers Service Personnel Web-Based Training and Storage Certification

   

VIENNA, Va. — April 29, 2013 — NetApp
        
The President's Military Credentialing and Licensing Task Force, led by the Department of Defense, is charged with identifying military specialties that readily transfer to civilian jobs. Working with civilian credentialing and licensing associations, the administration is beginning to address gaps between military training programs and credentialing and licensing requirements. Through the Joining Forces Initiative, they are able to provide service members with greater access to necessary certification and licensing exams.

As the current #1 storage provider to the federal government,^[1] NetApp is pleased to work with the Joining Forces Initiative to offer web-based training and storage certification to military service personnel. The NetApp Certified Storage Associate certification (NCSA) is a new, entry-level certification designed to familiarize participants with storage technology and terminology, NetApp® products and solutions, and the skills to accomplish basic tasks with the NetApp Data ONTAP® architecture. NetApp Data ONTAP is the world's #1 branded storage operating system.^[2]

"We are committed to helping our troops get the credentials they need," Mark Weber, president of NetApp U.S. Public Sector, said. "We are proud to be part of a forum that is working to spotlight the training program, and to collaborate with key stakeholders to share ideas and best practices to get our veterans and military personnel in high-demand jobs."

Through its Academic Alliances Program, NetApp will provide veterans and service personnel with NetApp Learning Accounts, access to web-based training classes, the ability to complete hands-on lab exercises through a virtual lab environment, and up to 500 test vouchers to complete the NCSA certification at a local Pearson VUE testing center. NetApp looks forward to working with Joining Forces and the coalition of participating organizations to deliver this innovative certification curriculum to program participants.

Additional Resources

• Learn about NetApp solutions for the federal government: www.netapp.com/us/solutions/industry/government/
• Follow NetApp on Twitter: twitter.com/NetAppGov
• Join NetApp on Facebook: www.facebook.com/NetAppGov
• View NetApp videos on YouTube: www.youtube.com/channel/UCXRliDVyJ9AbFPo4Jcd_H5A
• Connect with NetApp on LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/groups?about=&gid=111681

About NetApp

 NetApp creates innovative storage and data management solutions that deliver outstanding cost efficiency and accelerate business breakthroughs. Our commitment to living our core values and consistently being recognized as a great place to work around the world are fundamental to our long-term growth and success, as well as the success of our pathway partners and customers. Discover our passion for helping companies around the world go further, faster at www.netapp.com.

Press Contact

 Krista Germano
703-918-7907
Krista.Germano@netapp.com

Read More

CompTIA to Support White House’s IT Training and Certification Program for Veterans

Apr 29, 2013     CompTIA 

 

Program Will Enable Military Personnel to Earn Industry-Recognized Information Technology Certificates before Transitioning From Military Service

Washington, D.C. – April 29, 2013 – CompTIA, the leading provider of vendor-neutral skills certifications for the world’s information technology (IT) workforce, has committed to support the White House’s new initiative, the IT Training and Certification Program.  This partnership includes Cisco, Futures Inc., Global Knowledge, GogoTraining, and several other certification organizations.  The program enables thousands of service members to receive training and earn industry-recognized IT certifications before they transition from military service to civilian life.

As part of the IT Training and Certification Program, CompTIA is donating vouchers for certification exams, such as CompTIA A+ and CompTIA Security+, to program participants. This continues CompTIA’s longstanding commitment to the Department of Defense and the Armed Forces. CompTIA participates in the DoD Information Assurance Program and contributes to the Wounded Warriors Project through its foundation, Creating IT Futures.

“We are honored to be a part of this pilot program that the White House is launching.  Many in the military already possess technical skill sets due to their military occupation specialties (MOS) but need just an extra push to translate those successfully into getting a job after the military,” said Todd Thibodeaux, president and CEO, CompTIA.

“We have ample data that shows that employers in the private sector highly value individuals who have industry recognized certifications along with on-the-job experience. By getting more of these soon-to-be veterans trained and certified, we expect this will lead to higher than average paying jobs in the private sector.  We also expect this will help fill the IT skills gap that currently exists. Whether a core IT function or an emerging area, employers need trained and certified IT staff to maximize their return on technology investments and achieve business success,”   Thibodeaux stated.

Today’s launch of the IT Training and Certification Program is an extension of the First Lady’s Joining Forces initiative which launched in February 2013 and is dedicated to helping our military families.  Among its many ambitions, Joining Forces challenges our nation’s governors to take executive or legislative action to help our troops get the credentials they need to successfully transition to the civilian labor market by the end of 2015.  CompTIA was featured in the Joining Forces initiative when it launched its own Troops to Tech Careers program last year that connects military veterans with IT trainers, certification and employers.  Nearly 12,000 veterans have received IT certification from CompTIA in the last 18 months.

About CompTIACompTIA is the voice of the world's information technology (IT) industry. As a non-profit trade association advancing the global interests of IT professionals and companies, we focus our programs on four main areas: education, certification, advocacy and philanthropy. Please visit: www.comptia.org.

Contacts:
Lana Sansur
CompTIA
lsansur@comptia-agent.org
301-765-9816
 Steven Ostrowski
CompTIA
630-678-8468
sostrowski@comptia.org

Read More

High-Tech Startups Lacking Skilled Workers

5:41 AM ET   By: Chad Brooks, Contributor, BusinessNewsDaily

15 Feb2013     

             High-tech startup companies are trying to add employees but are having difficulty finding qualified candidates, a new survey shows.

While 87 percent of technology startups are hiring, an equal number are struggling to find enough people with the skills they are looking for, Silicon Valley Bank found in its survey.

Greg Becker, president and CEO of Silicon Valley Bank, said he regularly hears from tech company executives that top-notch talent is scarce and they are having trouble hiring the right employees .

"They struggle to find, attract and retain the engineering, scientific and technical talent they need to grow their businesses," Becker said in the bank's report. "We need to create a tech-savvy, highly skilled American work force. The more people with skills that are in demand, the better for all of us."     

When they do find qualified talent, many startups ― specifically those in the software, life science, hardware and clean tech sectors ― are finding it difficult to compete with all the other companies trying to hire them. Nearly 30 percent of the companies surveyed for the study felt competing for the employees they need was the biggest challenge they face.

"If you've got Google 10 blocks down the street, you have to be creative to differentiate your company more than just salary," Andrew Evans, CEO of Symplified, said in the report.

The report found high-growth small companies, while few in number, have a large impact on the U.S. economy, creating roughly 12 million jobs and over $3 trillion in annual revenues.

A number of the startups surveyed believe current immigration policies in the U.S. are contributing to their problems finding skilled employees. Among the nearly 20 percent of companies that would advise President Obama to focus in his second term on building a strong talent pool of employees, half felt he should concentrate those efforts on immigration reform.

Benjamin Cohen, CEO of T-REX, said current immigration policies discourage foreigners from joining startups because those businesses tend to offer a mix of salary and equity as compensation, which doesn't meet the qualifications to support a standard non-immigration work visa.


"Recruits are willing to risk coming to work for a startup, but they can't risk losing their visa," Cohen said. "It's limiting our ability to grow, limiting their career opportunities, and ultimately hampering the growth of the U.S. economy, because employment resources aren't allocated efficiently."
Silicon Valley Bank said it surveyed  758 executives of innovation companies with less than $100 million in annual revenue and fewer than 500 employees.

Follow Chad Brooks on Twitter @cbrooks76 or BusinessNewsDaily @BNDarticles. We're also on Facebook & Google+.

Read More

10 Most Desirable Tech Skills

By: David Mielach, Staff Writer, 1 May2013, BusinessNewsDaily

             Not all skills are created equally when it comes to finding a job in the highest-paying tech fields.
A new survey by leading recruiting firm CyberCoders found that several skills are in high demand in the current job market. Chief among those skills are mobile developers, who are highly sought as a result of the boom of mobile applications on Android and iOS.

In addition to mobile developers, job candidates with experience in cloud computing programming and front-end development skills are also in high demand, the list says. Front-end developers are seeing this demand thanks to increased demand for websites with light code.

"Every day, we see the engineers with these skills getting an average of four to five job offers," said Heidi Golledge, CEO and founder of CyberCoders, which compiled the list. "Companies that provide cutting-edge technology, great salaries and a positive company culture will have a better chance at getting the tech candidates they need to compete in the ever-changing social, data and mobile workplace."
  Workers with skills in UI/UX — user interface and user experience — as well as workers experienced in big data and C# programming language are also in high demand, researchers say. Lastly, CyberCoders found that workers with experience in the Ruby on Rails programming language, Java, PHP scripting language and Linux will also be in demand throughout the rest of the year.

"A common theme among these technology skills is the need for open source, mobile, cloud or big data technologies, like iOS, Azure and Hadoop," said Matt Miller, chief technology officer of CyberCoders.

The list was based on the responses of more than 10,000 tech companies and hiring requirements.

Follow David Mielach on Twitter @D_M89 . Follow us @bndarticles, Facebook or Google+. Originally published on BusinessNewsDaily.

Read More

San Francisco Mayor Signs Landmark Open Data Policy and Procedures Legislation

By Rachelle Chong posted on April 30, 2013 in Techwire.net           

San Francisco Mayor Ed Lee last week signed into law the Citywide Coordination of Open Data Policy and Procedures legislation introduced jointly with Board of Supervisors President David Chiu.  This new landmark Open Data law establishes the position and duties of a new Chief Data Officer to be appointed by the Mayor, and orders that departmental data coordinators assist in the implementation of the Open Data Policy.  The ordinance also establishes rules and procedures for making open data available through the city’s open data web portal.

This initiative began in 2009 by then-Mayor Gavin Newsom, who issued an Executive Directive promoting open data policies.  In 2010, the Board of Supervisors passed the City’s Open Data Policy (Ordinance 293-10) codified in San Francisco’s Administrative Code Section 22D.  Among the expected benefits to citizens are increased government efficiency and civic engagement, leading to social and economic benefits:  (1) fostering citizen participation in City projects; (2) increased citizen interaction with municipal government; (3) supporting early state entrepreneurship; (4) workforce development and job creation; and (5) fostering a positive business environment and promoting public-private partnerships.

According to Jay Nath, chief innovation officer for the Office of Mayor Edwin Lee, the new chief data officer will report to the mayor’s budget director.  Further, the departmental data coordinators will be identified from existing staff at the approximately 50 City departments, board, commission and agencies (“departments”).

According to Section 22D(a), the new chief data officer will be responsible for “sharing City data with the public, facilitating the sharing of information between city departments and analyzing how data sets can be used to improve city decision making.”  The data coordinator will be designated by each city department, and will oversee implementation and compliance with the Open Data Policy with that department.  Each city department is charged with making reasonable efforts to make available all data sets under the department’s control while complying with privacy laws, prepare an Open Data plan for its department, establishing a timeline for the publication of the open data including a summary of the open data efforts planned or underway in that department, summarize the data sets under the department’s control, prioritize the data sets for inclusion on the DataSF website, and comply with the data set guidelines.

Data sets will be made available free of charge to the public through the web portal.  Data sets containing personally identifiable information or representing potential breaches to security or privacy are to be flagged for potential exclusion from DataSF.

The current Open Data Portal (called “San Francisco Data” and located on the web at https://data.sfgov.org/) is provided by the City and County of San Francisco to “enhance open government, transparency, and accountability by providing access to data by residents and businesses.”  It puts in one place all approved city data that help constituents make better use of information.  Only city or county employees may publish data to the portal.  It is anticipated that the new data sets will be added to this website and significantly enhanced.

According to a recently released April 4th Municipal Open Data Policies study by the San Diego Regional Data Library (http://www.sandiegodata.org/2013/04/report-municipal-open-data-policies/), only eight cities nationwide have adopted Open Data Policies:  Washington, D.C., San Francisco, Vancouver, Portland, Austin, New York, Philadelphia and Chicago.  “Creating an Open Data policy is a powerful commitment to openness, transparency, and public participation, and with advancing technology, it is a policy that is easy to implement and manage,” concluded the San Diego study. “Open data projects have been run not only at many cities, but many states as well, providing a base of experience that gives cities a straightforward way to demonstrate their desire for better, more efficient government.”

Read More

iPad is top selling tablet, but Android now most common tablet OS, says IDC

By Erica Ogg   May. 1, 2013 - 1:21 PM PDT    GigaOm

 

Summary: Tablet sellers had a really good first quarter. As a result, Apple’s overall share of tablet sales is slipping.

More tablets were shipped during January and March this year than the entire first half of 2012: 49.2 million units during the three-month period, according to IDC. The analyst firm’s Worldwide Quarterly Tablet Tracker was published Wednesday and it shows that tablets continue grow at a rapid clip. Every major tablet maker saw large gains in shipments during the first quarter — and one of the notable results of that is that Apple’s overall share of the tablet market is decreasing.

Apple is still the world’s largest tablet seller; it shipped 19.5 million in the last quarter, up from 11.8 million the same quarter a year ago, according to IDC and its own numbers released earlier this month. That’s an increase of 64 percent. Its No. 1 mobile competitor, Samsung, saw its shipments grow even faster, from 2.3 million tablets a year ago to 8.8 million in the latest quarter. Rounding out the Top 5, Asus and Amazon also more than doubled their tablet shipments from a year ago. Microsoft, which did not start selling tablets until October 2012, shipped 900,000 Surface units between January and March.

The overall growth in tablets means Android is now the most popular mobile OS in tablets shipped during the quarter; a year ago it was on 8 million of tablets shipped worldwide, compared to the 11.8 million iPads. This past quarter saw Android shipped on 27.8 million tablets that were shipped and 19.5 million iPads and iPad minis.

All this does not mean doom and gloom for the iPad. Apple’s tablet sales continue at a rapid clip, increasing every quarter – faster than the iPhone right now. And while its overall share of tablet shipments may be slipping, it’s still selling more than double the number of tablets each quarter as its closest competitor, Samsung (see chart below).

Read More