The NCAA News - News and Features

The NCAA News -- August 2, 1999

Technology designed with a practical touch

While many of the technological advances in the new office might not be apparent to casual observers, the effects of the new technology will be felt by the national office staff and eventually by the NCAA membership.

The changes begin with sophisticated fiber-optic cabling and wiring, along with new network electronics.

"We have built the backbone from which we can add applications to assist the membership," said Rhonda Winter, NCAA director of information technology and services. "In terms of speed and sophistication, we've gone from a Geo Metro to a Ferrari."

The building's technology was designed to meet several goals, said Daniel T. Dutcher, NCAA chief of staff for Division III and chair of the NCAA 2000 technology needs project team. "We wanted a system that was as state-of-the-art as we could afford; one that was flexible; and one that was scaleable, that would be the right size for now but could be added to as necessary," he said. "To do that, we put infrastructure first."

The network electronics and sophisticated wiring, along with five additional computer servers, means office staff and members will have a much more stable environment, one that can handle a heavier volume of users and can adapt as traffic increases. The new office also will have flexible T1 lines that adjust and provide additional capacity as e-mail and Internet traffic increases.

Other technological advances will be more apparent, especially to members who attend NCAA meetings at the new office. There will be portable videoconferencing equipment on each floor, and some of the larger conference rooms will be equipped with built-in videoconferencing equipment.

There also will be numerous locations throughout the building where a staff person or member could plug in a laptop, including many seats in the first-floor auditorium.

"We really do expect that Indianapolis will become a regular meeting place for the NCAA committees," Dutcher said. "There will be more resources -- both in terms of technology and in terms of people -- and it also will be more efficient for NCAA staff, who could make presentations to the appropriate committee and then go back to their desk."

Software advances in the coming months and years will add additional member services, including the ability to request and complete forms via the Internet. Eventually, plans call for the establishment of an "Extranet" that would permit members to access services and information not available to the general public.

"One of our goals is to provide applications that embrace the World Wide Web and put more user-friendly applications in the hands of the membership," Winter said.