Rethinking the Way We Support Students—Lessons Learned from the Pandemic

IT teams have always had to be resilient to keep up with the fast-paced growth of technology. The pandemic accelerated that pace from a moderate walk to a full-out sprint in just a matter of months. When our students returned to campus in fall 2020, our campus took a close look at where we were and what valuable lessons could be learned from the last several months. Do we want to go back to the way things were, or do we want to seize the opportunity to move ahead? In October 2020, Susquehanna University made a campus-wide commitment to completely transform the student experience for fall 2021. The Susquehanna 2.0 initiative promised a barrier-free navigation of the college experience, more meaningful student employment, and better career pathways for staff. Many of our campus administrative structures were developed 60 and 80 years ago and do not align with the needs and experiences of contemporary students. How does a small IT department accommodate these new expectations? Does our staff have the expertise? Learn how we realigned our small IT department to handle new responsibilities that came along with Susquehanna 2.0.