Provost Office and ICIT

Questions & Answers about Technology Related Services for (new) faculty

This document  is available online at  http://bb.hunter.cuny.edu/QA_trs_fac.html. If you received a printed version, you may want to access the online version so that you can follow the links without having to retype any URLs. Also, to improve legibility, only a select number of URLs are shown as visible text, so only the electronic version gives you access to all links.


Table of Contents

  1. What IDs/accounts do I need to have access to all technology related services?
  2. How do I get my Hunter Net-ID?
  3. Can I get a more convenient e-mail user name?
  4. How do I access my Hunter e-mail account?
  5. How do I register at the CUNY Portal?
  6. How do I get my Hunter ID card?
  7. How do I get a (new) computer for my office?
  8. As a part-time faculty member, what access to computers do I have?
  9. What software is available and where do I get it?
  10. How do I use the phone/voicemail in my office?
  11. What is Blackboard anyway and how do instructors get their Bb sites?
  12. Is Bb actually working?
  13. What support does Hunter offer for Teaching & Learning with Technology (TLT)?
  14. Does Hunter have any special programs/initiatives to support Teaching & Learning with Technology (TLT)?
  15. What other teaching related services are available?
  16. My question is not addressed in this document, where can I find more information?




What IDs/accounts do I need to have access to all technology related services?

You need a Hunter NetID, a CUNY Portal registration (user name/password), and a Hunter ID card.  In essence, you use your Hunter Net-ID for all Hunter specific services (including e-mail, wireless network -- "hunternet", and off-campus access to library databases) and you need the CUNY Portal registration for university-wide services (like Blackboard, the  CUNY eMall for free/discounted software, and to sign up for CUNY Alert).  The Hunter ID card is needed for access to the library and -- soon -- to the Hunter campus as a whole; it also provides you with a library bar code (needed, e.g., for online Interlibrary Loan requests). Last but not least, you need your Hunter ID to pick up your paycheck (unless you opt for direct deposit).

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How do I get my Hunter Net-ID?

Typically, your Hunter NetID (which also serves as your Hunter e-mail user name) will be created by ICIT while your paper work is being processed by Human Resources (HR) and your information is entered in the personnel database (now HCM, formerly CUPS).  Note that  with the recent change of systems, your NetID/e-mail account will be created early in the process not after you have been entered in the personnel database.

Once your Net-ID is created, you can look up the details.  If you can't find your Hunter NetID there, contact the faculty help desk for assistance.

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Can I get a more convenient e-mail user name?

Yes, in addition to the Hunter NetID (which also serves as your actual e-mail user name), an "alias" is created automatically for all faculty accounts using the format firstname.lastname@hunter.cuny.edu, e.g. , jane.doe@hunter.cuny.edu.

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How do I access my Hunter e-mail account?

You can access your Hunter e-mail either via the web interface ( http://webmail.hunter.cuny.edu ) or by using any of the common e-mail clients (like Thunderbird, MS Outlook, Eudora); setup details.  Use webmail for changing your password, setting up an automated response (vacation message), or forwarding  incoming messages to another e-mail account. For more information see also  E-Mail FAQ.

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How do I register at the CUNY Portal?

Follow this detailed illustrated guide.  Note that you need to select the role of "faculty" during this process. This attempt may fail if you have not taught at CUNY before and the paper work has not been fully processed by Human Resources.  Check with your departmental front office first so that they can check with HR on your behalf. If there is little time left before the start of classes, contact the the faculty help desk for immediate assistance.

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How do I get my Hunter ID card?

The person issuing your Hunter ID card (which is also referred to as OneCard) has his desk in the  Welcome Center (the Welcome Center itself is for students) located  in Hunter North room 100. He is available Mon-Th 9:30-5:00, and Fridays 10-3. You need to be in the Human Resources personnel system or bring other proof of employment. A photo will be taken on the spot.  In addition, we will have our ID card "van" visit the Brookdale campus and the School of Social Work (SSW) on specific dates for your convenience. Faculty (as well as students) in those  areas can get their cards there, if necessary.

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How do I get a (new) computer for my office?

New full time faculty get a new computer as part  of  standard office set up; computers for existing faculty are replaced every four years.  Faculty have a choice of four computer types (PS or Mac; desktop or laptop).  For each type, a standard model is selected by ICIT to realize savings by mass purchasing ( more details).  
ICIT tries to contact new faculty over the summer to determine the preferred computer type and  strives to have the computer delivered to the new faculty's office before he/she arrives at Hunter. As this requires coordination with the departmental front office, this does not always work. In case of delivery problems (new faculty) and/or to be listed for a replacement  computer (existing faculty) contact Vanessa Uruci at ICIT.

If you experience any problems with the functioning of your office computer, contact the faculty help desk  to schedule a visit by a service technician.

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As a part-time faculty member, what access to computers do I have?

As with just office space, the answer to this question differs greatly  by department (and your exact status, e.g., graduate teaching fellow vs. adjunct professor). So, you need to check with your department for details. However, at minimum, you have the same access to computers  as students, i.e., to computers in the open labs and in the hallways. Check the page on computer labs on the ICIT web site.  In addition, a limited number of laptop computers are available for (semester long) loan for those faculty teaching technology enhanced classes.  

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What software is available and where do I get it?

A number of software products are site licensed and available to faculty free of charge. These include the MS Office suite, Symantec Endpoint Protection (anti-virus software), SPSS, Mathematica, and more. CUNY licensed software is available via the eMall  (which can accessed by logging into the CUNY Portal), Hunter licensed software can be requested via the faculty help desk  and  some products can be downloaded directly from a protected site (you will need your Hunter NetID) to gain access. The software related pages on the ICIT web site are still under construction, there is currently no page with complete and up-to-date information, but you may want to check the "Quick Software Answers" page.

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How do I use the phone/voicemail in my office?

Check the overview of help guides and instructions.

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What is Blackboard anyway and how do instructors get their Bb sites?

Blackboard (Bb) is a web-based learning management system (LMS), which provides instructors with tools for organizing and designing virtual classroom space. Course shells are created automatically for all courses that are listed in the online schedule of classes, but it is up to the instructor to actually use Bb and to make Bb course sites available to his/her students (more).  About 40-50% of the Bb course sites created are made available to students though extent of actual use varies greatly. Bb course sites are used for both conventional classroom courses  as well as courses which are conducted partly or fully online.

The instructor information from SIMS (the Student Information Management System)  is automatically transferred to the Bb system -- unless there is a discrepancy between the instructor information (like the SSN) in SIMS and in HCM (the personnel system).  So, access to Bb starts with proper information in SIMS for which your department or program is responsible.

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Is Bb actually working?

Following the conversion to a much more integrated Bb system (one system for all CUNY colleges and all its 250,000+ students) and a version upgrade to Bb 8 (from Bb 6.3), faculty and students experienced major problems with reliable access to the Bb system during the spring 2009 term. After outsourcing these services -- using "Blackboard Managed Hosting (BMH)" -- in early May 2009, the system has been stable and Bb has been working well.

However, Hunter will keep a Blackboard (Status) Information page outside the Bb system which is updated daily -- and if needed more often -- to provide current information about access and usage problems and solutions. Faculty are encouraged to bookmark this page and use the link to the Portal/Bb login page on this page: http://bb.hunter.cuny.edu

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What support does Hunter offer for Teaching & Learning with Technology (TLT)?

Beyond the faculty help desk, there are four major units within ICIT which provide support and assistance for Teaching & Learning with Technology:
Check out their web sites to find out more about what each unit offers.

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Does Hunter have any special programs/initiatives to support Teaching & Learning with Technology (TLT)?

Yes, expanding the use of technology for teaching and learning is a prime objective of both CUNY overall and Hunter College in particular.  President Raab has started the FITT (Faculty Innovations in Teaching with Technology) initiative in 2008 and is committed to continue this program even in the current budget crunch.  The FITT initiative is complemented by the "Tech Thursday" events, informal lunch meeting open to all faculty interested in exploring and discussion TLT.  Both initiatives are supported by the TTLG staff and are directed by the (acting) Associate Provost for Instructional Technology.
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What other teaching related services are available?

Faculty can obtain up-to-date class rosters online ("webroster"), they can post advance information about upcoming courses ("informed registration") and syllabi for courses past and present ("webupload"),  and they submit information about class attendance and final grades online.  For more detailed information about these services, check a companion Q&A document which was created for  departmental and  program administrative assistants in mind, but which is relevant for faculty as well.

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My question is not addressed in this document, where can I find more information?

A good place to start looking is the ICIT web site. However, the restructuring of this site not quite complete and some pages still await major editing. So, bear with us.  Also, note that the Hunter library maintains its own web site and that you find information about and access to technology services provided by the library (including downloads of bibliographical software like EndNote and online access to journal databases) on the library web site.

There is always the faculty help desk, and -- last but not least --  don't hesitate to contact CIO Frank Steen or Acting Associate Provost for Instructional Technology Manfred Kuechler directly.  We like to hear from you -- about the good things and the things which do not (yet) work so well. So, be in touch.

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MK -- 8/18/09