June 2025 CIO Updates

This is the first major addition to the mainframe ecosystem in several years. It allows developers to leverage not only mainframe data, but also the often-extensive business logic necessary to make it useful to users. It should also provide a viable alternative to the XML Gateway, a homegrown solution that is currently in the process of being sunsetted. The implementation of the Integration Server is part of the larger Mainframe Modernization Program, an effort that recognizes that maintaining and enhancing our mainframe ecosystem will allow it to continue to thrive for as long as it is critical to our IT infrastructure. Developer documentation for the Integration Server (This link is restricted to users with a DEV entitlement).

 

As part of the Student Financial Aid Modernization Project which included the launch of a new financial aid system last year, D2I has launched three dashboards (Undergraduate Financial Aid Summary, Daily Financial Aid Application Information, and Undergraduate Enrollment Figures for Texas Development), extending the trusted information infrastructure at UT Austin to now include a fully modern pipeline to the Data Hub with three deliverables already being used by Office of Scholarships and Financial Aid for critical decision making. These three dashboards are the first based on the fully modernized data source for financial aid. These deliverables enable University decision makers to leverage student financial aid data comprehensively and provide the foundation for future complex analyses combining data from the modern financial aid source with other University source systems, representing a first for this type of data in our cloud-based, secure Data Hub environment. The release of this initial deliverable brings D2I to 30 dashboards in production developed off of data in the Data Hub for the University's trusted information infrastructure, and was an extensive collaboration between Data to Insights, Enterprise Platforms, and the Office of Scholarships & Financial Aid. These dashboards represent a new phase in availability of decision making data for executives as it relates to Financial Aid going forward and will enable more nuanced decision making with fully automated analyses, compared to manual work that was done in the past.

 

In support of the University's continued efforts to streamline faculty promotion and tenure processing, the Faculty Promotion & Tenure Reports for candidates going up for promotion in 2026 were released in June, summarizing and synthesizing course evaluation survey data across a candidate pool of over 200 faculty. These reports reduce manual work required of Faculty Affairs to assemble course evaluation survey data, eliminating the need for student workers to compile the data for the third year in a row. They also reduce the burden on departments by automating summary data for presentation in candidate's dossier. These reports represent our third cycle of delivery in collaboration with the Enterprise Platforms team supporting Explorance Blue and Faculty Affairs. We have reduced overhead cost in both time centrally (2 less part-time student workers in Faculty Affairs) and in hours spent locally within CSU staff to compile information, both with the reports and with their associated dashboard that shows summary statistics. 

 

Enterprise Learning Technology, McCombs School of Business, and the Digital Accessibility Center partnered to offer a cross-campus training series on Universal Design for Learning (UDL) and accessibility in Canvas. Over 25 faculty and staff from 22 departments registered, with an average of 7–10 participants per session. The nine-session, three-day event included practical demonstrations, peer-led insights, and Canvas-based strategies for inclusive course design. Participation revealed a campus-wide appetite for support in making digital learning environments more accessible and effective. Many instructors shared session recordings with colleagues, and several cited the experience in ongoing consultations and planning meetings. The success of this series underscored both the urgency of the 2026 accessibility deadline and the value of a centralized instructional support team. Agenda with links to these session recordings and resources:

 

This fast-paced project was completed in just seven weeks. Mark Winkleman, ServiceNow IT Service Development Manager, led this technical implementation. The complexity of the project stemmed from the need to coordinate across multiple units, including University Risk and Compliance, Legal Affairs, Texas Global, and Marketing and Communications. In addition to building the form and its associated workflows, the team worked collaboratively to define roles and responsibilities, establish an ongoing support model, and develop effective communication strategies.