The Board of Regents today designated the Alliance for Technology, Learning and Society (ATLAS) as the first new institute at the University of Colorado at Boulder in 35 years and the first campus institute with a mission that will equally balance teaching, research and outreach.
ATLAS is a campuswide initiative that aims to prepare all students for lives and leadership careers in the Information Age and is dedicated to improving the understanding and application of information and communication technology.
"Since 1997, ATLAS has distinguished itself through outstanding achievements in creating new curricula, research programs and partnerships that serve to share the revolution of the Information Age with all areas of our campus and beyond," said Chancellor Richard L. Byyny. "Institute status recognizes these achievements and ensures that the university's commitment to the ATLAS vision of 'information technology for all' is an enduring one."
Provost Phil DiStefano praised ATLAS for having "worked with all the schools and colleges at CU-Boulder to create successful new undergraduate learning opportunities such as the Technology, Arts and Media certificate program, new research activities in educational technology and gender and information technology, and innovative partnerships with Colorado K-12 schools and diverse higher education institutions.
"It has attracted a large amount of external funding to support these programs and has brought new resources to the entire campus," DiStefano said.
The institute designation will not change campus funding for ATLAS, which will continue to report to Provost DiStefano and be supported primarily by external funds. Institute status will enable ATLAS to house research centers and, if desired, to create a model for faculty affiliation.
In the past five years ATLAS has raised more than $14 million in support for its programs and for the ATLAS Center, a planned 65,000-square-foot educational technology hub at the center of the Boulder campus. The building is currently on hold due to state financial constraints.
ATLAS broadens the benefits of the Information Age by providing multidisciplinary curriculum, research and outreach programs that integrate information technology with a wide variety of disciplines and people, both inside and outside the university, said Bobby Schnabel, director of ATLAS and associate vice chancellor for academic and campus technology. By emphasizing areas and communities that are less commonly partnered with information technology, ATLAS provides a bridge enabling the full potential of information technology to be realized, he said.
ATLAS developed a six-course Technology, Arts and Media certificate program that is now the campus's second largest with about 200 enrolled students and recently began a Multidisciplinary Applied Technologies program. Its Evaluation and Research Group has gained national recognition for research on the effectiveness of technology in K-12 and higher education and on the effectiveness of teaching strategies to interest girls and women in studying information technology.
ATLAS also is leading a national effort to create a National Center for Gender and Information Technology that will address the underrepresentation of women and girls in information technology education and careers. It also is leading the Boulder campus in a partnership with Dillard University, a historically black liberal arts college, that includes an emphasis on the use of technology in undergraduate education.
ATLAS is funded primarily from external sources including the National Science Foundation, the Department of Education, the Colorado Institute of Technology, corporate supporters including Comcast, Avaya, Microsoft, Hewlett-Packard, Apple and Sun Microsystems, private foundations including the Carnegie Corporation and individuals.
"I greatly appreciate the support of the campus and the Board of Regents in designating ATLAS as an institute," said Schnabel. "Institute status will enhance ATLAS' ability to create the programmatic and funding partnerships that are the essence of its approach."