News: Online MSIM hits the ground; ExxonMobil gift; apps for shopping; fighting flu
The inaugural class of the Online MSIM will be arriving on campus next month for a face-to face orientation. Read more about how the Department of Information Systems and the W. Carey’s online academic services team are developing ways to keep the student experience dynamic. This month’s roundup also includes links to news reports about tech-savvy shopping tips, and an update on research that’s being applied to help fight the flu better and at lower cost.
The inaugural class of the Online MSIM will be arriving on campus next month for a face-to face orientation. Read more about how the Department of Information Systems and the W. Carey’s online academic services team are developing ways to keep the student experience dynamic. This month’s roundup also includes links to news reports about tech-savvy shopping tips, and an update on research that’s being applied to help fight the flu better and at lower cost.
Online MSIM curriculum
The first class of students in the new Online MSIM (master of science in information management) reports to campus for their face-to-face orientation on January 5. Students are coming from metropolitan areas, including Los Angeles, San Francisco and Tucson. “I think the most interesting thing to emerge thus far is how many people travel several days a week as part of their job,” commented faculty director Robert St. Louis. Many live near in-person programs, but the online option helps them manage around their work schedules.
St. Louis said that the orientation session will focus on how to conduct case studies, and how to use available technology to enable class discussions and team activities. “Cases will be analyzed in a face-to-face environment, and then in a distance learning environment to both show how cases should be analyzed, and to demonstrate that rich discussions and team interactions are possible via video conferencing and discussion boards,” St. Louis said.
Sher Downing, who is on the team that is managing the creation of the online classes, said that the courses will use a variety of technology tools to mimic the experiential learning that is the hallmark of the MSIM program offered at the W. P. Carey School’s Tempe campus. Lectures, cases and other kinds of instruction will be delivered via audio and video as well as other methods. And the material will be dynamic, responding to the needs of the group. For example, when professors notice that the group needs help with a concept he can — with the support of the online team — record snippets of video or audio that explains the material. Downing said the curriculum is loaded with technology applications that will facilitate discussions and will allow groups to work as teams — even interacting with other groups.
For more information about joining the inaugural class, or applying for the cohort that starts in August, see our website or email us at onlinemsim@asu.edu.
ExonMobil gift: Supporting student opportunities
Professor Robert St. Louis recently accepted an $11,000 gift from ExxonMobil Corporation, presented recently by company representative Joe Killalea (at right in photo). Department Chairman Michael Goul explained that the funds are used to support opportunities for undergraduate students, including travel to competitions such as CaseIT and to best practice learning events provided by the Association for Information Management. It’s also been used to bring speakers in for the new Women in IT club, and to sponsor meetings of the new student ambassador group. The W. P. Carey School of Business was one of 81 colleges and universities to receive grants to support programs from which ExxonMobil recruits employees. The company is a member of the department’s Executive Advisory Board, and offers information systems students opportunities to develop their careers through internships and post-graduation jobs.
Apps for smart shoppers
If you’re still prowling the stores in search of that perfect gift, information systems professor Julie Smith David has some recommendations to make your shopping easier and more efficient. In two interviews on NBC Channel 12 in Phoenix, she demonstrated smart phone apps that help shoppers scope out the best deals and compare prices. BFAds was targeted at the Black Friday rush, updating prices and offering a search that showed where a particular product was being sold and at what price. Shop Savvy can be used all year — it’s a bar code scanner that instantly displays the price of that product in nearby stores. Watch the interview On Cyber Monday she scanned the Internet for the best deals.
Dropping the cost of fighting the flu
Professors Ajay Vinze and Raghu Santanam have been working with the Maricopa County Department of Public Health to develop a computer model that epidemiologists and public health officials can use to help them make decisions about vaccination strategies. “We considered how the flu is contracted, how it spreads, the risk of certain segments of the population getting the disease, as well as people’s activities at different times of day, and many other factors,” Vinze said. “Then, we created two software programs to help public health officials make good decisions, using a realistic environment to evaluate different approaches.” The two programs are part of the EPIPLANZ system, with its name derived from “epi” for epidemiology, and “planz” for the planning and policy development aspect.
Last month, the researchers presented preliminary findings showing that the county can save big by focusing flu-vaccine efforts early in the flu season, with a stronger emphasis on children and seniors. Bob England, director of the Maricopa County Public Health Department reports that over $100 million tax dollars could be saved. “Finally, we are able to quantify through modeling just how big a deal flu really is in our community,” England said. Read the story
The first class of students in the new Online MSIM (master of science in information management) reports to campus for their face-to-face orientation on January 5. Students are coming from metropolitan areas, including Los Angeles, San Francisco and Tucson. “I think the most interesting thing to emerge thus far is how many people travel several days a week as part of their job,” commented faculty director Robert St. Louis. Many live near in-person programs, but the online option helps them manage around their work schedules.
St. Louis said that the orientation session will focus on how to conduct case studies, and how to use available technology to enable class discussions and team activities. “Cases will be analyzed in a face-to-face environment, and then in a distance learning environment to both show how cases should be analyzed, and to demonstrate that rich discussions and team interactions are possible via video conferencing and discussion boards,” St. Louis said.
Sher Downing, who is on the team that is managing the creation of the online classes, said that the courses will use a variety of technology tools to mimic the experiential learning that is the hallmark of the MSIM program offered at the W. P. Carey School’s Tempe campus. Lectures, cases and other kinds of instruction will be delivered via audio and video as well as other methods. And the material will be dynamic, responding to the needs of the group. For example, when professors notice that the group needs help with a concept he can — with the support of the online team — record snippets of video or audio that explains the material. Downing said the curriculum is loaded with technology applications that will facilitate discussions and will allow groups to work as teams — even interacting with other groups.
For more information about joining the inaugural class, or applying for the cohort that starts in August, see our website or email us at onlinemsim@asu.edu.
ExonMobil gift: Supporting student opportunities
Professor Robert St. Louis recently accepted an $11,000 gift from ExxonMobil Corporation, presented recently by company representative Joe Killalea (at right in photo). Department Chairman Michael Goul explained that the funds are used to support opportunities for undergraduate students, including travel to competitions such as CaseIT and to best practice learning events provided by the Association for Information Management. It’s also been used to bring speakers in for the new Women in IT club, and to sponsor meetings of the new student ambassador group. The W. P. Carey School of Business was one of 81 colleges and universities to receive grants to support programs from which ExxonMobil recruits employees. The company is a member of the department’s Executive Advisory Board, and offers information systems students opportunities to develop their careers through internships and post-graduation jobs.
Apps for smart shoppers
If you’re still prowling the stores in search of that perfect gift, information systems professor Julie Smith David has some recommendations to make your shopping easier and more efficient. In two interviews on NBC Channel 12 in Phoenix, she demonstrated smart phone apps that help shoppers scope out the best deals and compare prices. BFAds was targeted at the Black Friday rush, updating prices and offering a search that showed where a particular product was being sold and at what price. Shop Savvy can be used all year — it’s a bar code scanner that instantly displays the price of that product in nearby stores. Watch the interview On Cyber Monday she scanned the Internet for the best deals.
Dropping the cost of fighting the flu
Professors Ajay Vinze and Raghu Santanam have been working with the Maricopa County Department of Public Health to develop a computer model that epidemiologists and public health officials can use to help them make decisions about vaccination strategies. “We considered how the flu is contracted, how it spreads, the risk of certain segments of the population getting the disease, as well as people’s activities at different times of day, and many other factors,” Vinze said. “Then, we created two software programs to help public health officials make good decisions, using a realistic environment to evaluate different approaches.” The two programs are part of the EPIPLANZ system, with its name derived from “epi” for epidemiology, and “planz” for the planning and policy development aspect.
Last month, the researchers presented preliminary findings showing that the county can save big by focusing flu-vaccine efforts early in the flu season, with a stronger emphasis on children and seniors. Bob England, director of the Maricopa County Public Health Department reports that over $100 million tax dollars could be saved. “Finally, we are able to quantify through modeling just how big a deal flu really is in our community,” England said. Read the story
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