New IU School of Informatics approved by Indiana Commission for Higher Education

Nov. 12, 1999

BLOOMINGTON, Ind. -- The Indiana Commission for Higher Education voted today (Nov. 12) to approve the creation of Indiana University's new School of Informatics, the university's first entirely new school in more than 25 years. The School of Informatics will leverage the strengths of more than a dozen well-regarded existing departments, programs and research centers that are involved in the study of information science and technology and the roles they play in society.

"A leader will only remain in front as long as it can adapt to change," said IU President Myles Brand. "The switch from a manufacturing-based culture to one that is information-based has had a profound economic and social impact, as well as affecting the ways we educate our students. By creating the School of Informatics, Indiana University is at the forefront of responding to this transformation. In addition, the structure of the school allows us to take advantage of our superb existing resources, while creating a new and innovative academic program that will better prepare students to meet the challenges of our changing society."

The School of Informatics will educate students broadly in the technical, psychological and social aspects of information technology and will help them apply this knowledge to their chosen area of study. For example, a student might combine informatics with journalism and be well prepared for a career in digital media, or combine informatics with psychology and be well prepared for a career in designing computer interfaces. The School of Informatics will include the recently created New Media program that is offered at IUPUI.

"Informatics is one of the fastest-growing new areas of curriculum in higher education," said Kenneth R.R. Gros Louis, IU vice president for academic affairs and chancellor of the Bloomington campus. "National studies show that hundreds of thousands of jobs in information technology went unfilled last year. In addition, a study by the U. S. Department of Labor reports that employers are increasingly looking for computer specialists who are not only technically skilled, but also knowledgeable about the employer's industry. By its very design, the School of Informatics addresses these trends."

J. Michael Dunn, the Oscar Ewing professor of philosophy and a professor of computer science at IU, has been serving as IU director of informatics and is to be appointed dean of the new school. Darrell Bailey, IU professor of music and director of the New Media program at IUPUI, has been serving as associate director and will be appointed associate dean.

The School of Informatics will not replace any existing undergraduate programs, but rather will complement and enhance them. It will allow students who have interests in a wide variety of academic disciplines -- including those not traditionally affiliated with information technology -- to pursue an emerging program of study that is attractive to many employers. The creation of an Informatics Research Institute (IRI), with the aim of supporting collaborative research projects with both internal and external partners, has been recommended. The larger background of the school and IRI will help bring together researchers and should attract the attention of funding agencies.

According to Dunn, the new academic unit is another example of how IU's Bloomington and Indianapolis campuses are working together concerning technology issues. He also noted that the new school will benefit all Hoosiers.

"Indiana's economy and work force have largely been in the manufacturing sector, an area that is losing ground in the United States," Dunn said. "However, by attracting technology research initiatives to Indiana through the school's Informatics Research Institute, the hope is that we will also attract technology-based businesses to the area to strengthen the economy and retain high-paying jobs for Hoosiers."

A one-time grant of approximately $1 million from the third round of IU's Strategic Directions Initiatives funding will provide start-up funds for the new school. This is consistent with the initiative's purpose of advancing areas of academic and research excellence. In addition, the School of Informatics will receive some funding as an integral, educational component of the Indiana Pervasive Computing Research Initiative, which was recently created with a $29.8 million grant from the Lilly Endowment. Additional funding will be sought from other foundations, donors and grants. Permanent funding will be requested from the Indiana State Legislature starting with the 2001-03 biennium.

IU is one of only a handful of schools in the United States to offer undergraduate as well as graduate degrees in informatics. Similar programs have been established overseas at schools such as the University of Edinburgh in Scotland, the University of Manchester in England, and Nagoya University in Japan.

More information about IU School of Informatics can be found at informatics.indiana.edu

(Jennifer McCormick, 812-855-5393, jenmccor@indiana.edu)