Part I. Personal Information and Demographic Data
Applicant Full Name
Michael PortilloApplicant Title
Information Technology ConsultantInstitution or System
Information Technology Services at California State University, San BernardinoAddress for Official Correspondence
1464 South Pine AvenueTrack of interest
Any track (English or Spanish)Languages
Fully BilingualHave teach an online course in the past three years
NoHave taken an online course in the past three years
NoHave you been in charge of an instructional technology initiative
NoHave you been in charge of a distance education initiative
NoYears of experience in Higher Education
6-10 yearsPart II. Education
Highest Earned Degree
Master’s Degree; MPACollege/University
California State University, San BernardinoField/Major
Public Administration/Cyber SecurityNext Highest Earned Degree
Bachelor’s degreeCollege/University
California State University, San BernardinoField/Major
Business/ManagementOther Degrees Earned
N/ACollege/University
N/AField/Major
Business/ManagementPart III. Experience
Present Responsibilities
Responsible for providing technical support for the 200+ SMART media-enhanced classrooms throughout the university. Ensure that all media hardware and software are optimally working for instructional use. Install, integrate and maintain the media equipment in the classrooms: to include but not limited to data projection systems, DVD players, computer hardware/software systems, cabling infrastructure and AV control systems. Troubleshoot technical issues related to the integration of the media-enhanced technologies and report issues to the Audio Video Classroom Support team for further analysis if needed. Replace consumables like projection lamps and batteries for use in wireless microphones and remote control units.
Assist end-users with computer hardware and software issues and troubleshoot problems as part of the TSC Call Center team. Provide consultative analysis of user needs in areas such as email, file systems, Windows software applications, OS and software installation, and virus protection. Upgrade, maintain, and repair computer hardware and software and provide technical troubleshooting support.
Academic and Professional Distinctions and Honors
President’s Team Achievement awards 2020 – Issued to my department; The Technology Support Center for our expertise and diligence in moving our students, faculty and staff to the virtual working environment literally overnight during the corona virus pandemic.
Civil and Community Activities
Church Audio Visual Technician
Professional Goals
Continue to excel in a rapid developing Higher Education work environment
Return to school to pursue a PhD or consider beginning teaching
Take on a leadership role within my Organization
Please explain what you expect to gain by participating in the H-LTLA
I hope to gain a higher level of understanding of the knowledge and skills that will be shared from the leaders that will be speaking/presenting during the program. I am a strong believer that in order to be successful you need learn from the past and build upon what has already been proven to work. In other words, it is not about reinventing the wheel but more so how can I contribute to build upon what has already been established and make it better on all levels.
Part IV. Professional References
Professional Reference #1
Jim O’Linger
Chief Technology Support Officer
California State University, San Bernardino
(909) 537-5470
jolinger@csusb.edu
Professional Reference #2
Brandon Sierra
Assistant Director for Technology Support Center
California State University, San Bernardino
(909) 537-3476
bsierra@csusb.edu
Professional Reference #3
Bruce Hagan
Director of Technology Operations & Cloud Services
California State University, San Bernardino
(909) 537-4242
bruce.hagan@csusb.edu
Upload a letter from a president, chancellor, or cabinet-level administrator stating the nominee’s qualifications for the program, leadership strengths, and development opportunities.
https://hets.org/wp-content/uploads/formidable/145/HETS-Letter-of-Support-MPortillo.pdfPart V. Initiative and Mentor
Upload a letter describing a project that you will consider implementing at your campus or organization on any of the areas of the Program with the name of your Mentor. Your Mentor can be different from your references and should be a staff with experience in the area selected. The Mentor information will be submitted with the signature to confirm the availability to guide the implementation of your campus initiative.
https://hets.org/wp-content/uploads/formidable/145/HETS-Letter-of-Project-MPortillo-Signed-Mentor.pdfPart VI. Statement of Purpose
1. From your perspective, what are the top three issues facing higher education today? Why?
The top three issues facing higher education today is the rising cost of tuition, lack of hybrid online taught courses and skill/knowledge gap. With regards to the first issue, there is no denying that over the last decade across the nation tuition rates have gone up. While considering such factors as inflation and the cost of living, the rise in tuition costs is expected, however many argue that it has increased at an alarming rate. For students of color, this has always been a defining factor as many students come from lower income communities. Although, there are solutions to mitigate the issue such as financial aid in the form of loans, scholarships and grants not all students qualify and more importantly students are often not educated to know how to manage their finances and often end up getting in large sums of debt. With regards to the second issue, over the past few years we have seen a slow adoption of hybrid both in class and online taught courses, while demand for them has out grown the supply. With the unprecedent event such as the corona virus pandemic has shown to be many if not all, higher education institutions were forced to speed up the adoption of this concept. As a result, I suspect this leading to a shift in how higher education conducts teaching within a classroom. As highlighted in the project we are implementing at our campus, students will now have the flexibility of attending courses in person and virtually. With regards to the third issue is that not all Staff and Faculty posses the same level of knowledge and skills. This at times can hinder the educational development for our students. I am an avid believer in that you should never stop learning and my hopes is that all those that work in higher education would feel the same.
2. What are your own institution’s priorities and challenges with regard to leveraging instructional technology and distance education for the benefit of the entire organization?
At the moment, my institutions priorities are to be best prepared for the transition that our students, faculty and staff will undergo while returning back to an in-person learning/working environment. One of the challenges we face is how do we maintain our service level agreements with the campus community while also being considerate of those who are unable to return. For our staff, there are current discussions taking place for an adoption of a telecommuting policy being implemented. For our faculty and students, we have already begun the upgrade to our classrooms across campus to be upgrade to be able to offer a hybrid teaching style, both in person and virtual. I believe that offering more options on how to conduct business will always benefit the entire organization.
3. If have the influence to instill change at your Institution, was one thing you could change, what would that be; and what is the unique aspect of your institution you would like to keep?
If I was given the influence to instill change at my institution I would push for the change of adopting more flexible ways of getting things done. What I mean by this is I would advocate that we try new things out that show proof that they will increase things such moral, efficiency and overall productivity. This would be applied to the entire campus community. The underlying initiative here is to promote innovation by introducing other forms of arriving the same end result. In education we have come to learn that when you step back and see things from a different perspective you gain a more in-depth understanding and that’s the type of change I would like to instill. As for a unique aspect at my institution that I would like to keep, it would most certainly be the sense of comradery that exists throughout. Although I am sure other institutions poses some degree of this as well, I often here it is very evident and in abundance at my institution. It’s a very welcoming sense of team work and family and that is priceless.