Over the course of the past year, Dartmouth has been thrust into the national spotlight on numerous occasions on account of a collegiate technology infrastructure that counts itself among the best in the country.
Dartmouth was profiled on three occasions in The New York Times, was the subject of an article for Wired Magazine and made news in several other multimedia and higher education journals. Stories have included a profile on the recent introduction of softphones to the campus network, wireless expansions and Dartmouth's unique BlitzMail electronic mail client, which was developed by Dartmouth engineers in the late 1960s.
Director of Computing Lawrence Levine admitted that the expectation of continual innovation in the ever-emerging technology field is high. "At Dartmouth, it's not a matter of if, but rather when and what," Levine said.
The trend toward new campus technology began when former President John Kemeny and Professor Emeritus of Mathematics and Computing Science Thomas Kurtz invented the BASIC computer language and created the Dartmouth time-sharing system. These and other achievements brought Dartmouth to the forefront of academic computing. The first computer arrived on campus roughly 50 years ago.
More recently, though, Dartmouth has received attention for breakthroughs in communication technologies. According to Levine, the dedication to develop greater communication possibilities is a response to the College's geographic isolation. "We're in the proverbial middle of nowhere," he said.
As Dartmouth introduces new technologies for public use on campus, it is attracting the attention of onlookers from across the nation. For the College, the publicity generated as a result of these innovations can be just as important as innovations themselves.
Acknowledging that "Dartmouth has a longstanding reputation as a place where technological innovation has taken place," Vice President for Public Affairs William Walker explained that it is in the College's best interest to proudly direct the national spotlight on its achievements.
Collaborating with academic computing and Levine, while keeping a close eye on the impact technology has on faculty and students on campus, Walker and his staff have been working for over a year to bring attention to the College. "We're illustrating why the technology revolution is important, and it's happening right here at Dartmouth. It's a worthy cause to publicize," Walker said.
In order for Walker to achieve his goal of drawing attention to Dartmouth, he depends on his office to develop and maintain strong relationships with leading news sources. One source with which they have had particular success is The New York Times. Walker said that getting news from Hanover to one of the nation's most prestigious newspapers is always one of his office's greatest achievements.
The Dartmouth media strategy is to focus on current, exemplary aspects of the Dartmouth community and publicize them over a set period of time, and when satisfied, highlight another area of interest, Walker said. That focus can also be directed by initiatives brought forth within the community. When President James Wright championed diversity at last year's Convocation, the Office of Public Affairs followed with a national campaign to highlight diversity on the Dartmouth campus.
It is unclear how long the technology frenzy on campus will be the subject of national news. It is clear, however, to Levine that whether or not his work is highly visible, he will continue to follow a trend that has existed at Dartmouth for half a century. "Just wait and see what's next," Levine said.