ITS units, directors

Danny M. Kemp is director of Information Systems. A native Mississippian, Kemp has been with the university for nearly 22 years. He began as a programmer in the Administrative Data Processing unit of the Computing Center and was promoted to director of Information Systems in 1996.

The mission of Information Systems is to plan, implement and support administrative information systems throughout the university. These systems range from small departmental applications to the comprehensive SCT Banner system. Information Systems is further organized into Data Administration, Business Systems and Student Systems.

Responsibilities include database administration, system integration, system design, programming, implementation, and on-going maintenance and support of the various systems.

Timothy Griffin, director of Systems and Networks, is an MSU alumnus who has worked at the university for 17 years. Griffin accepted a position in the Computing Center in 1991 and became director of Systems and Networks in September 1998.

Systems and Networks is responsible for planning, deploying and supporting the university's computing, networking and information technology infrastructure. This includes the campus fiber optic/ATM backbone, departmental and building networks, connections to wide-area Internet and compressed video networks, thousands of desktop computers in departments and public computer labs, and large-scale computer, server and information resources.

Dr. Matt R. Raven, director of User Services, has been at Mississippi State for five years. He earned his doctorate from Ohio State University, his master's from Kansas State University and his bachelor's degree from the University of California at Davis. Raven was named director of User Services in March.

User Services is responsible for operation of The Help Desk and User Training and Support. The Help Desk provides the primary point of contact between Information Technology Services and the MSU user community. User Training and Support provides information technology training, consulting, and advisory services to MSU faculty, staff and students.

Thomas R. Lindsay is director of Telecommunications. He is a 1980 graduate of the MSU School of Accountancy and has worked at Mississippi State since 1985. He was appointed director in 1997.

The Telecommunications Department manages the university's telephone system, including local service, long distance and voice mail. Telecommunications provides account setup and administration services for dial-up network access. The department also administers the campus card system, for student/faculty/staff identification, debit card, meal plan, and access control services.