Department of Planning and Landscape Architecture
College of Letters & Science

ADMINISTRATIVE POLICIES AND PROCEDURES Chapter 7

Chapter 7 PDF Text

7.  Department Facilities and IT

7.1 Department Facilities and Access

The Department of occupies space in several campus buildings, including Music Hall, Agriculture Hall, and the Ag Bulletin Building. Building access during non-business hours should be coordinated with the Department Administrator or designee.

7.2. Information Technology Policies and Procedures

7.2.1. Music Hall Computer Lab (room 109)

  1. The computer lab will be open to PLA faculty, staff, visiting scholars, students and students taking classes offered in PLA between 8 am to 4:30 pm Monday through Friday unless the lab has been reserved for a departmentally approved use (e.g., a workshop or scheduled course). Access to the lab during reserved times requires advance permission from the instructor/person reserving the lab.  If students need to work after hours, they can obtain a key for the lab from the front office for a refundable deposit of $25 in cash.  Any student leaving the lab after 4:30 pm is responsible for turning off the lights, fans, and air conditioning, closing the window, and closing and locking the door.
  2. The only people allowed to log in to PLA computer lab machines are PLA faculty, staff, visiting scholars, students and those taking classes in PLA or participating in a department approved event.
  3. PLA students have access to department printers as specified in their student handbooks.
  4. The students will not have administrative privileges on the lab computers. This means that students will not be able to install new software or applications on the lab computers.
  5. The PLA IT staff will regularly work with faculty, staff, and the Facilities and IT Committee to make sure the lab hardware and software function properly and will make upgrades as necessary.
  6. If there is need for additional software and/or hardware in the lab, the faculty member or students in need of the software should coordinate with the Facilities and IT Committee.
  7. Except for files assigned for use and provided by the instructor with specific classes (e.g., an assigned data set), individual files should not be stored on URPL Lab computers. Students should use portable drives and/or cloud-based backup systems to store their files.
  8. All files and software on the student computers in the computing lab will be subject to regular clean-ups.  The IT manager and Facilities and IT Committee will provide faculty and students with sufficient advance notice of when clean-ups will occur.
  9. Reserving the computer for class time must be coordinated with PLA staff who will put signs inside and outside of the computer lab.
  10. The department will maintain current software licensing for the computer lab.

7.2.2. Ag Hall and Ag Bulletin Computer Lab/Studio

Policies and procedures for the computer labs and studio spaces in Ag Hall and Ag Bulletin are specified in the student handbook for the BLA Program and in syllabi for courses using those spaces.

7.2.3 Department Website

The DPLA website will be maintained and updated by department staff. Individual profile pages on the website for faculty, students, and related programs are updated by staff.

Any tracking of DPLA web pages (e.g., web page visits, document downloads) will be conducted consistent with UW-Madison policies.

7.2.4. Other PLA computing

Consistent with UW-Madison policies, users of PLA computers will follow good practice for computer and cyber security (see UW-Madison policies and computer security resources).