Earl C. Parks Jr., 2014 Honoree

- Title
- Executive director, Gallaudet Technology Services
- Employer
- Gallaudet University
- Location
- Washington
- New titles in your IT organization:
- Information security analyst, IT/AV/media project manager, software systems and engineering manager.
- A career highlight:
- I believe I may be the first and only deaf CIO in a higher education setting.
- Quick ROI project:
- After a failure of traditional communication pathways, a process to cull emergency/alternate contact information was initiated and is ongoing. Redundant systems, cloud-based communication platforms, were put in place. An alternate Web presence to keep our community informed in times when primary systems or channels are offline has been set up.
- How are you building an IT department for the future?
- Cross-unit collaboration and general IT governance processes are vital to the success of IT. Shared governance is integral to how the university reaches consensus on goals and priorities, and in addressing challenges. A panel called the Technology Advisory Council was created with the active participation of the IT leadership team and the university community.