The Information Technology Committee (ITC) represents the evolution of the Information Technology Working Group established in 2010. The main goal of this Committee is to support and provide know-how in order to develop our network’s IT. A new board was elected for this important task and The AEGEEan interviewed them. Meet our ‘nerds’!

Dasha (on the left)

The AEGEEan: Could you introduce the new ITC team?

Dasha Shcherbyna: I have been a member of AEGEE for a year and a half and I already took part in three Agorae and joined the board of AEGEE-Kharkiv. I have a System Analysis and Administration Master Degree and I worked for 8 month as Project Manager in a IT company. I really like being part of ITC, because I am a the only girl on the board team (smiles). Jokes apart, our team is so enthusiastic and experienced and I want to do some really significant steps during our term.

Paul Smits: As one of the Board members of the ITC is a CD member according to the ITC Working Format, I had the opportunity to join in. I might not have the most knowledge on advanced IT things, but as a technical person I know my way around and can talk along to some extent. Unfortunately I have no academic background in hard IT, but also in my studies I learned some object-oriented programming. I am delighted with the new team, as they value the same things in IT solutions for AEGEE as I do.

Maurits Korse: I have been a member of AEGEE for quite some time now and within this period I have been a board member of the PRWG (ed. Public Relations Working Group now Public Relations Committee), member of the Mediation Commission, Key to Europe, Summer Uuniversity Coordination Team (SUCT) and have been involved, on the side, in various projects. On the local level I have been President of AEGEE-Enschede, member of the local IT committee and various other committees.

Ingo Müller: I am from AEGEE-Heidelberg, where I was Vice-President for one year and very active for 3 years, including the IT stuff and statutes rework. I was delegate two times and will most likely be at Agora Oviedo. Furthermore I am in the fourth year of my PhD in Database System in cooperation with a company (SAP).

All: It is cool to be aware that you can do something that matters and to serve the practical needs of the network. And now it is the time in AEGEE when we have a lot of interesting work to do to further improve the IT and the ITC. For example, there is the active development phase of “OMS” (online membership system), improving HR, trying to involve all ITC members in the different elements of the committee. And in general this is the place where we can try, and create an impact. We are young and want to contribute where we really can do it.

Do you have a brand new programme for your committee that you want to share with us?

Maybe it is not so brand new, but now our priority is to get our members active and involve them in the projects and tasks we have for the moment. We hope to involve all the ITC members into the different aspects of the ITC. That is not just making websites, maintaining servers and other nerdy things, but also dive a bit more into Internet Governance and other social issues related to IT. But back to the IT infrastructure. As Board we want to support the active development of OMS, help any AEGEE member with their IT questions and issues. To help everyone, we want to create a knowledge base with manuals and other common questions on IT. Most of this is already present, but over the years they have been put in several places so that the information you need becomes hard to find. So one of the things we want to do is close old and outdated websites and move all useful information to a single place.

Yes, the previous team made a really good job. We are in good connection with the previous board and our active members. They have helped AEGEE to the level where we are now, and are therefore very valuable to us. So we hope to continue the collaboration with them. The most important recommendation from their side was to create a sense of group feeling, so we are exploring options to strengthen the ITC community. A good start was to actually document who is working on what.

What is the current network status?

Ingo

The main tasks of the ITC are divided over various teams. Some of them are:

The Mail team creates aliases, solves issues concerning mailing lists and gives support to the network on the mailing lists.

The OMS developer team is working to replace the current intranet with a reliable and working management system.

The myAEGEE team maintains the current intranet and gives support to the network.

The sysadmin team, manages the IT infrastructure: like maintaining linux servers to host statutory websites, intranet and the antennae websites.

The Head Office team: maintains the Server and IT in the head office and gives support to the Comité Directeur.

The biggest problem now is a mix between an intranet not working (although that’s work in progress) and a server infrastructure that requires specific skills that are difficult to pass on to new members.

What do you think that should be done to fix them?

First off, we hope to find new members, and make our current members enthusiastic for the things that are coming. HR is therefore important. For instance we hope to have continuous OMS development. Next to that we are focusing if the IT in AEGEE can be made less demanding on the available capacity. This way maintenance and development of new awesome tools, or maybe even an true AEGEE mobile app becomes easier!

What is the OMS and its current development status in our network?

Currently a handsome member has moved to the CD house to be the lead developer of this long overdue project: Fabrizio Bellicano.The idea is that more than a product, we need something that would make our members interested in joining us – otherwise we could just have outsourced the development. Why spend AEGEE-Europe money if we have volunteers! For now there are some questions under discussions about management system and other things, such as the supporting infrastructure on which the OMS will be running. Making the right decisions makes the OMS future-proof, eases maintenance while providing new opportunities to make the IT in AEGEE even more awesome.

Mauritz

If you think of AEGEE in 10 years which are the main changes that might happen in the IT?

The ideal situation is to have one system which will contain all functions that can make communications and collaboration as easy on European level as on local level . For example groups, creating events, calendar, comments, chatting, email communication, elections, statutory functions, surveys, custom forms, and other tools. If you have an idea, share it with us so we can put it in the bucket list! In other words, as long as our system is neat and works like a charm, the network can collaborate much better and realise their ideas much quicker. So in 10 years, we as ITC and you as members of AEGEE shouldn’t face the problems that we are facing now!

Are you looking for new members to join your team?

Paul

Of course we will be glad for all new members: fresh ideas and forces. At this moment, for the current tasks we are looking for people who can contribute on developing OMS. Also we need a person who is able to help maintaining one of the servers and has time and knowledge to support other webmasters. But in case you have a good idea, you are also welcome to join and realise it together with us!

So, don’t hesitate and join ITC. It’s a good place to develop yourself, gain experience, get and share knowledge. And if you are afraid that you don’t have enough IT skills, don’t worry, because you don’t necessarily need them, and if you want we can help you learn! To join, you can find our application form right here.

Written by Larisa Smajlagic, AEGEE-Verona

During AEGEE’s European Schools (ES) everyone gets inspired and even more motivated. These trainings have a unique, empowering atmosphere, yet the value of the experience can only be understood after attending one. The Information Technology Committee (ITC) in cooperation with AEGEE-León is organizing an Information Technology European School (ITES) in May, 25-30. The AEGEEan interviewed Giuseppe Colicchia (Peppe), speaker of the ITC as well as Nuria Viñuela Rodríguez, coordinator of the event.

The AEGEEan: The ITC rocks. You all are very dedicated to creating a new OMS (Online Membership System) as well as organizing the next ITES where IT knowledge will be shared and discussed among the participants and trainers. Tell us what this ITES will be about?

Peppe: Taking into account the needs of our association, we’ll try to determine which are common situations where IT resources – in terms of collaboration tools and well known software – could be useful, and how. I guess there’s a common thread within these kind of activities made by IT responsibles (and board members in general) across the network, and sometimes the availability of working examples could help a lot. So, stop reinventing the wheel and let’s share best practices! Teambuilding and knowledge sharing need to be keywords in the Committee: OMS for instance is possible just if we make it sustainable, with proper development and support teams.

The AEGEEan: You became a member of the ITC after ITES 2013. What motivated you in joining and why do you think it was a good decision?
Peppe: Last year’s ITES was organized by AEGEE-Debrecen, where trainers gave a global overview of AEGEE technological infrastructure followed up by global needs (with a set of possible solutions) and topics of general interest. My aim was to know more about the AEGEE world – it was my second event after EBM (European Boards’ Meeting) in Valletta – especially from a point of view that fits with my personal interests. It has been definitely a good decision! That general overview and the concepts learned were the kick start to be active on the European Level, and I still get much more of what I give: this keeps up my motivation!

The AEGEEan: European Schools are always exceptionally intense events of our association. What would you tell to potential applicants why participating is highly recommended?
Peppe: We’ll have not less than 25 hours of lessons, where the curiosity of participants will be satisfied by an open space full of resources. It’s not our intention to further explore a single tool or scripting language, it would be in contrast with the idea behind the event: propose a solutions-oriented approach to help board members solving weekly issues using common instruments. The nature of the event is open, some sessions (a 20%) will be filled on demand and participants will be invited to show ideas and solutions as well: sharing is caring, see you in León!

The AEGEEan: AEGEE-León was selected to host the training event. What should we know about the organising antenna?

Nuria: AEGEE-León is a pretty big antenna, with approximately 100 members, our Summer Universities have been among the highest rated ten for several years now, and we work a lot into the already finished Youth in Action Program and now Erasmus+ (we already had 2 European Volunteers, and we will host an Erasmus placement with us). At the next Agora, Spring Agora Patra, we also will sign a Twin Contract with AEGEE-Catania.
Last year we celebrated our 10th anniversary, and this year, with all our new and motivated members, we are in the best moment to host an event as the ITES is. Last months we hosted an RTC and we are working hard preparing and exchange with more locals and our SU.

The AEGEEan: What can participants expect from the city and the social programme?
Nuria: León was founded as Roman settlement and since that time we have a very rich culture and history that you can feel in all the city, with monuments, the old town, our cathedral, the ancient streets…

León has a good atmosphere since it is a students’ city: during almost all week you can find open places to have fun with your friends, drink a beer or even better, a great wine,  and taste our famous and delicious tapas.

In the social program our participants will see by themselves all these aspects: the cultural side, but also the student nightlife.

The AEGEEan: Tell us, why our readers should not second guess themselves but apply instantly to this great event.
Peppe: Take a look at our webpage: would you say it was made in 15 minutes without any deep knowledge? There are no tricks, just resources to use properly and to adapt to your needs. After the event I’m quite sure you’ll be able to create a page much better than this.

Nuria: Because the ITES is not only going to be a European Training School, it will be an event for sharing, sharing of knowledge, best practices and experiences. It will be a good training for all the participants to be ready, to become more active AEGEEans. Also, the end of May is the most beautiful season to enjoy León and its spirit. :)

Thank you for your answers. It surely is an excellent opportunity to broaden our horizon on IT matters. Grab the chance, check out the event’s website HERE and apply HERE.

Written by Balázs Kovács, AEGEE-Debrecen