George Fox Christian University Improves Access to Student Services and to Data Used for Administrative Decision-Making
 
 

George Fox Christian University Improves Access to Student Services and to Data Used for Administrative Decision-Making

Printer View Printer View

George Fox Christian University is a nationally recognized Christian university based in Oregon that offers bachelor’s degrees in more than 40 majors, adult degree programs, five seminary degrees, and 12 master’s and doctoral degrees. George Fox serves approximately 3,500 students at sites throughout Oregon, including its residential campus in Newberg and campuses in Portland and Salem, as well as in Boise, Idaho.

The university’s enterprise resource planning (ERP) system was nearing end-of-life. In addition, the institution wished to distribute information to students more efficiently and through multiple channels, including desktop and mobile sources. Further, George Fox Christian University needed to map out information access authorizations to all employees to secure data and distribute that data through multiple channels to enhance decision-making.

To meet its goals, George Fox Christian University implemented Oracle’s PeopleSoft applications—including PeopleSoft Campus Solutions Warehouse, PeopleSoft Financials, and PeopleSoft Human Resources. With the implementation, the institution integrated student systems to avoid duplicate student records, streamlining recruiting, admissions, and registration processes. For instance, the implementation enabled the university to automate financial aid packaging and accelerate aid delivery to students by approximately 50%.

In addition, George Fox Christian University established iGFU, a mobile application that enables administrators, staff, and students to access pertinent information from smartphones and tablets. By granting information access via mobile channels, George Fox can now provide its students with important information—including housing and meal plan assignments—and administrators with key budget and human resources data in a timely and efficient manner.

 
 

 
 

Challenges

A word from George Fox Christian University

  • "We are a small but complex institution, which, from an IT perspective, poses tremendous challenges. Oracle’s PeopleSoft applications and the consulting help of MIS, Inc. helped us meet our challenges with a limited IT staff, and to gain a competitive advantage, compared to peer institutions." – Greg Smith, Chief Information Officer, George Fox Christian University

  • Replace unsupported legacy ERP and student information systems with integrated, Web-based applications to support a complex institution with multiple regional campuses and diverse academic programs
  • Improve efficiency and enhance services to constituents, such as distributing housing and meal plan assignments to students
  • Increase reporting granularity and data-sharing capabilities
  • Distribute administrative, staff, and student information and services on mobile platforms
  • Enable easily extracting information for administrators—from desktop and mobile channels—to facilitate greater decision-making

Solutions

Oracle Product and Services

  • Deployed Oracle’s PeopleSoft applications to strengthen student services and improve operational efficiency
  • Worked with Oracle Gold Partner MIS, Inc. to complete the implementation under budget and in 18 months—with only five full-time staff
  • Improved processing for millions of dollars in financial aid each year—including university, federal government, and third-party awards—enabling financial aid advisors to spend more time advising and less time creating packages
  • Automated financial aid packaging and accelerated aid delivery to students by approximately 50%
  • Integrated student systems to avoid duplicate student records—streamlining recruiting, admissions, and registration processes
  • Used PeopleSoft Contributor Relations to better mine donor data to track progress toward fundraising milestones
  • Migrated to an integrated human resources and financials system, improving efficiency and reducing paper use
  • Moved all students—the largest payroll—to direct deposit, saving printing and labor costs
  • Established iGFU, a mobile application that enables administrators, staff, and students to access pertinent information from smartphones and tablets
  • Used PeopleSoft PeopleTools to automate the management of housing and meal plan assignments, which was previously a manual process
  • Enabled better decision-making by providing department leads with timely, accurate data—such as sick leave and budgets—and flexible reporting tools—through desktop and mobile channels
  • Developed role-based security controls to ensure that only administrators have access to budgetary information that concerns their department
  • Used PeopleSoft Portal to implement a single sign-on strategy to enable users to access personalized information across multiple channels from one central location

Why Oracle

“In the higher education industry, competition has reached a point where institutions must have a Web-based platform to address critical back office needs,” said Greg Smith, chief information officer, George Fox Christian University. “Oracle’s PeopleSoft applications are built upon a true Web architecture that facilitates information transmission to students and administrators in an efficient and safe manner.”

Partner

George Fox Christian University worked with Oracle Gold Partner MIS, Inc. on the implementation. Specifically, MIS helped automate the creation of course information within the new ERP system, replacing a previous platform where course data was distributed to students manually. In addition, MIS helped George Fox Christian University complete the implementation within 18 months and under budget.