This policy applies to computers used primarily by faculty in their offices and related work spaces. It does not pertain to computing equipment in student work spaces, laboratories, etc.
General Note: Faculty who hold a half-time position or greater, whether tenure track or visiting, are provided by the College with a single computer for their office or related workspace. Tenure track faculty are provided with new computers; visiting faculty are generally provided with recycled computers. All computers for faculty that are funded by the College are the property of the College, not the property of the faculty member. College-funded computers must be purchased through the College.
Specific Policies:
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Standard Models: Faculty can choose between a standard model laptop or desktop Macintosh or Windows/Linux PC in consultation with the IT department. The standard model is selected by the IT department in collaboration with the Academic Computing Committee to provide computers powerful enough to meet the needs of most faculty members for four years. Faculty with high-end computing needs should consult with the IT department about the best options or alternatives to the standard model.
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Replacement: Only one computer per faculty member (not including adjunct faculty) is included in the College's four-year replacement cycle. If a faculty member uses a portion of their "start-up" funding (or any other non-recurring funding source, e.g., a grant) to purchase a second computer or computing peripherals (e.g., scanner, digital camera) through the College, this computing equipment is not eligible for replacement unless the faculty member has grant funds for this purpose or made prior agreements with the College.
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Maintenance and Repair: The College will pay for repairs and maintenance on a single College-owned computer for four years. If the repair is expensive and the computer is more than three years old, the College may choose to replace it rather than repair the computer.
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Use at Home: A faculty member's College-owned computer, either desktop or laptop, can be used at home. If a faculty member wishes to set up a College-owned desktop computer at home, they should first consult with IT.
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Use by Others: College-owned computers, either desktop or laptop, should not be used regularly by other people (e.g., family members), and should not be loaded with software that is unrelated to the faculty member's professional work.
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Use during Leave: A faculty member's College-owned computer, either desktop or laptop, can be used while the faculty member is on leave regardless of location. Faculty members are responsible for any costs or damage associated with transporting their College-owned computer to/from an off-campus location, and for making any shipping arrangements. If a faculty member wishes to transport a College-owned desktop computer to an off-campus location while on leave, they should inform the department chair and then consult with IT.
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Retired Faculty: Any retired faculty member who maintains an office on campus is provided with a recycled computer to be used exclusively in the office or area.
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Termination of Appointment: All College-owned computers, whether desktop or laptop, and any other computing equipment (e.g., printers, scanners, digital cameras, docking stations), must be returned to the College at the conclusion of a faculty member's appointment. It is the faculty member's responsibility to arrange for the return of all computing equipment. Similarly, for continuing faculty, once a computer is replaced the old one must be returned to the IT department.
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Support for Personally Owned Computers: The IT department of the College provides support to faculty for personally owned computers if the need is work-related and if they have purchased one of the standard models of the College. The IT department will not provide on-site (e.g., at one's home) support or service for personally owned computers. The faculty can rely on the college's IT staff to answer questions about compatibility between personally owned computers and Bowdoin's computing systems (e.g., to be able to access the Bowdoin wired and wireless network, receive email at home, or to easily use files generated on one's office computer at home and vice-versa). Support for connecting to the campus network and for setting up an email account is also available on-line.
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No-Interest Loan Program: In order to facilitate the acquisition of personally owned home computers by eligible employees, the College makes available a no-interest loan option for computer purchases.
This policy applies to computers used primarily by faculty in their offices and related workspaces. It does not pertain to computing equipment in student workspaces, laboratories, etc.