Yale Bulletin and Calendar

January 21, 2000

Volume 28, Number 17

Yale's early preparation for Y2K
resulted in smooth transition

On New Year's Eve, Vice President and Secretary Linda K. Lorimer joined a group of Yale colleagues responsible for campus operations at a Command Center at 100 Church Street to await the Year 2000.

The group had assembled to monitor the campus for any problems that might arise due to computers and other devices failing or malfunctioning due to an inability to process the calendar change from 1999 to 2000.

During the first hour of January 1, it became clear that Yale was making a smooth transition to the New Year, with all major functions up and running normally. There were no power outages or failures of any important systems.

According to Yale administrators, a host of measures over several years had turned the looming Y2K problem into a non-event for the University.

Among the major steps taken were the replacement of a number of aging administrative systems that were viewed as "non-compliant" with the Year 2000.

"Many of the computers, systems and devices replaced or upgraded for Y2K compliance were due or overdue for replacement anyway," said Daniel Updegrove, director of Information Technology Services. "In some cases the mandatory Y2K replacement or upgrade was the catalyst for a larger project to re-engineer processes."

Herbert Mudie, manager of Yale's Year 2000 Project, likened the systems overhaul at Yale to purchasing a new, more efficient car rather than continuing to pay for repairs for an old one.

More steps were needed, however, as Nicholas Rawlings, Director of Technology and Planning for Yale ITS, noted in a March 1998 invitation to key staff to join a committee to ensure University-wide Year 2000 compliance:

"As you are aware, the major administrative systems which support Yale have been or are in the process of being replaced by systems which we expect will be Year 2000 compliant: Banner, Benefactor, IDX, Project X, YTMS, et cetera," he wrote. "There are other systems, however, which are not covered by this effort. Some of them are software applications. ... There are likely to be hardware, or so-called imbedded, systems which need to be examined to determine whether or not they will work properly after 2000. We ought to be concerned about them all."

The University subsequently embarked on a comprehensive effort to identify any potential Year 2000 problems at Yale and take the needed remedial action.

By June 1999, Vice President for Finance and Administration Joseph Mullinix and Provost Alison Richard were able to report to the Yale community, "The Year 2000 Project Team has evaluated information from over 500 departmental surveys and assessed how ready each of you were to deal with the transition from 1999 to 2000. Numerous problems were identified and the vast majority have already been corrected."

Remediation efforts, as well as plans to respond to any Y2K problems on the New Year's weekend, continued.

Susan Grajek, associate director of ITS at the School of Medicine, noted that the University also made communicating information about Y2K to faculty, staff and students a major priority.

"At the School of Medicine we used multiple media and forums to communicate objective and relevant Y2K information," she said. "The focus of our communications strategy was on safeguarding research, education and patient care."

Jack Gundrum, director of University Security Programs, summed up Yale's Y2K efforts as follows: early "pioneers" worked to assess Yale's risk; the University's leaders made resources available to reduce the risk; a large team from different sectors of the University assembled to bring about Year 2000 compliance; and the University developed a rapid response plan in the event that unexpected problems materialized.

Mudie, whose job included interaction with government and businesses in preparation for Y2K, discredits the notion that unnecessary time and resources were devoted to the issue.

"There have been a number of Y2K glitches reported around the globe that suggest the magnitude of the problems that could have occurred if Yale and other organizations had not made major commitments to fix their systems," Mudie said.

T H I SW E E K ' SS T O R I E S

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U.S. embargo causing health crisis in Cuba, says physician

University extends Homebuyer Program

Exhibit features new works by Jasper Johns

Dean announces plans to retire

Yale's early preparation for Y2K resulted in smooth transition

Memorial service is scheduled for C. Vann Woodward

Paul Sigler, a pioneer in the field of structural biology, dies

Paul Rand's widow donates artist's personal papers to Yale

Peabody Museum's 'Martian Perspectives' exhibit offers 3-D views of the 'Red Planet'

Yale Opera to perform romantic classic 'La bohème'

British Art Center joining global celebration of legacy of artist and critic John Ruskin

The light of Elie Lascaux shines in JE exhibit of his works

Science Park firm to distribute byproducts of Yale research

Religious values integral to politics, says Ralph Reed says

Art by and about Asian women featured in gallery's display

Center showcases 20th-century art

Performance artist Karen Finley will present her newest work,'Shut Up and Love Me,' at the Rep

Chinese artist's paintings capture 'The Allure of Tibet'

Noted journalist to talk about government as Poynter Fellow

Leading architects to teach and talk at Yale this spring

Library exhibit features work of noted German woodcut artist, illustrator

Memorial concert features award-winning duo

Yale Scoreboard

Lamb to lead Bulldogs field hockey team 'to the next level'

Employees invited to basketball games

Kennedy to discuss 'Global Century' series

Victoria Nolan is honored for her guidance in the arts

Daniel Rosner honored for research on aerosols

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