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Calvin ready for Y2K For Calvin students returning to Grand Rapids next year, problems related to the year 2000 should not prove to be a significant issue. Henry De Vries, vice president for information services, said that “Calvin has already been aware of the Y2K problem for several years,” and is well on the way to being prepared for the beginning of the year 2000. De Vries explained that a Y2K Task Force was created to deal with the issue. In its February report to the Board of Trustees, the Task Force described its mandate “to insure that Calvin College and Calvin Theological Seminary are appropriately prepared for the advent of Y2K.” One of the primary things done to deal with the issue was the identification of 300-400 systems on campus that might be affected by the change to the year 2000. Systems were rated according to criticality, from critical to low. According to De Vries, most of the systems rated “critical” and “high” have already been approved compliant. For example, Colleague, the system used for grades, payroll and budgeting, has already been compliant for two years. Many of the systems rated “low” or “medium” are already compliant, and others, such as “Just Grandma & Me,” have been given a “wait and see” status. Other systems, such as the sprinkler system – which is not a necessary service in January – have been put on the back burner for now. Computers will also undergo what has been called “The One Big Visit” this summer. This “Visit” will involve technicians physically visiting and testing each computer on campus. Calvin has also spoken with the gas and electric companies and the bank to discuss Y2K issues. According to sophomore Daniel Lindh, assistant manager at the Internet Technology Centre, “I really don’t think that too much is going to happen. The computers we have on campus won’t be affected because they are recently purchased. What might affect Calvin is if the software they’re running is up to date.” De Vries said, “I’m confident that there’s going to be minimal impact on our campus.” He gave three reasons why he is not greatly worried about the year 2000. “One, it happens on a Saturday. Two, we’re closed that weekend because it’s a holiday. Three, we have very few people who depend on life-safety services on campus over the break – only the presidents of the campus and seminary, and perhaps several RD’s.” According to Director of Off-Campus Programs Frank Roberts, faculty in charge of off-campus interim programs have been asked not to leave before January 5. Other schools have taken far more dramatic approaches, said Roberts. For example, Taylor University in Indiana has cancelled all off-campus interims during the month of January. Technical preparation is not the only reason for his confidence about the year 2000, said De Vries. “Fundamentally, I refuse to believe that providence will stop because we’re flipping a calendar page. We have faith in a big ‘G’ God.” There are about a dozen people working on the Y2K issue at Calvin. When all said and done, the extra cost to Calvin will probably be less than $25,000, said De Vries. |
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