MINUTES
COURT TECHNOLOGY COMMITTEE
December 7, 2007
Members Participating
Dale Sandstrom, Chair
Becky Absey
Donna Fair
Bill Herauf
Sally Holewa
Joel Medd
Penny Miller
Frank Racek
Guests
Jim Gienger, Project Manager for UCIS Replacement Project
Brandi Fagerland, ITD Large Project Oversight Analyst
Allan Schmalenberger, Chair, Operations Oversight Group, was present for the first 30 minutes
of the meeting
Staff
Mike Sampson, Programmer Analyst
The chair called the meeting to order.
Approval of Minutes
Judge Medd moved/Judge Herauf seconded that the minutes be approved. A vote was taken and the
motion carried.
New Director of Technology
Sally Holewa reported that interviews were held and the position was offered to a candidate who
declined. The position will be re-advertised.
Status Report - Unified Court Information System Replacement Project
Mike Sampson presented a demonstration of the SharePoint product. Judge Racek moved/Judge
Herauf seconded that all judges and court employees be given owner rights to the discussion sections
of SharePoint and viewer rights to the rest of the site. A vote was taken and the motion carried.
Sally Holewa reported that the Project Plan was approved by ITD today, and we are officially
approved to begin the UCIS Replacement Project. Jim Gienger reported on the progress of the
project to date. He emphasized that the Project Plan is a living document that will be updated as we
move through the project. Brandi Fagerland, Large Project Oversight Analyst for ITD, commented
that the court was on target with this project and the way it was set up. It was decided that Sally
Holewa should send an e-mail progress report to all court users to indicate the status of the project
and to explain the portfolio groups further.
In response to a question, Jim Gienger indicated that the SharePoint site was set up so any discussion
could occur on the main page. Portfolio leaders will monitor the page and move discussions into a
portfolio as needed. Sally Holewa said she is working with Mike Sampson to write descriptions of
each portfolio. Aglae Young is developing instructions for accessing and moving around
SharePoint. These instructions will go out in the e-mail notification when SharePoint is ready.
Judge Racek expressed concern that the goals of the project have not been identified and relayed to the portfolio members or the other members of the court system. He said it was necessary to do this so everyone was clear on what to look for when defining requirements for the new system. For example, he suggested better business practices, new business practices, active interfaces rather than data warehousing, and electronic accessibility might be some goals that portfolio members should be weighing as they document current business practices. Sally Holewa indicated that she would put that concern on the agenda for the next Operational Oversight Committee agenda.
Status Report - Bulk Data Distribution
Sally Holewa reported that a program had been written to allow us to begin bulk data distribution. Jim Loomis, who served on the AR 41 subcommittee, has been selected as the test company to receive the data. The first transfer occurred approximately 2 weeks ago. At this time, we are still awaiting feedback from him. Mike Sampson explained that the data is actually sent as two separate files, one for criminal and one for civil. The data includes all publicly accessible cases, and includes dates of birth and street addresses. Provided that the feedback from Mr. Loomis is positive, we are ready to offer this as a service to others who are interested in it.
Status Report - Wireless Technology Pilot Project
Sally Holewa reported that the pilot test sites will be New Rockford and Jamestown. At this point
we are only waiting for ITD to follow through with the wiring required for the sites. It is anticipated
that they will be able to do this sometime in January. In response to a question by Judge Medd, she
indicated that the purpose of the pilot was to establish a wireless connection for attorneys in the
courtroom. It is not intended to provide complete wireless coverage for the court system in those
locations.
Term Expiration/Limit - Judge Nelson
Justice Sandstrom indicated that Judge Nelson's term will expire at the end of the year and that he
is ineligible for reappointment due to term limits. He asked committee members to forward him the
names of district judges who may be interested in serving on the committee.
Other
Rather than just having quarterly meetings, it was decided that we should hold bimonthly meetings
during the UCIS Replacement Project.
The next meeting will be on February 1, 2008, at 9:30 a.m. in the Supreme Court Front Conference Room.
Meeting adjourned.
Respectfully submitted,
Sally Holewa