Oracle Cloud Helps Schools Embrace the Next Era of Higher Education

AUSTIN, Texas, Jan. 19, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- Colleges and universities continue to face a wave of change, from the adoption of remote learning and working to more distributed academic research models. To be able to quickly adapt in the face of adversity, leading higher education institutions are looking to Oracle Cloud. With Oracle Cloud for Higher Education, including Oracle Cloud Infrastructure (OCI), Oracle Fusion Cloud Applications, and Oracle Student Cloud, schools including Bowie State University, Butler Community College, Coppin State University, Skidmore College, and University of Pittsburgh are simplifying business processes, maximizing resources, and better supporting their students and staff.

"Over the past year, higher education institutions have had to find new, creative ways to offer their services while staying focused on what matters most: the academic success and safety of students and faculty," said Vivian Wong, group vice president of Higher Education Development, Oracle. "With Oracle, colleges of all sizes and disciplines can easily take advantage of the latest innovations in the cloud to drive efficiencies and make well-informed decisions."

Bowie State University 
Founded in 1865, Bowie State University in Bowie, Maryland supports more than 6,000 students. Ninety-percent of Bowie's first-year undergraduates receive financial aid, so it's crucial that the process is as smooth as possible. When the university's financial aid processes started to hinder the student experience and divert staff's time, Bowie State decided to modernize the process with Oracle. With Oracle Student Financial Planning (SFP), part of Oracle Student Cloud, they will be able to eliminate inefficiencies for staff and empower students to secure available resources to ensure their success.

"We are dedicated to removing financial barriers that too often prevent students from pursuing or completing a degree, but our financial aid system wasn't adequately contributing to that vision," said Maurice Tyler, Vice President for Information Technology and CIO, Bowie State University. "Oracle Student Financial Planning will enable staff to focus on higher value work and spend more time engaging directly to promote access to aid and student success."

Butler Community College
With eight campuses across South Central Kansas, Butler Community College serves 7,000 students. The college will move their Ellucian Banner system and other third-party applications to OCI to consolidate hardware, save time and money currently spent patching systems, and take advantage of enhanced security features.

Coppin State University 
Since its inception in 1900, Baltimore-based Coppin State University (CSU) has had a clear mantra: students first. Today, the university serves thousands of students from diverse ethnic, religious, and socio-economic backgrounds. With Oracle Student Financial Planning, the university will be able to make the financial aid process easier and less uncertain for students.

"Our focus at Coppin is to transform our students' experience," said Ahmed El-Haggan, CIO and VP of Information Technology, Coppin State University. "With Oracle Student Financial Planning, we can offer our students an easier digital experience and increased visibility into their college financial planning. This will support them in making better informed decisions with improved outcomes, helping ensure they reach their educational goals."

Skidmore College
Skidmore College, located in Saratoga Springs, New York, is among the top 50 liberal arts colleges in the U.S. The college implemented Oracle Cloud ERP and Oracle Cloud HCM to create an automated and unified back-office experience. With the applications, Skidmore College will be able to eliminate manual processes, reduce costs associated with maintaining legacy systems, and improve the productivity and performance of its finance and HR functions.

"The past year has magnified the need to be agile to support changing business models and initiatives," said Dwane Sterling, chief technology officer, Skidmore College. "With Oracle, we're creating a genuinely automated back-office experience that connects the dots between departments, enabling us to become more responsive, and financially and operationally efficient."

University of Pittsburgh 
The University of Pittsburgh, one of the nation's top public institutions for higher education and research, has implemented Oracle Cloud HCM to provide a better experience for staff and faculty. With Oracle Cloud HCM, University of Pittsburgh employees can complete HR tasks more efficiently and with greater accuracy. For example, the university's administrative users can log in to the online HR portal, see the status of a request and where it is in the approval cycle to identify delays and quickly address issues. The university can also benefit from improved employee visibility with enhanced workforce analytics.

"As a leading research university, it's crucial for us to constantly innovate and stay ahead in the industry. Our people are the essential link in ensuring that happens," said Michelle Fullem, acting assistant vice chancellor, HR operations, University of Pittsburgh. "Our previous on-premises HR systems weren't built to keep pace with the speed of change we're seeing today. Adopting Oracle Cloud HCM allows us to take immediate advantage of the latest tech enhancements to continually improve efficiencies in our HR processes while providing a great experience to our staff."

To learn more about how Oracle Cloud is helping higher education institutions, tune into Oracle's Virtual Summit: Charting the Future of Higher Education.

Oracle Cloud Applications for Education
Oracle Fusion Cloud Applications Suite offers a fully integrated suite of cloud applications to run every part of a university including Oracle Fusion Cloud Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP), Oracle Fusion Cloud Enterprise Performance Management (EPM), Oracle Fusion Cloud Supply Chain Management & Manufacturing (SCM), Oracle Fusion Cloud Human Capital Management (HCM), and Oracle Fusion Cloud Advertising & Customer Experience (CX). Oracle Student Cloud also provides universities comprehensive tools to manage the entire student relationship, from recruiting and financial aid, to engagement and support. To learn more visit: https://www.oracle.com/industries/higher-education/

About Oracle
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SOURCE Oracle