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CLEVELAND State University is shopping for a projectmanagement company to clean up problems with software from PeopleSoft Corporation, a company it is threatening to sue. Two years ago, Cleveland State was one of the first institutions to begin using the suite of software, which is supposed to keep track of students' academic and financial information.
More than 50 U.S. colleges and universities have bought PeopleSoft's student software and are in various stages of installing it.
University officials say frequent glitches in processing financial-aid and student records using an early version of PeopleSoft's software have frustrated students and hurt faculty and staff members' morale. As a result, besides considering a lawsuit against the company, Cleveland State intends to shift management of the task both to a new company and to another set of university administrators. Several key administrators involved with installing the software have moved to new positions or are leaving the university.
Harold L. Allen, who has been provost and senior vice president for academic and student affairs, has stepped away from the PeopleSoft project and into a new job as senior vice president for research, strategic partnerships, and development. J. Fred Gage, who, as vice provost for information technology and academic innovation, was the PeopleSoft project manager, has left to become vice president for information services at West Chester University of Pennsylvania.
Cleveland State has also hired a new registrar who is an experienced data administrator, and will search for a new director of financial aid as well. In the two years since it began installing the administrative system to keep track of student records, the university has had three financial-aid directors.
By the end of February, Cleveland State officials hope to have hired a new consulting company to complete the installation of the PeopleSoft system. A contract with Kaludis Consulting Group, the original management company, ended a year ago; university officials themselves have managed the project...