%SECTION            Academic Unit
%Country            USA-VA, Richmond
%Shortname          Virginia Commonwealth Univ., Information Systems
%Institution        Virginia Commonwealth University
%Unit               Information Systems Research Institute
%Address            Box 4000 VCU
Richmond, VA 23284-4000 USA
%Phone              (804) 367-1737
%Fax                (804) 367-8884
%Email              jgasen@cabell.vcu.edu
%Contact            Richard T. Redmond
%Updated            1994-04-01
%Degrees            BS, MS, MBA and Ph.D. in Information Systems
%HCI_MS_Theses      0
%HCI_PhD_Theses     2
%HCI_MS_Current     0
%HCI_PhD_Current    3
%Description The Information Systems Department is in the School
of Business at VCU. Degrees offered meet the AACSB requirements
for Schools of Business. The IS department is one of the largest
standalone departments in the country with 20 full time faculty.
Faculty interests are broad and diverse focusing on everything
from group decision support systems to flexible manufacturing and
fuzzy logic.  HCI represents one interest area within the
department.  The IS department also has strong community ties
through its Information Systems Research Institute.
%Facilities The IS department is IBM-based and has:
 * four labs each with 25 workstations (486 window-based machines)
 * 486 priority lab for is department with collaborative software
   and with multimedia capability
 * cooperative arrangements with the communication arts department
   provide access to a virtual reality lab, and several high
   performance Macintosh labs

%SECTION            HCI Program
%Contact            Jean Gasen
%Title              Associate Professor
%Address            Box 4000 VCU
Richmond, VA 23284-4000 USA
%Phone              (804) 367-7128
%FAX                (804) 367-7037
%Email              jgasen@cabell.vcu.edu
%Program The HCI program is supported currently by one graduate
level course and dissertation support. There is no formal
specialization or degree program in HCI.
%Other_Contacts +

%SECTION            HCI Faculty
%Name               Jean Gasen
%Title              Associate Professor
%Degree             Ph.D., 1978, Educational Psychology, U of Wisconsin-Madison;
Post-Bacc. Certificate in Information Systems, 1985, VCU
%Phone              (804) 367-7128
%Email              jgasen@cabell.vcu.edu
%Interests +
 * curriculum and education issues in hci
 * multimedia
 * cognitive aspects of programming
 * computer supported cooperative work
%Publications +
 * Redmond, R.T. and Gasen, J.B. "Measuring change in the
   programming process." International Journal of Man-Machine
   Studies, 1989, 30, 697-711.
 * Redmond, R.T. and Gasen, J.B. "PAST: Exploring the programming
   process." Behavioral Research Methods, Computers, and
   Instrumentation., 1988, 20(5), 503-507.
 * Gasen, J.B. and Morecroft, J.F. "Hemispheric lateralization and
   programming ability." Journal of Educational Computing
   Research, 1990, 6(1), 17-27.

%SECTION            HCI Courses
%Title              Human-Machine Interface Systems
%Number             BUS 659
%Instructor         J. Gasen
%Frequency          every 2 years
%Times_Taught       4
%Enrollment         15-20
%Format             Lecture + exercises + project
%Tools              
%Text +
 * Shneiderman, Designing the User Interface
 * Baecker & Buxton, Readings in HCI
 * Norman, The Design of Everyday Things
%Description Course focuses on factors to consider in designing
information systems for people. Topics follow a user-centered
iterative life-cycle method with emphasis on how a user-centered
approach can be incorporated into the process of system
development.  Projects allow for a diverse student population and
range from comparative evaluation of software to prototype
development. Cooperative projects with the community are arranged
whenever possible.

%SECTION            HCI Courses
%Title              Human Computer Interaction
%Number             BUS 491
%Instructor         J.Gasen
%Frequency          every year
%Times_Taught       1
%Enrollment         12
%Format             Lecture + exercises + project
%Tools              Macintosh - Macromind Director
%Text +
 * Norman, The Design of Everyday Things
 * Preece, Guide to Usability  
 * Hix and Hartson, Developing User Interfaces
%Description The course is designed to introduce advanced
undergraduates to methods of incorporating a human-centered
perspective into the design of interactive systems. The course is
jointly taught with a similar course in the Communication Arts
and Design Department. Multidisciplinary teams of students
develop interactive, multimedia prototypes for non- profit
organizations and centers. Team projects form the core of the
course, with overviews of principles interwoven during the
semester.

%SECTION            HCI Courses
%Title              Technology 2000: Computer Supported Cooperative
Decision-Making
%Number             BUS 691
%Instructor         J. Gasen
%Frequency          every year
%Times_Taught       1
%Enrollment         10
%Format             Lecture + Individual + Group Project
%Tools              Use of e-mail, usenets and internet, demonstrations of
vision quest, aspects, daedelus
%Text +
 * Bostrom, Computer Augmented Teamwork
 * Supplemental Readings
%Description The course is an overview of CSCW issues for
graduate MBA students. The class is focusing on how technology is
being used to  support group communication, collaboration and
communication. Extensive use of videos (SIGRAPH and CSCW)
supplement readings, discussion and hands on demonstrations.
Group projects focus on development of an annotated 
bibliography, listing of commercially available software, and
development of criteria to help others evaluate groupware to meet
task requirements. Simulations and group exercises also help
reinforce key concepts.