Center for Information Technology

The Center for Information Technology (CIT) is an agency of the United States Federal Government. CIT, first established in 1964 as the Division of Computer Research and Technology (DCRT), provides the technological and computational support and services for the NIH community.

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Mission

CIT's mission is to provide, coordinate, and manage information technology and to advance computational science. CIT supports NIH's research and management programs with efficient, cost-effective information systems, networking services, and telecommunications services. Among its activities, the CIT:

• engages in collaborative research and provides collaborative support to NIH investigators in the area of computational bioscience;
• provides efficient, cost-effective information systems and networking services;
• provides state-of-the-art scientific and administrative computing facilities;
• identifies new computing technologies with innovative applications to biomedical research;
• creates, purchases, and distributes software applications;
• provides NIH staff with computing information, expertise, and training;
• provides data processing and high-performance computing facilities, integrated telecommunications data networks, and services to the U.S. Department of Health and Human Service (DHHS) and other Federal agencies;
• serves as a data center to HHS and other Federal agencies; and
• develops, administers, and manages NIH systems and provides consulting services to NIH Institutes and Centers (ICs), in support of administrative and business applications.

History

1954 — A central data processing facility was established in the Office of the Director, NIH, under Dr. Harold Dorn, combining EAM (punched card) equipment and biometric expertise.

1956 — The biometric facility became the Biometrics Branch in the new Division of Research Services (DRS).

May 1956 — The NIH Director established a committee on electronic data processing and computers.

1958 — NIH installed its first electronic digital computer as an experimental device.

March 1960 — The Surgeon General approved the establishment of a Computation and Data Processing Branch in DRS.

October 1961 — NIH installed its first “second generation” computer.

April 1963 — The NIH Director appointed a steering committee to undertake a comprehensive study of data processing activities at NIH. The NIH steering committee recommended the establishment of a Division of Computer and Information Sciences (subsequently changed to the Division of Computer Research and Technology (DCRT), including provision for the transfer of the Computation and Data Processing Branch, DRS, to the new organization.

1964 — DCRT was established, with James King as Interim Acting Director.

1966 — Dr. Arnold W. Pratt was named DCRT's first Director.

April 1966 — Components of the “third-generation” computer system were installed.

April 1969 — NIH research community received the first time-sharing computers.

June 1969 — Minicomputers designed by the DCRT were installed in NIH laboratories.

May 1979 — An interagency agreement between HEW and GSA established the NIH Central Computer Utility as a Federal Data Processing Center.

April 1983 — The Personal Workstation Project was founded to determine how effectively NIH personnel could use personal computers.

1988 — The Convex Unix-based supermini-computer was installed, and the network task group was created.

1990 — Extensive networking (NIHnet) was installed at NIH, providing connectivity for 60 local area networks.

March 1992 — Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS) Secretary Louis Sullivan, in a letter to Congress, committed to creating a new office to improve management and coordination of NIH's information resources.

June 1992 — The NIH Director approved creation of the Office of Information Resources Management (OIRM) in OD. Dr. Francis W. Hartel, Ph.D. was selected as the NIH Senior IRM official and the Director of OIRM.

September 1993 — The Information Systems Security Officers (ISSO) committee was established to handle NIH IT security issues.

February 1994 — To help customers obtain computer-related information, a help desk was inaugurated.

October 1994 — OIRM sponsored the first Internet conference on legal and policy issues related to the increased use of Internet resources at NIH.

May 1995 — DCRT sponsored Internet Expo Day to help NIH staff discover the World Wide Web and its enormous potential to disseminate and exchange information.

June 1995 — The NIH Director approved a revised charter for the Office of Information Resource Management (IRM) council and increased its role in providing management leadership on NIH-wide information technology (IT) initiatives.

August 1995 — The first NIH electronic store was established to provide efficient acquisition of personal computers, hardware, software, and on-line components to NIH personnel.

1996 — A telecommunications committee was established to provide the IRM council with advice about crosscutting telecommunication issues affecting a large number of NIH staff. Issues included telephone features and services, pagers, cellular services, video teleconferencing, remote access, audio conferencing, and switchboard operator services. Responsibilities were shared by DCRT and the Telecommunications Branch located in NIH's Office of Research Services; DCRT introduces a subscription based program for the acquisition and distribution of brand-name software to NIH and HHS personnel, with the result of significant cost reduction for software licensing.

May 1996 — The IRM council established the NIH Year 2000 Work Group (Y2K) to provide NIH with leadership and direction on initiatives modifying computer systems and applications to accommodate problems related to a two-digit date field.

June 1996 — NIH's Computer Center was designated as a major DHHS data center.

July 1996 — The NIH Data Warehouse, which provides a one-stop-shop graphical user interface to NIH administrative and accounting information, was introduced to NIH.

August 1996 — The Information Technology Management Reform Act of 1996 (ITMRA, also known as the Clinger-Cohen Act) became effective. ITMRA assigned overall responsibility for the acquisition and management of government IT resources to the Director, Office of Management and Budget. Additionally, ITMRA gave authority to heads of executive agencies to acquire IT resources, and directed agencies to appoint a Chief Information Officer (CIO) to provide advice to each agency on the effective management of IT investments. NIH Director named Anthony Itteilag, NIH Deputy Director for Management, to serve as interim NIH Chief Information Officer (CIO).

September 1996 — The NIH Director's leadership forum on the management of IT at NIH formed an IT Central Committee (ITCC) to provide recommendations on improving the management of NIH IT resources.

December 1996 — A final ITCC report was submitted to the NIH Director. The report recommended appointing a CIO and combining DCRT, OIRM, and TCB into a single organizational structure. Dona R. Lenkin was appointed to serve as OIRM Acting Director and alternate NIH CIO.

1997 — A review of NIH's administrative structure, conducted in response to a request from Congressman John Porter (Ill.), was completed. The report recommended that the NIH implement the ITCC recommendations by appointing a permanent CIO and establishing a CIO organization. NIH's first electronic magazine, LiveWire, was launched by DCRT. The on-line magazine offered easy access to key services and computer information.

July 1997 — DCRT introduced the NIH Human Resources Information and Benefits System (HRIBS), a Web service that gave employees easy access to personnel data, including benefits, salary, awards, leave, savings, performance and retirement.

September 1997 — DCRT completed consolidation of two HHS data centers --- the Program Support Center Information Technology Service and the Administration for Children and Families National Computer Center --- into the NIH Computer Center.

October 1997 — Vice President Al Gore awarded OIRM staff the National Performance Review "Hammer" Award for the development of an automated security risk assessment tool for networks.

November 1997 — DCRT inaugurated SILK (Secure Internet-Linked) technology to provide Web access to enterprise data.

February 1998 — The Center for Information Technology (CIT) was formed, combining the functions of the DCRT, the Office of Information Resources Management (OIRM), and the Telecommunications Branch.

March 1998 — Alan S. Graeff was named NIH's first Chief Information Officer (CIO) and Director of the newly formed Center for Information Technology (CIT).

April 1998 — CIT's OIRM sponsored an IT security conference to provide IT security officers and others with essential information for moving towards the 21st century; CIT renames its original acquisition and distribution project to the Software Distribution Project (SDP). The SDP provides software to more than 24,000 customers, including more than 80% of all personnel.

October 1998 — The NIH IT Board of Governors (BoG) was established to advise the NIH and the NIH CIO on NIH-wide IT management and to make recommendations on IT activities and priorities.

January 1999 — CIT completed development of the predecessor to the TELESYNERGY(TM) Medical Consultation WorkStation, a multimedia, medical imaging workstation. This system provided an electronic imaging environment, utilizing a prototype Asynchronous Transfer Mode (ATM) telemedicine network. The TELESYNERGY(TM) environment included a scientific workstation as the computing platform that transmits simultaneous high-resolution images to all sites participating in a medical consultation.

May 1999 — The Information Technology Management Committee (ITMC) was formed to develop and communicate recommendations and decisions at the IC level, provided a forum for building consensus across the NIH, and served as an umbrella organization to the NIH IT process management and technical committees.

December 1999 — NIH successfully prepared for the Year 2000, thus bringing to fruition four-years of effort preparing for the largest information management project in history. The NIH strategy of aggressive renovation and validation of information systems, biomedical equipment, facilities, utilities, and telecommunications provided a smooth transition that ensured the integrity of the NIH mission.

January 2000 — CIT joined forces with NCI in a pioneering TELESYNERGY(TM) collaboration to reach out to distant community hospitals. Patients in remote areas were now able to participate in selected NCI phase I and phase II protocols. Collaborating sites, with TELESYNERGY(TM) Systems either installed or under construction, included hospitals in Fort Lauderdale, Florida; Wheeling, West Virginia; Belfast, Northern Ireland, United Kingdom; and Dublin, the Republic of Ireland.

2000 — CIT renames the Software Distribution Project (SDP) to the Information Systems Designated Procurement (iSDP) to acquire and deliver brand-name software, hardware and services to NIH and DHHS personnel. The iSDP takes advantage of large volume purchasing agreements to provide significantly discounted prices to its customers. The iSDP also saves its participants time and money by eliminating the need to search for the best information systems deals. iSDP provides major software titles, hardware and services to more than 54,000 customers, including 84 percent of DHHS personnel, and all of NIH.

2001 — The NIH Incident Response Team (IRT) was the first civilian Federal agency to receive the prestigious Office of Personnel Management (OPM) Guardian Award, for exceptional contributions in ensuring the confidentiality, availability, and integrity of NIH information resources.

2002 — Dr. John F. (Jack) Jones, Jr., joined CIT as Chief IT Architect for NIH, to focus on NIH enterprise systems critical to the mission of NIH and lead Enterprise Architecture; CIT took a leadership role in forging NIH's strategy for common services, including hosting the improved and expanded NIH Portal. CIT supported the development and staged implementation of the NIH Portal as a single, user-friendly customizable web interface by which data and documents can be readily accessed by NIH staff and associated personnel; CIT successfully implemented the NIH Administrative Restructuring Advisory Committee (ARAC) recommendations for IT Consolidation (Phase I).

2003 — The National Institutes of Health (NIH) Information Technology Working Group (ITWG), established by the NIH Director as part of the NIH Steering Committee, provides governance and oversight on NIH IT management issues. The ITWG is advisory to the NIH Director, NIH Steering Committee, and NIH Chief Information Officer (CIO).

As an advisory group to the NIH Director, NIH Steering Committee, and NIH CIO on IT management, the ITWG establishes governance over the five IT Domain Areas below, representing the areas where decisions need to be made at the intersection of business and information technology.

• IT Principles Domain — includes alignment of IT to the NIH mission of the NIH, corporate policies and oversight of the use of IT, and determination of ownership of IT initiatives
• IT Infrastructure Strategies Domain — includes the IT “public utility” and secure, robust, and manageable common services
• IT Architecture Domain — includes data standards and application standards
• Business Application Needs Domain — includes all enterprise, non-scientific administrative, grants/extramural, and Intramural IT systems
• IT Investment and Prioritization Domain — includes funding mechanisms and priorities

2004 — CIT successfully implemented the NIH ARAC recommendations for IT Consolidation Phase II; CIT continues to implement and oversee NIH enterprise-wide applications like:

• Integrated Time and Attendance System (ITAS)
• NIH Enterprise Common Services (NECS); including NIH Login and NIH Portal
• NIH Intramural Data Base (NIDB)
• Contractor Performance System (CPS)
• Vulnerability Tracking System (VTS)
• Human Resources Data Base (HRDB)

November 2005 — Alan S. Graeff leaves CIT to take a position at the National Library of Medicine's National Center for Biotechnology Information. Dr. John F. (Jack) Jones is appointed Acting Director of CIT as well as Acting NIH Chief Information Officer

Past Directors

Past NIH CIOs

Programs

CIT consists of the Office of the Director (OD), the Office of the Deputy Chief Information Officer (ODCIO), the Office of Planning, Evaluation, and Communications (OPEC), the Division of Computational Bioscience (DCB), the Division of Customer Support (DCS), the Division of Computer System Services (DCSS), the Division of Enterprise and Custom Applications (DECA), and the Division of Network Systems and Telecommunications (DNST).

Office of the Director (OD)

• Director — John F. "Jack" Jones, PhD
• Deputy Director — Alfred Whitley
• Executive Officer — Kathryn S. Wimsatt
• Deputy CIO — Stacy Charland (Acting)
• Scientific Director — Benes L. Trus, PhD (Acting)
• NIH Chief IT Architect — Helen McCulloch Schmitz (Acting)

The Office of the Director plans, directs, coordinates, and evaluates the Center's programs, policies, and procedures and provides analysis and guidance in the development of systems for the effective use of IT techniques and equipment in support of NIH programs. The Chief Technology Officer (CTO) provides advice on the computational and telecommunications needs of the NIH community and provides analysis and guidance in developing systems supporting NIH-wide IT initiatives. In addition, the CTO evaluates new technologies, provides planning guidance for CIT programs and services, and coordinates IT architectural management for the NIH.

Office of the Deputy Chief Information Officer (ODCIO)

• Director — Stacy Charland (Acting)

The Deputy Chief Information Officer advises the Chief Information Officer (CIO) on the direction and management of significant NIH IT program and policy activities under relevant Federal statutes, regulations and policies. The ODCIO also develops, implements, manages, and oversees NIH IT activities related to IT legislation, regulations, and NIH and other Federal policies:

• ODCIO directs NIH's IT capital planning processes with regard to major IT investments and provides leadership to NIH ICs to enhance and strengthen their IT program management so they comply with legislative and policy requirements.

• The office serves as principal NIH liaison to HHS, its OPDIVs, and other Federal agencies on IT matters.

• In addition, ODCIO identifies critical IT issues and analyzes, plans, leads, and manages the implementation of special HHS or Federal initiatives as they relate to the management of NIH's IT resources.

• ODCIO also collaborates with NIH managers responsible for IT-related functions, in particular, IT security. ODCIO staffs and supports NIH's Incident Response Team (IRT). The IRT serves as the focal point for IT security incidents by identifying and characterizing incidents, and providing immediate diagnostic and corrective action when appropriate.

Office of the Chief Information Technology Architect (OCITA)

• Chief IT Architect — Helen McCulloch Schmitz (Acting)

The Chief IT Architect leads the NIH Enterprise Architecture program with the mission to develop a comprehensive plan for IT support that acknowledges the need for both conforming and diverse business processes. The Office of the Chief IT Architect (OCITA) is the NIH Enterprise Architecture program management office and is comprised of a fulltime architecture staff.

OCITA's central responsibility is the daily execution and management of the NIH Enterprise Architecture program and associated activities and initiatives. In this capacity, OCITA’s primary responsibilities are to:

• Lead the creation and renewal of architecture and standards
• Lead and facilitate the IT Architecture Domain Team Process
• Manage domain team memberships
• Ensure NIH mission and architecture alignment
• Lead assessments of evolving technologies for standards adoption or renewal
• Plan and recommend architectural migration
• Assess the current environment in specific technical areas
• Publish the architecture in the chosen format
• Conduct awareness/education sessions
• Advise in business and IT planning
• Interpret and communicate architecture issues and choices
• Advise project teams on the use of architecture
• Support projects on assessing adherence when requested
• Evaluate project requests for exceptions to architecture
• Develop recommendations for the Architecture Review Board (ARB) as the basis for decision-making
• Represent NIH architecture to the Department of Health and Human Services
• Provide enterprise architecture reviews in support of the NIH Capital Planning and Investment Control (CPIC) process

Office of Planning, Evaluation, and Communications (OPEC)

• Director — Marie A. Lagana

The Office of Planning Evaluation and Communication (OPEC) is located in the Center for Information Technology’s (CIT) Office of the Director. It is the focal point for strategic business and operational planning, analysis and evaluation, as well as the central office for communications at CIT.

OPEC provides technical and programmatic assistance to the Director and his senior staff in all aspects of the Center’s efforts toward initiation, development, implementation, and evaluation of information technology (IT) programs on which the National Institutes of Health (NIH) relies. OPEC disseminates important communication information about CIT related products and services to support and advance the mission of the NIH.

Division of Computational Bioscience (DCB)

• Director — Benes L. Trus (Acting)
• Deputy Director — Calvin Johnson (Acting)

DCB is a research and development organization that provides scientific and technical expertise in computational science and engineering to support biomedical research activities at the NIH:

• DCB applies the concepts and technologies of computer, engineering, physical and mathematical science to biomedical applications including the areas of image processing, bioinformatics, genetic databases, structural biology, scientific visualization, medical imaging, telemedicine, signal processing, biomedical instrumentation, and biomathematics.

• DCB develops computational methods and tools for solving biomedical laboratory and clinical research problems.

• DCB promotes the application of high-performance computing and high-speed communications to biomedical research and provides these resources for the NIH scientific staff.

• DCB evaluates the overall effectiveness of these programs and represents CIT to the national Information Technology Research and Development (IT R&D) Program.

Division of Computer System Services (DCSS)

• Director — Adriane R. Burton
• Deputy Director —

DCSS plans, implements, operates, and supports centrally owned or administered computing resources for NIH enterprises use, ensuring interoperability among those resources and between them and other computing facilities owned by customer organizations.

• DCSS promotes awareness and efficient and effective use of these computing resources by customer personnel through training, presentations, consultations, and documentation.

• DCSS investigates new and emerging computing requirements of customer programs. It conducts research and development to identify, evaluate, and adapt new computer architectures and technologies to meet identified customer requirements and to enhance current service offerings.

• Additionally, where appropriate, DCSS manages and operates departmental computing resources for IC, Office, or Center use.

Division of Customer Support (DCS)

• Director — Chris Ohlandt
• Deputy Director — Jenny Czajkowski

DCS provides centralized, integrated computer support services to the NIH computing community:

• DCS advocates customer needs to CIT management and represents services and policies to CIT's customers.

• It plays an active and participatory role in supporting desktop computing to the end-user in the areas of software and hardware, including internet, communications, and access technologies.

• The Division also coordinates and oversees CIT's Training Program for the benefit of the NIH computing community. The training program is delivered at no charge to the user.

• In addition to providing a central account establishment and management service for access to CIT systems, DCS also manages the NIH-wide help desk and implements support technology tools.

Division of Enterprise and Custom Applications (DECA)

• Director — Jack Vinner (Acting)
• Deputy Director — Jack Vinner

DECA supports the NIH enterprise business process through the development and management of transaction and decision-support environments for administrative and business applications of the NIH, such as procurement, budget, accounting and human resource activities, as well as systems that support extramural and intramural business processes:

• The Division provides complete information systems management services to the NIH including technical project management, systems analysis, programming, data integration and conversion, quality assurance, testing, and production support.

• DECA also provides the NIH community with World Wide Web development, support services, and consulting services for applications development.

Division of Network Systems and Telecommunications (DNST)

• Director — Renitalynette K. Anderson
• Deputy Director —

DNST directs the engineering, design, implementation, and support of network infrastructure and services for the NIH wide area network (NIHnet) to facilitate the use of scientific, administrative, and other business applications:

• DNST manages and directs NIH telecommunications systems and technical requirements for the NIH ICs and implements telecommunications programs to meet the needs of the NIH community.

• The Division researches, develops, and tests next-generation networking/ telecommunications technologies and develops and supports applications using new network technologies, such as telemedicine and video conferencing.

• It provides consulting, guidance and support to the ICs, helping them to meet their network requirements.

• To improve the information infrastructure on networking/telecommunications activities, DNST serves as liaison to the NIH ICs and other DHHS components.

• DNST serves as a focal point for telecommunications service orders, and develops and disseminates recommended standards, policies, and procedures for the nationwide implementation and management of NIH networking and telecommunications systems.

• The Division also develops, implements, and supports remote access services to NIHnet, provides technical support for wireless services, and a 24-hour telephone/network support service.

Sources

NIH Almanac - Organization - Center for Information Technology; August 2005
. That publication is not copyrighted and is in the public domain. URL: http://www.nih.gov/about/almanac/organization/CIT.htm.

CIT Organization; June 2005
. That publication is not copyrighted and is in the public domain. URL: http://www.cit.nih.gov/org/default.asp

See also

• National Institutes of Health
• NIH Enterprise Architecture.