The Center for Information Technology Research in the Interest of Society (CITRIS) is a far-reaching research and development project assembled by the University of California (Berkeley, Davis, Merced, Santa Cruz), partners from California's technology sector, and the State of California.

CITRIS was spurred by Governor Gray Davisıs call for visionary new UC Centers for Science and Innovation. In a powerful partnership between four University of California campuses, California industry, and the State of California, CITRIS will deliver the technical foundations to meet Californiaıs urgent public-sector needs in years, not decades, and lead the way in creating the information technology infrastructure we need for a vibrant 21st century society. Governor Davis recently signed the fiscal year 2002 budget with a provision of $20M for the first year and a $100M commitment for the project.

Members of the school of education, working with faculty in the computer science and engineering department, are in the process of creating curriculum design systems that will be used to support classes, laboratory work, group projects, and assessment in computer science and engineering. The system will eventually be made available to other departments. The first major deployment of CITRIS technology will be to deliver the undergraduate program in information technology to UC Merced in the heart of California, a critical addition to state growth in education and industry.

Dr. Marcia Linn is the School of Education faculty member serving as a principle investigator on the project. Alex Cuthbert (EMST) has been coordinating the design and development of the initial system, with guidance from Dr. Jim Slotta, director of the school of education's WISE project (http://wise.berkeley.edu). The new systems will enable curriculum design specialists, working closely with faculty members such as Mike Clancy (CS), to design a new set of learning activities, collaborative resources, and online supports around the existing computer science and engineering curriculum. Instructors at the community and state colleges will be able to customize and localize the curriculum to meet their needs, goals, and constraints.

Why is CITRIS a major event for UC Berkeley and the School of Education and how did it come into existence? In the light of the rapid progress in the application of information technology and computing to all fields related to science and engineering, Governor Gray assembled a task force which proposed that it was time to revisit the disciplines of engineering and computer science and readdress the fundamental question: What does it really mean to be an engineer in todayıs world? What are the fundamental skills and understanding that make someone a successful engineer today?

The ideas that emerged from this workshop have led College of Engineering administrators and faculty to contemplate an entirely new approach to undergraduate engineering education, as well as how to organize cross-disciplinary engineering research. While the College continues to focus on engineering fundamentals, it can also embrace this new approach reflecting the interdisciplinary nature of engineering as it is often practiced today. In fact, an increasing number of cross-disciplinary research programs have emerged in the College over the years. In many ways, this thinking was the clear recognition of what was already an emerging trend and the need to embrace it even further.

The School of Education, years ago, embraced cross-disciplinary research programs, creating the Education in Mathematics, Science, & Technology (EMST) program and serving for many years as the central player in the Search For Excellence in Science And Mathematics (SESAME) program. This experience, along with the expertise of the WISE group in developing online curriculum authoring communities, will quickly advance the agenda of the CITRIS project.