Texas A&M University- Texarkana evolves to better serve its student body. TAMUT added both The Patterson Student Center and Business Administration & Student Services building last spring to match the growing student population and their needs. However, opening a new building is not the only way to aid students in their scholastic journey. The university’s I.T. system engineers brought a Digital Backpack (an online portal) to our campus which allows students, faculty, and staff to access multiple applications. 

This new platform will continue to evolve; adding new applications as IT works to better equip our campus, such as Office 365, NBCLearn, and DocuSign. Click here for the full list of pending applications. App ideas are accepted via email to digitalbackpack@tamut.edu. 

Applications that are currently available on the Digital Backpack:

• Blackboard
• AceMail
• EagleSync
• EagleTech
• iSITE
• Library Lab
• Software.tamu.edu

Robert Leitgeb is a part of TAMUT’s IT department and was able to share a little about the project: “The Digital Backpack is really part of a significantly larger technology implementation. You do not see it, but IT is working to improve your experience here. For example, you may have seen changes in certain computer labs around campus- this was part of the project, too.” Leitgeb explained the process of building such a program: IT worked with several business partners like VMWare and Dell for over a year to create a package suitable for our campus. Leitgeb said, “Other schools may have Digital Backpack, but what you see here at TAMUT is our unique technical experience.”

This backpack will make students, faculty, and staff’s lives a little easier. Users can access their backpack anywhere they have an internet connection; allowing more freedom in their schedule. This Digital Backpack is just another example of how TAMUT works to improve student’s educational journey, sometimes it’s a new building, and sometimes it’s a streamlined online learning experience.