Open Source Software as a Strategic Enabler for Smaller Colleges and Universities
Date: November 11, 2026
Time: 11:00 AM America/New_York
Presenter
Joshua Fiske, Vice President for Information Technology and Libraries, Clarkson University
Joshua Fiske is Vice President for Information Technology and Libraries at Clarkson University, where he has worked for more than 25 years. He oversees Clarkson's server infrastructure, networks, academic technology, administrative and engagement systems, web properties, and libraries. Josh began his career in hands-on technical roles at Clarkson, including Linux/UNIX system administration and network engineering, before moving into executive leadership. His technical depth spans infrastructure, high-performance computing, networking, and security. And he has long championed open source as a way for smaller institutions to keep control of their data and technology direction. Josh has also served on the board of Nysernet as a member-institution representative, and he has a strong professional interest in enterprise AI strategy and governance in higher education.
Session Description
Smaller institutions face the same technology expectations as large research universities, with a fraction of the budget and staff. Commercial platforms promise convenience, but they often come with escalating license fees, vendor-driven roadmaps, and data locked inside someone else's system. At Clarkson University, open source has been equal parts cost-saving tactic and deliberate strategy for keeping control of the institution's data, systems, and future.
In this session, Josh draws on more than two decades of hands-on and leadership experience at Clarkson to show how open source underpins core services across the institution: Proxmox for virtualization, Linux across the infrastructure, Moodle for teaching and learning, CAS for authentication, and many others.
Beyond the technology, the session addresses the institutional side of the decision: how to make the case to leadership; what "total cost" really means when you factor in staff skills and support; where open source is the right fit and where it isn't; and how to keep open source systems sustainable through staff turnover and organizational change. Attendees will leave with a candid view of what it takes for a small institution to succeed with open source.
The Apereo Foundation is an independent, U.S.-registered 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization whose mission is to advance open technologies and open practices in higher education. As a non-profit, open source foundation, Apereo does not sell software, products, or commercial services.
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