This document provides an initial project charter for creating an educational website about science topics for elementary school students. It outlines the need for the project, which is to create an engaging science resource and fulfill a class requirement. The project scope includes developing content about the water cycle and human body systems using existing open educational resources. Key deliverables and timelines are identified. Constraints include the timeframe and copyright restrictions. An initial budget and business case are presented, arguing that incorporating multimedia like videos and images can improve student learning and interest in STEM topics.

1. Initial Planning
Documents
In partial fulfillment of the requirements for
CIMT 687: Leading and Managing Technology
Resources in Educational Settings
Submitted by Team 2: Amena Alhamad, Andrea Boehme,
Ohoud Al Radhi, Safaa Almohammedsalem, Shaimaa
AlHarbi
2013

2. CONTENTS
Project Charter ______________________________________________________________________________________________ 1
Contract ___________________________________________________________________________________________________ 1
Statement of Work ________________________________________________________________________________________ 1
Project Need ____________________________________________________________________ 1
Project Scope Description __________________________________________________________ 1
Product Scope Description _________________________________________________________ 2
Strategic Plan ___________________________________________________________________ 3
Deliverables _______________________________________________________________________________________________ 4
Project _________________________________________________________________________ 4
Product ________________________________________________________________________ 4
Requesting changes _______________________________________________________________ 5
Constraints _____________________________________________________________________ 5
Assumptions ____________________________________________________________________ 5
Enterprise Environmental Factors ________________________________________________________________________ 6
Organizational or Company Culture __________________________________________________ 6
Governmental or Industry Standards _________________________________________________ 6
Infrastructure ____________________________________________________________________ 6
Existing Human Resources _________________________________________________________ 6
Personnel Administration __________________________________________________________ 6
Project Management Information Systems _____________________________________________ 6
Organizational Process Assets ______________________________________________________ 7
Summary Milestones ____________________________________________________________________________________ 8
Project _________________________________________________________________________ 8
Work Breakdown Structure (WBS) ______________________________________________________________________ 9
Summary Budget _________________________________________________________________________________________ 10
Business Case _______________________________________________________________________________________________ 11
Project Stakeholders _________________________________________________________________________________________ 13
SWOT Analysis _____________________________________________________________________________________________ 14
DCPI ______________________________________________________________________________________________________ 14
Findings__________________________________________________________________________________________________ 14

3. 1
PROJECT CHARTER
This project charter authorizes Team 2 (Shaimaa, Ohoud, Safaa, Amena, Andrea) to create a
website for Dr. Boileau to meet the requirements of CIMT 687.
CONTRACT
There is no formal contract for this project. Requirements and expectations for the project have
been stated in the class syllabus and rubrics. Product requirements are set by the group and have
been described in the product scope description.
STATEMENT OF WORK
PROJECT NEED
Firstly, this project is being created to meet the requirement of CIMT 687 Leading and Managing
Educational resources. Secondly, the e-book/website being created is for elementary aged
students (specifically grades 5 and 6) who wish to learn independently about science. The need
to increase Science Technology Engineering and Mathematics (STEM) education has been
emphasized by President Obama. This was in response to, among other studies, a 2006
international assessment of science literacy that ranked The United States 21st out of 30 in the
ranking of developed countries (Educate to Innovate)1. It is our hope that by creating a fun and
interactive product, we can spark elementary aged student’s interest in STEM disciplines.
PROJECT SCOPE DESCRIPTION
In order to meet the need for an interactive science resource, and to meet the requirements of the
course, we will create an e-book utilizing Google Sites and the information from the Water Cycle
and Human Body Systems sections of http://k12opened.com/ebooks/#science. The website will
be created for 5th and 6th graders. To help these students engage with the material we will add
1Educate to innovate. (n.d.). Retrieved from http://www.whitehouse.gov/issues/education/k-12/educate-
innovate

4. 2
videos, pictures, and audio content that will enhance the content from the K12 website. We will
document the project following the criteria listed in the Semester Project requirements included
in the CIMT 687 syllabus provided by the sponsor, Dr. Tim Boileau. Project documents will
follow the guidelines set by the Project Management Book of Knowledge (PMBOK) and will
attempt to account for every step in the project management process, whether the strategy is
specifically used or not.
PRODUCT SCOPE DESCRIPTION
WEBSITE
The website will be designed using the Google Sites interface. It will be compatible with
Internet Explorer, Firefox, Chrome, and Safari. Safari may be excluded later as it is not currently
supported by Indiana State University.
VIDEOS
Each subsection of the original content for the Human Body will have a video. The Water
Cycle section will have one video. These videos will be found through internet searches with a
preference for Creative Commons and Youtube. All videos will be embedded on the page
through Google Sites’ functionality. Only videos that have no narration will be considered for
narration to be created by the team. Citations for all videos will be included in APA format as
either a footnote, caption, or entry on work cited page depending on consensus of group. All
citations will have a consistent method for recognizing the creating authority.
IMAGES
Each major subsection will have an accompanying image. Original images will be used
depending on group decision. Additional images will be gathered from internet searches, with a
preference for Creative Commons images. Citations will be included using the same method as

5. 3
videos. All images will be .jpg format and will be uploaded to the website using Google Sites’
functionality.
TEXT
All text (with the exception of citations and navigational text) will be transcribed from the source
document. The only deviation will be to fix grammatical/spelling errors. Formatting will be
done at the group’s discretion as best suits the layout of the website or aids in comprehension of
material.
ASSESSMENTS
Assessments will be created used the pre-existing multiple choice tests from the source
document. The format is yet undecided and may be entered “as is” depending on time
constraints.
STRATEGIC PLAN
As this is an ad hoc group created to fulfill a class requirement there is no overarching corporate
plan that would inform how this project would fit into a current business model.

6. 4
DELIVERABLES
The list of deliverables has been broken down by project or product. This is an initial listing of
deliverables. There are three types of team members Main, Secondary, and Quality
Assurance. The Main (m) team member for the project will be responsible for inputting the
majority of the content and ensuring that this section is proceeding according to the time
table. Secondary (s) team members will be responsible for assisting as the Main team member
needs it. Quality Assurance (qa) will be responsible for making sure this part of the projects
follows guidelines set in the project scope and that overall project standards are met. Quality
Assurance tasks may be assigned to either the Main or Secondary team member, or may be stand
alone based on the complexity of the deliverable. Not all deliverables may have all positions.
PROJECT
Deliverable Start date Projected Completion Team Member
Due Date Date
Semester Project Jan 28 March 4 (m)Andrea
Part 1 (s)Amena, Shaimaa
(qa)All
Semester Project March 5 April 15 (m)Andrea
Part 2 (s)Ohoud, Safaa
(qa)ALL
Semester Project April 8 April 22 (m)Andrea
Part 3 (s/qa)ALL
PRODUCT
Deliverable Start date Projected Completion Team Member
Due Date Date
Jan 28 February 18 (m)Amena
Setup website
(s)Ohoud, Shaima
March 1 March 22 (m)Amena
Layout text and
(s)Ohoud,Shaimaa,Safaa
page structure
(qa)Andrea
March 22 March 26 (m)Safaa
Insert images
(qa)Shaimaa
March 22 March 28 (m)Ohoud
Insert videos
(qa)Shaimaa

7. 5
Voice over Water March 22 March 29 (m)Amena
Cycle video (qa)Safaa
March 1 March 29 (m)Safaa
Create assessments (s)Andrea
(qa)Amena
March 18 March 29 (m)Shaimaa
Test/Proofread on
(s)Andrea
defined browsers
(qa)ALL
April 1 April 5 (m)Amena
Test with children
(s)Ohoud
April 5 April 14 (m)Amnea
Make Changes (s)Andrea
(qa)ALL
April 15 April 15 (m)Amena
Website delivery
(s/qa)ALL
REQUESTING CHANGES
As any changes made to the project requirements will impact all members of CIMT 687 we
request that the class as a whole approve such deviations after an in-class discussion. Only if a
majority of class agrees and Dr. Boileau consents to the request, will such changes be honored.
Changes to the product may be requested by any team member. They are required to have a
majority consensus before changes will be made. Changes suggested by Dr. Boileau will also be
implemented per majority rules. Any additions to the project will only be considered up to
March 29, and cannot require more than 15 hours to implement. Subtractions will be considered
until April 10th, and cannot require more than 5 hours to implement.
CONSTRAINTS
Project constraints have been detailed in the SWOT analysis and in the project milestones
document. Major constraints of the project concern time frame and proper execution of copyright
restrictions.
ASSUMPTIONS
Assumptions for this project have been outlined in the project scope.

8. 6
ENTERPRISE ENVIRONMENTAL FACTORS
ORGANIZATIONAL OR COMPANY CULTURE
As this is an ad hoc group there is no pre-existing organizational culture that would influence the
product/project.
GOVERNMENTAL OR INDUSTRY STANDARDS
During the creation of the product copyright and fair use restrictions will need to be
respected. The team will have to choose resources that have Creative Commons licensing or
follow fair use guidelines. Citations for all materials will be included in the webpage if the
resources was used for the product, or in project documentation if resources were referenced in
the project documents.
INFRASTRUCTURE
Infrastructure for this project will include the ISU library, which contains research resources for
the project as well as meeting places. There is also the CIMT classroom that will provide
additional meeting areas. All other infrastructure needed will be provided by the team members
as needed by the project.
EXISTING HUMAN RESOURCES
As the majority of the group has worked within the CIMT program we are used to complying
with standards, and working with a similar project load. Additionally Amena and Andrea have
both used Google Sites to create a website and have the skills needed to complete the work.
PERSONNEL ADMINISTRATION
This team cannot be hired or fired, nor is there a company-wide performance review
requirement. Therefore, this section is not applicable.
PROJECT MANAGEMENT INFORMATION SYSTEMS

9. 7
Open Proj- will be used to chart progress and create documentation for the project
Google Docs - will be used to construct preliminary documents and to house all project
documents. The comments functionality will also be a form of communication for
between team members and Dr. Boileau.
Microsoft Office - will be used to create all final drafts of project documentation.
Campus Email - will be used for formal communication between group members and Dr.
Boileau.
Google Email - will be used for informal communication between group members.
Blackboard will be used to submit project documents to Dr. Boileau for grading
purposes.
Blackboard – will be used to submit final versions of project documents to Dr. Boileau
for grading
ORGANIZATIONAL PROCESS ASSETS
ORGANIZATIONAL STANDARDS
As this website is not being created for a specific company there are no specific organizational
standards to which we must adhere.
TEMPLATES
There are no preexisting organizational templates that we are required to use.
HISTORICAL INFORMATION
We have worked with Google Sites before and have experience working with Google Sites’
interface; this will make it easier to manage the creation of materials and should cut down on
testing the website.

10. 8
SUMMARY MILESTONES
Below are listed the milestones for the project. Each item is listed with a due date, a short
description of the milestone, a ranking of criticality, and a possible path of recourse if the
milestone is not met. Please note for the ranking of criticality it proceeds from 1 being “Not
critical at all” to 5 at “Non-completion not acceptable”.
PROJECT
Milestone Due Date Description Recourse
March 4 Initial project If due date is not met this will adversely
Semester Project
documentation affect our grade enough to signify
Part 1
project failure.
March 22 The layout of the Project must be halted until all text is
Layout text and
website and the input. Project failure will be imminent
page structure
information in it. if text is not input.
April 5 Website is ready If not completed by due date group my
All content
for testing. decided by consensus to remove voice
inserted
over.
April 15 Finalized project If due date is not met this will adversely
Semester Project
documentation affect our grade enough to signify
Part 2
project failure.
April 22 Presentation If due date is not met this will adversely
Semester Project
affect our grade enough to signify
Part 3
project failure.

11. 9
WORK BREAKDOWN STRUCTURE (WBS)
A final WBS will be provided as part of Semester Project Part 2. Please see the Deliverables
section for a preliminary work breakdown.

12. 10
SUMMARY BUDGET
This budget is based on hours needed to complete project deliverables. It assumes a “work
week” of 15 hours per person. It does not include weekends or Spring Break. This semester we
have a total of 320 “budgetable” hours (available days x1 hours per day x5 members of the
group) to finish this project as of Feb 25th 2013 we have used 170 hours leaving us with 150
hours left to spend. As projected below we should only need 195 hours to complete the
project. Many of the steps have already been completed, as of March 3rd, and we are on track to
complete the project on time.
Name Budgeted Cost (hrs) Actual Cost (hrs)
Website platform 20
Images 15
Videos 15
Voice over 15
Text Content 20
Testing 15
Proofreading 15
Project P1 20
Project P2 30
Project P3 30
Total 195

13. 11
BUSINESS CASE
The creation of this e-book will fulfill a need in American education. As described in the project
charter,STEM education is an aspect of education that we need to improve. By giving kids
access to quality materials that engage and excite them, this may bolster their interest in STEM
subjects and cause them to pursue the discipline in their later years.
The cost to achieve this for Team 2 is time. Finding and incorporating quality videos and images
and creating the website are the main issues. However the benefits of these mediums have been
proven. Education depends on various resources: reading, writing, listening and visualization.
Each one has its way to send an educational message.The visual sense is really effective in child
education, especially, if its correlates with other senses. Generally speaking, pictures and other
visuals tools are found to be the most effective, most abundant, and the cheapest way of
teaching. Even if the child speaks another language or has disability that makes his/her
communication difficult, we can use imageas a way to communicate and convey our message.
The main purpose is to encourage and improve the visual perception of children. But
unfortunately, instructors are underutilizing this useful resource.Used relevantly, pictures can get
the children’s attention because the colors, or art, can not only demonstrate a topic or theme, but
also can help to provide an experience based on what children require in order to make the topic
more interesting, exciting, and enjoyable.In our project, we replaced the old pictures with
different pictures that contain attractive colors and drawn in comic like and modern manner.
These pictures will be our pathway to touch the children’s minds. Even though these pictures
have advanced topics like respiration, water cycle, and blood circulation; it will be easy for them
to remember the topics.

14. 12
Videos also add another benefit. It has been found that students who watch videos “understand
concepts more rapidly and are more enthusiastic about what they are learning. With video as one
component in a thoughtful lesson plan, students often make new connections between curriculum
topics, and discover links between these topics and the world outside” (NTTI)2. Usually,
children enjoy this kind of learning because it is fun and educational at the same time. Another
strength in the use of video is that students must employ two of their five senses: hearing and
sight. This will better encode the information to help children remember the material for a long
time. Video is also helpful in instruction because it helps to “illustrate complex, abstract
concepts...that can’t be done in class” (NTTI). We found good videos that explain the human
body and water cycles simply. We will also add narration to one video we found to enhance it.
Measuring the costs of these media (our time) versus the educational benefits we can see that this
is a useful endeavor.
2NTTI. (n.d.) National Teacher Training Institute.Retrived March 1, 2013, from
http://www.thirteen.org/edonline/ntti/resources/video1.html

15. 13
PROJECT STAKEHOLDERS
Person/Group Description Communication Impact on project
Method
Dr Boileau Instructor for the ISU email, Google Will have final approval of
Class. Docs comments project. And will be ultimate
judge the quality of the work
Sponsor
Team 2 Safaa, Amena, Amongst group: Will create all work material.
Shaimaa, Ohoud, Gmail, Google Docs Responsible for meeting
Andrea comments, ISU requirements.
email
Main creator of
material Outside of group:
ISU email, Google
docs comments,
informal discussion
Elementary Target Audience Informal Creating product to meet their
Students conversation during needs/wants.
The our target assessment of Assessments will be used to
learners will be product by Amena change the product if needed.
students in 5 and and Ohoud
6 grade (k-5& k-
6)
Students in Tertiary Client Informalclass No formal impact. They will
CIMT 687 discussion be observers during the final
Class presentation.
Questions asked during class
time may better inform the
group on instructor
expectations.

16. 14
SWOT ANALYSIS 3
Helpful Harmful
Strengths Weaknesses
Have experience creating Slight language gap
Google Sites Not Familiar with OpenProj
Internal
Group Synergy Functionality
(organizational)
Large Group (more resources) Classload
Familiarity with children Majority of group are 1st
semester
Opportunities Threats
Emphasis on STEM education Timeframe
External
Rise in societal desire for e- Class load
(environmental)
books and other interactive Copyright law
media
DCPI
Factor Ranking Rational
Internal 2 We seem to understand the requirements of the course and we are
working well together to meet those requirements. However,
many in the group are anxious about achieving the best grade they
can. We can meet this issue by using our class time well and
keeping communications open so that we all can be assured of an
excellent final project.
External 3 The majority of the group has a large course load or other time
draws. However, with a sufficient division of labor the project
will become more manageable.
Technology 3 The majority of the technology we are going to use is familiar to
us. The only issue is the OpenProj software. However there is a
robust user forum that can help use use it for the limited amount of
functions we need it to do.
Environmental 2 We will have to make sure that we are using materials that are
Creative Commons or fall under fair use. Making sure to correctly
attribute our additional media will need to be a priority
Total 2.5
FINDINGS
The SWOT analysis and DCPI evaluator show that this project has a high probability of succeeding.
A full risk analysis will be provided as a part of Semester Project – Part 2.
3Graph format from: SWOT analysis. (2013, February 8). In Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia. Retrieved 03:07,
February 20, 2013, from http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=SWOT_analysis&oldid=537145229