The Collaboration Support System (CSS) is a web application designed to foster enhanced collaborative experiences among the students and faculty at Teachers College, Columbia University. The system joins the creation of electronic collaboration with physical room reservations to promote efficient and rich collaborative experiences. CSS encourages collaboration by providing “bonus points” to users who:

• decide to make their collaboration sessions public to outside persons. Public events are given precedence because they afford the possibility of forming new relationships and communication paths.
• agree to make their meeting materials available to others via an electronic collaboration environment. Open and electronic dissemination of materials can provide enhanced opportunities for collaboration.

The system also allows the requesting of collaboration support services, which places a group in contact with a collaboration facilitator. The collaboration facilitator can help iron-out group meeting challenges and help with focus.

The system also includes a participant invitee feature, as well as ways of requesting technology for use during the meeting (projector, DVD player, laptops, etc.).