Case Study: Francis Marion University achieves modernized student administration and online access with LANSA RAMP & Visual LANSA

Francis Marion University Modernizes With Ramp

Francis Marion University, a public university in South Carolina with about 4,000 students, faced a growing need to modernize a decades-old student administration system built in RPG with 5250 screens. Replacement packages were prohibitively expensive, so FMU chose to modernize in place to improve usability, integrate new functions (like photo ID and email), and preserve existing business logic.

FMU implemented LANSA RAMP and Visual LANSA to deliver a Windows-rich client called SwampFox and web services for students. The project refaced 45 existing RPG programs and added five new modules, reused pre-tested RPG logic, and deployed rapidly (May–September 2007) by a small team. The result: easier point-and-click registration and advising, improved security and printing, broader student self-service (registration, payments, degree audit), cost-effective gradual modernization, and higher developer productivity without outsourcing.

Francis Marion University

John Dixon

Chief information officer