Established as a department in 1999, ITD's history dates from 1969 when it was first created as the Central Data Processing Division with the Office of Management and Budget. The division set up an electronic data processing center used by all state agencies except the institutions of higher education, Job Service, and the office of the Adjutant General. The Higher Education Computer Network (HECN) was funded after a 1969-70 interim legislative study. In 1981 the director of CDP was directed to supervise all executive branch agency data processing activities and to approve data processing equipment acquisitions.

The division was renamed the Information Services Division in 1989. At this time, the division was required to prepare guidelines for agency information technology plans, develop a statewide plan based on those plans, develop statewide information technology policies, standards, and guidelines, coordinate services with political subdivisions and systems and services with higher education, and report non-compliance to the legislature.

Milestones in ND State IT History

1969

Established Central Data Processing within Accounts and Purchasing

1983

First statewide network roll-out

1992

First statewide email system implemented

1995

First state homepage launched on the Internet

1997

Legislative IT Committee created

1998

First statewide IT Plan produced

1999

First CIO hired to oversee the new cabinet level Information Technology Department

2000

Statewide Technology Access for Government and Education Network (STAGEnet) rollout

2001

Education Technology Council created and moved to ITD for coordination of all K-12 education initiatives

2002

Enterprise Architecture initiated to determine technology direction and set IT standards for state government

2002

Criminal Justice Information System (CJIS) developed for exchanging information among criminal justice-related entities

2002

Geographic Information Systems (GIS) implemented to share geospatial information held in state agencies

2002

ConnectND launched by the state and ND University System to replace all financial, human resources, and student information systems

2003

State IT Technology Advisory Committee given responsibility for the prioritization of state government strategic initiatives

2004

Server consolidation launched; resulting in maintenance efficiencies and cost savings

2006

Second datacenter located in North Dakota came online; increasing the speed of recovering critical systems in the event of a disaster

2007

Health Information Technology Steering Committee codified by ND legislature