Winter 2001
Volume 3, Number 2
  

Dr. James H. Ryan
Vice President for
Outreach and
Cooperative Extension
World Campus Offers
Anytime, Anywhere Learning
This issue of Penn State Outreach Magazine showcases Penn State’s 25th campus: the World Campus. Many of the faculty members who are contributing to the World Campus’ success can be seen on the cover of this issue. Inside the magazine, beginning on Page 2, we have assembled information about World Campus faculty, students, courses and much more.

President Spanier first outlined his idea for the World Campus in his 1996 State-of-the-University Address, noting, “I believe the World Campus will change the shape of the land-grant university in the 21st century. We are creating a university without walls that can provide anytime, anywhere access to learning. This will have a powerful impact on the education and training needs of the people of Pennsylvania and learners worldwide.”

Planning was soon under way, and with a $1.3 million grant from the Alfred P. Sloan Foundation, the University launched the World Campus in January 1998. The pilot semester offered four programs and enrolled 41 students. Today, the World Campus offers 155 courses in 18 certificate and degree programs. During the first six months of the 2000–01 fiscal year, 1,300 students were enrolled in World Campus courses. By 2003, we expect to have annual enrollments of 10,000 in 300 courses and 30 degree and certificate programs.

From the very beginning, the goal of the World Campus has been to offer some of Penn State’s signature programs in response to demonstrated market needs. We have been focused on increasing access to our academic programs, enhancing the impact of Penn State, providing new opportunities for partnership and promoting diversity. In addition to working closely with the academic units, we have sought University partners to meet these objectives and created alliances with Computer and Information Systems, the University Libraries and other key units. The University Faculty Senate and Graduate Council have also given the World Campus their support.

At the same time, Penn State has built a support system to assist both faculty and students. Faculty members teaching in the World Campus have access to instructional design and other support services as they develop courses for World Campus delivery. World Campus students have access to an on-line catalog, registration and tuition payments and technical support. Other student services include on-line access to University Libraries’ resources and academic advising help.

Many individuals and organizations are playing an important role in the World Campus’ development. In addition to guidance from Penn State faculty members, the World Campus receives counsel on advances in technology and human resource initiatives related to the professional and corporate communities from a National Advisory Committee.

The World Campus is making it possible for Penn State to respond to dramatic changes in our society, including the demand for lifelong learning, the increased use of technology and the pace of life. The World Campus provides new opportunities for people in the workforce who need additional education and training, it ensures access to faculty expertise for people isolated from higher education, and it makes education available anywhere in ways that are convenient for people who have family, community and other responsibilities. I want to emphasize that the World Campus does not compete with our residential programs or replace the traditional university experience for the 18-to 22-year-olds whom we serve at our campuses. Most of our World Campus students are 24 years old or older. They are primarily working adults, and more than two-thirds of them are from outside Pennsylvania.

National surveys show that half of all postsecondary students are part time; the average age of these students is 30+ years; and 84 percent are working. These working professionals are looking for anytime, anywhere learning options. A study conducted in September by Pearson Education, Hungry Minds, Blackboard, FT Knowledge and Web CT on the demand for college on the Web found 6.3 million people 18 years of age and older will take a course on-line in the next 12 months. This is a dramatic increase over the less than half a million people currently enrolled in on-line education. Some things to consider about today’s economy:

• Corporate e-learning is becoming a competitive differentiator — Human capital has replaced physical capital as the source of competitive advantage, according to a Merrill Lynch report on corporate e-learning. Developing and retaining knowledgeable workers will be mission-critical in the new economy. The total corporate e-learning opportunity in the United States was about $1.1 billion in 1999 and is anticipated to grow to $11.4 billion by 2003.

• Globalization — Content from world-class postsecondary institutions in many parts of the world is limited. Students are seeking top–quality, and specifically U.S.–based, education. Merrill Lynch estimates that for every one foreign student studying in the United States, there are three to five students who would study here if they had the resources or access.

• Military initiatives — The U.S. Army is considering spending $700 million over the next six years to enable millions of soldiers to earn college degrees and technical certificates on-line. According to Army figures, more than 9,000 soldiers enrolled in distance education courses in 2000. Also, the U.S. Navy has requested significant resources for an educational portal that its sailors and officers can access from a ship at sea or anywhere in the world.

• International growth of distance education — In 2000, China authorized 31 universities to issue diplomas for Internet-based programs. Chen Zhili, minister for education with China’s Ministry of Education, recently visited the World Campus to learn more about the latest advances in distance learning technologies Penn State is using to extend education to students worldwide. Canada is also entering the distance learning market. The Canadian government and a group representing provincial education ministers have created a national Advisory Committee for On-line Learning to ensure that Canadian institutions are prepared to offer on-line learning. And Quisic, a Los Angeles-based on-line learning company, has announced an e-learning partnership with Spain’s E-ducavia that will create an on-line business school for Spanish- and Portuguese-speaking learners.

• UNext.com partnership — This for-profit Internet education company is partnering with leading institutions, including the University of Chicago Graduate School of Business, Carnegie Mellon University, Stanford University, the London School of Economics and Political Science, and Columbia Business School, to offer business courses on-line to companies and individuals worldwide. UNext.com established Cardean University to deliver its courses and professional development programs.

These examples are just a small sample of the activities in the area of distance learning. One advantage Penn State has in this increasingly competitive arena is its strong tradition of distance education. In 1892, the University used the rural free delivery system to bring education and the latest technological advances to farmers’ homes. As information technologies have changed, we have adopted new means for extending the research and scholarship of Penn State faculty members to improve the lives of people. Today, we are using multiple information technologies to develop and deliver World Campus courses. The President’s Fund, established in fall 1999, is providing vital support for a new distance learning initiative: course development and Web-based distance delivery of courses that can serve both on-line and resident campus needs. We now have courses in journalism, agricultural education and introductory biology, and more courses are in development.

Creating the World Campus has taught us the key components needed to ensure a successful virtual campus:

• Academic — strong faculty involvement in the development and delivery of courses and college and department support

• Administrative — dedicated leadership and expertise in distance learning

• Information technology — support for both the infrastructure and the instructional design needed for course development and delivery

• Financial — availability of start-up funding, pricing flexibility, tuition recovery and incentives

• Marketing — research, communications and strategic alliances to raise awareness and promote courses

• Student services — access to library resources, learning tools, 24 x 7 technical support and academic advising

• Evaluation — continuous evaluation of all aspects of the virtual campus to ensure that on-line courses match the quality and rigor of resident-instruction courses

In November, Dr. Gary E. Miller, associate vice president for Distance Education and executive director of the World Campus, and I presented a report to the Penn State Board of Trustees on the progress the World Campus has made since its debut. We have found in our discussions with World Campus students and faculty that the one thing that sets our program apart from other distance education providers is that the World Campus is integrated within the University. Our model extends to students at a distance the same learning resources and experiences that Penn State provides to all students.

This philosophy, which we often express as “one university, geographically dispersed,” is guiding development of the World Campus. Today, the World Campus is eliminating geographic distances for more than a thousand students in every state and 27 countries. In the years ahead, the World Campus will help thousands more fulfill their lifelong education goals — without leaving their homes, communities and workplaces.

  

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