Dale Carder, associate vice president at the University of Central Missouri, questioned whether excess computer use was affecting the social skills of students. As he related, employers are looking for people who can work in teams and provide critical thinking in a group environment, “And all too often our students are coming to us with that lack of social interactions.”

“They do have social skills,” countered Edwin Robinson. “Their meetings aren’t in person, but their communities do exist.” He argued too that some of those distance communication skills will be the team skills they will eventually need because those teams won’t always be located in the same place.

Johnson County Community College did a student survey recently and discovered that, despite the fact that online campuses fill up first, 90 percent of the students said what they really want is the college experience.

Michael Droge noted that, at Park University, online students come back to Parkville to commencement to be connected and to reassure themselves that there are bricks and mortar somewhere.

1: Al Hawkins described how Rockhurst University was dealing with student needs in a more challenging economy. | 2: Cindy Miller of Columbia College's Kansas City campus addressed unaccredited, on-line only programs such as the University of the People. | 3: Edwin Robinson of MidAmerica Nazarene University talked about the evolution of students' social skills as Avila University's Ron Slepitza, left, and Cindy Miller assessed his comments.

Faculty Adaptation

“We have to make sure we have strategic plans to make sure our faculty remains very competitive (in a changing technological) environment,” agreed Terry Haines.

It’s not just a matter of preparing to teach,” said Belinda McCarthy, “but preparing to teach the students we have. We have to do a lot of homework and assessment and then use that info to help us.”

One challenge for administrators is the historic notion of academic freedom for faculty. As Haines observed, the concept has shifted over time to one of “mutual obligation between the faculty and the institution.”

Jennifer Mathes, dean of academic affairs at DeVry University in Kansas City, spoke to DeVry’s program, in which faculty learn both to engage the students and to use online components. This “blended learning” is ideal for students, said Mathes. “One of the challenges we face,” she added, “is getting faculty to understand that this is going to make them better.”

Park has found it more effective to identify early adaptors among the faculty and have them lead their colleagues to technological change, said Michael Droge. “I think the real key is to have faculty themselves take the leadership role on these advancing technologies,” agreed Tom Burke.

Cindy Miller, director of the Kansas City extension of Columbia College, talked about the challenge presented by University of the People, the world’s first tuition-free, online academic institution. As Miller described it, a student gets together with a group of people to discuss a subject that might be monitored by a volunteer faculty member. “The fact is that this isn’t going to be moderated or regulated,” said Miller. “How do you tell if the person has gained the knowledge they need without some kind of measure?”

John Catau, associate provost for undergraduate education, talked about how Missouri State University holds a showcase on teaching and learning at the beginning of each semester.  “It has become a part of the culture of the campus,” he said. MSU is now at the point now where it expects 250 to 300 faculty members to come to the showcase. “We used to have to recruit people to do things,” he added, “and now they come to us and it’s taken on a life of its own.”

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