WHEREAS, there are many successful distance learning programs underway nationally and in Virginia that demonstrate the effectiveness of teaching and learning via live satellite, video, and the Internet media; and

WHEREAS, Virginia's public colleges and universities currently offer or participate in distance learning programs such as Teletechnet, the Virginia Commonwealth Electronic Campus, the Virginia Graduate Engineering Program, the Virginia Microelectronics Consortium, and the Southern Regional Electronic Campus; and

WHEREAS, the most valuable educational resources in Virginia's public institutions of higher education are our preeminent faculty, their teaching expertise, and the curriculum they teach; and

WHEREAS, distance learning via live satellite, video, and the Internet has the potential to expand access to such valuable resources to more students and to augment the quality of educational programs by sharing great professors and courses among the various institutions across the Commonwealth; and

WHEREAS, the consortium model is presently being employed effectively to combine the faculty and curricula resources of several institutions for the purpose of offering unique and enhanced degree programs; and

WHEREAS, sharing great professors and courses between and among our colleges and universities could be used to enhance general education curricula at each institution at little or no additional cost; and

WHEREAS, the sharing of great professors, courses, and degree programs between and among our colleges and universities has the potential to expand student choice of course and program offerings at little or no additional costs; and

WHEREAS, the sharing of great professors, courses, and degree programs via live satellite, video, and the Internet may assist institutions of higher learning in avoiding unnecessary program duplication and overlapping missions; and

WHEREAS, the basic technological infrastructure necessary to transmit lectures, courses, and programs between Virginia colleges and universities is substantially in place via net.work.Virginia and similar networks; now, therefore, be it

RESOLVED that the continued development of collaborative relationships among institutions to share professors, lectures, courses, and degree programs should be encouraged as an official policy of the Commonwealth; and, be it

FURTHER RESOLVED, That this official policy of the Commonwealth should be implemented by the State Council of Higher Educaiton [for] Virginia with the cooperation of the Board of Visitors of each institution; and, be it

FURTHER RESOLVED, That the Commonwealth should build upon its current distance learning programs by initiating a pilot program between two or more institutions of higher education in Virginia to share academic courses taught by the best professors each institution has to offer its sister institutions; and, be it

FURTHER RESOLVED, That the Commonwealth should support the institutions and consortia already offering graduate degree programs in Virginia and that such institutions and consortia should be examined as models for the development of additional graduate and undergraduate programs; and, be it

FINALLY RESOLVED, That all distance learning programs offered by an institution or consortium of institutions should be regularly examined and appraised for quality, academic rigor, and enhancement of learning opportunities for the students of Virginia.

GOVERNOR'S BLUE RIBBON COMMISSION
ON HIGHER EDUCATION

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Posted: December 11, 1998
By The Educational Policy Institute of Virginia Tech
sjanosik@vt.edu