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Community of Interest Networks Summaries - Education

Notes from March 2006 Meetings

Attendees:
Julie Baum – Long Prairie, Paul Wasko – E-Services at MN State Colleges & Universities (paul.wasko@iseek.org, 651-649-5956), Jan Ingham (Brilliant Cities 612/230-3191, jan.ingham@brilliantcities.com), Jane Leonard

Summary:
Fascinating discussion on how someone in the community can be a model to lead the way in using the technology to gain access to higher ed offerings and thereby help keep people, especially young people, engaged at home, contributing economically to the community while they build their college education.

Also need for more marketing of what is available online for higher ed and K-12. However, marketing funding is usually the lowest priority for education service providers.

College from Your Living Room:  Julie described how both her daughters are doing college online, one right from home in Long Prairie to Rasmussen College and St. Cloud State. By showing the way, 7 students from her daughter’s graduating class are doing the same thing. The hitch for some people is having access to a computer and the Internet. There are only 2 computers, for example at the Long Prairie library and time limits. Computer lab availability is a challenge; partnership with libraries and schools would help provide more public access. Julie suggested trying to get the MN Rural Education Assn to help advocate on these issues. Jane noted that one of her board members works as the lobbyist for MREA. Jane will get in touch with her.  Any rural school, library, or community center has the potential to be a college portal with the right equipment and connections. That would be a great economic development benefit. As Julie points out from her vantage as both a member of the EDA and Chamber of Commerce, economically-speaking, we want the kids back. Making college available locally online is a retention and recruitment tool.

K-12 innovations: Jane described how she is leading the Houston Design Team next month and one of the advantages that Houston has (pop. 1020) is that they are supporting their physical school district through the creation of the Minnesota Virtual Academy, which offers online high school to students from all across Minnesota.

Higher Ed: Paul gave a rundown of what is happening in the online world of higher ed: Minnesota Online, ISEEK.org, efoliomn.com, etc. Every school manages their own offerings but these are portals to them (and efolio is a way to manage one’s academic and career archives).

Awareness: All noted that marketing/awareness building is a challenge because so little funding is allocated for that. However, Paul pointed out the paradox that even without a concerted effort on marketing, online classes fill quickly. (Perhaps the use would be even greater, and more funding available because of the demand, if more marketing was done, especially to rural communities.) Julie noted that when high schools had their University/College fairs, the reps from the institutions don’t mention the possibilities of online offerings.

Ideas for Future Action

Get MN Rural Education Assoc involved in this issue.  Jane will follow-up with Vernae Hasbargen.

Encourage local schools, libraries, community centers to think about their public access computers, labs, etc, as higher education portals.  Work through the existing barriers to make such public space possible as an education and economic development project.

Encourage university and college recruiters to publicize online availability as well as residential experience when they come to the high school fairs.