Vision for distributed learning environment unveiled

Trustees hear report on new support unit, digital knowledge bank

The University's Distance Learning and Continuing Education Committee shared with the University's Board of Trustees on May 3 its vision for a distributed learning environment at Ohio State that blends appropriate technologies with aspects of campus-based delivery and distance education.

Distributed learning gives instructors the flexibility to customize both resident and remote learning environments to meet the needs of diverse student populations, while providing both high-quality and cost-effective learning.

The committee, chaired by Bobby Moser, vice president for Outreach and Engagement, was created in early 2001 and charged with developing a plan to move distance education forward at Ohio State. The presentation to trustees completed Phase II of the committee's work, which resulted in two primary recommendations: a Distributed Education Support Unit and the OSU Digital Knowledge Bank. Phase III will consist of implementation of the support unit and knowledge bank.

The committee has identified four focus areas in its distributed and distance education model that will support and complement other areas of support already in place in the University's distributed education model. The four areas are: technical support; faculty support; student services; and business services, said Susan Metros, deputy chief information officer and executive director for educational technology and distributed education.

"As I meet with deans, faculty, students and the technology support staff in the colleges, one of the things I'm seeing a lot of interest in is the business services area," Metros said. Once implemented, the entrepreneurial type of operation would provide the expertise in market analysis, business plan development, cost/benefit analysis and marketing to faculty and units developing distance education or distributed education courses.

In a proposed distributed education organization chart, some of these functions will report to Metros, while others will be collaborative efforts and partnerships with existing units within and outside the academic community. An advisory committee, chaired by Moser, will link Metros and the provost's office.

Trustees also were given a glimpse into the potential of an OSU Digital Knowledge Bank that will collect, index and preserve digital intellectual content being created across the University that can then be incorporated into a multitude of learning packages, said Chief Information Officer Ilee Rhimes. It will be accessible to a variety of audiences, from faculty, students on and off campus, and alumni to prospective students trying to familiarize themselves with what is being taught and studied at Ohio State.

"We're more or less leveraging the technology to foster greater collaboration to build greater learning communities at Ohio State," Rhimes said.

The knowledge bank is an evolving concept, and one that many universities and corporations are starting to explore. MIT has a project under development called "DSpace" that resembles Ohio State's idea (www.dspace.org), Rhimes said. In partnership with Hewlett-Packard, MIT is developing a super digital archive that will store, index and preserve the intellectual output of MIT's faculty. The University of Washington has proposed a "Digital Cooperative" to transform research and knowledge dissemination at the university, and Procter and Gamble has a "research intranet" that organizes, shares and controls its corporate research for the benefit of the entire organization, he said.

Diane Dagefoerde, director of academic technology for the College of Humanities, told trustees that an example of the knowledge bank concept already exists at Ohio State -- the Web Media Collective. Dagefoerde said she is part of a collaboration of faculty, staff and students from the colleges of Humanities and the Arts and the Knowlton School of Architecture that have been developing digital collections of media assets for years -- media assets being photographs, audio and video clips, CAD drawings and similar items that represent this knowledge.

For example, Dagefoerde said, the Huntington Archive has been using databases to catalog its slide collection since the 1980s. And the Department of History has had an all-digital image and cataloging system since 1993. The result of the collaboration is two digital collections currently available on the Web: The Charles Csuri Archive and the History Multimedia Database. Additionally, online access to the Huntington Archive will be released shortly, with three other collections of digital media in development.

These six collections of digital media represent the knowledge faculty and students have gained during their tenure at Ohio State. Thanks to this collaboration, Dagefoerde said, this knowledge can be made available through the Web.

"The impact is significant," she said. "These six collections alone reach over 8,000 students in 105 course sections each year. And this is just the tip of the iceberg. Imagine the kind of impact we could have if we brought even 10 more collections into this system."

A Knowledge Bank Planning Committee, chaired by Joseph Branin, director of University Libraries, was formed in autumn 2001 and is preparing a plan to move the knowledge bank from idea to action. The latest report of the committee can be found on the Web at www.lib.ohio-state.edu/Lib_Info/scholacom/KBproposal.html.

Moser concluded the presentation by saying that implementation of the support unit and knowledge bank would help Ohio State achieve its vision of becoming a "knowledge provider to the world."

Internally, potential benefits to the University would include instructional cost efficiency; better service to students; an improved student experience; and reduced scheduling conflicts. Externally, possible benefits include revenue generation; research development; an enhanced academic reputation; public service; community problem solving; and a role in building Ohio's future, Moser said.

2002 Distinguished Diversity Enhancement Awards

The Distinguished Diversity Enhancement Awards recognize individuals or groups who have demonstrated a significant commitment to enhancing diversity at the University and to exceeding expectations in implementing the Diversity Action Plan. The program, now in its 20th year, rewards efforts to enhance diversity on the basis of race, color, creed, religion, sexual orientation, national origin, sex, age, disability, veteran or military service status, gender identity, economic status, political belief, marital status or social background.

Recipients were honored with a plaque and a $1,200 honorarium at a May 7 luncheon at the Fawcett Center, during an Office of Minority Affairs conference on diversity. The University Senate Committee on Diversity sponsors the awards program in cooperation with the Office of Human Resources.

Ruth Colker Heck Faust Memorial Chair in Constitutional Law, Moritz College of Law

When Ruth Colker first came to Ohio State in 1997, her national reputation of advocacy on behalf of individuals with disabilities, pregnant women and gay men, lesbians and bisexuals preceded her. An expert on disability discrimination, Colker was among the first in the country to teach a course on the topic. She requires her students to conduct accessibility studies of Ohio State facilities, a practice which has resulted in greater awareness of the University's access flaws and in improvements to fix those flaws. Colker has organized an ADA symposium at the College of Law, advocated for students who require special assistance due to their disabilities, and raised money to improve accessibility of the College of Law's auditorium. Colker's knowledge of disability law has made her a resource for the U.S. Supreme Court, as well as lower courts, and for the media. "Much of Professor Colker's work on behalf of disabled students, however, takes place behind the scenes," wrote one nominator. "Professor Colker is the Ôgo to' person at the College of Law whenever disability issues arise."

Leslie M. Fine associate professor of marketing, Fisher College of Business

In the many aspects of teaching, research, University leadership and service to the broader community, Leslie has displayed a commitment and sensitivity to diversity which is evident in all she does," wrote a nominator. "However, it is in her monumental efforts on behalf of individual students that Leslie's commitment is most evident." Students mentored by Fine praise her for generosity with her time and for consistently going the extra mile to ensure that they achieve success. Fine has been a leader in the area of lesbian and gay rights, having served on the board of AGLBFS (Association of Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual and Transgender Faculty and Staff) at the University and on the board of Columbus' Stonewall Union. Fine also has served as the coach for the Black MBA Case Competition Team and as a member of the Fisher College's Community Diversity Advisory Board. Fine is always willing to roll up her sleeves and put her beliefs into practice, and is adept at helping others see the light. As one nominator wrote, "With professionalism, courage, confidence, and poise, she is the consummate watchdog and enemy to any person(s) or organization displaying characteristics of racism, discrimination, sexism and bigotry."

Linda S. Houston associate professor in the arts, science and business division, Agricultural Technical Institute

Linda Houston is a one-woman advocate for diversity at the Agricultural Technical Institute in Wooster, where she teaches writing and communication courses and is the director of the Writing Center. Houston hosts fall dinners at her home for minority and foreign students and meets with them throughout the year. Houston also reaches out to encourage new faculty women and administrators, informally and through a group she recently organized to allow female faculty and staff to meet and share ideas. Her list of committee work is almost boundless. She has served on ATI's civil rights, diversity and teaching committees, the ATI InterFaith Support Team and the OSU Service Learning Roundtable, and is collaborating with the English Department to work with at-risk high school students. In the Wooster community, Houston has participated in Unity in the Community, a city-wide diversity task force, and on the AIDS Quilt committee. She is also one of the founders of Every Woman's House, a home for abused women and their children. "In everything Ms. Linda Houston does she promotes a welcoming and supportive environment for individuals of diverse backgrounds," wrote a nominator.

Jacqueline J. Royster professor of English and associate dean for faculty and research, College of Humanities

A particularly noteworthy quality of Jackie's is that she is able to articulate relevant issues in a clear, non-threatening manner while simultaneously designing systems/solutions to address particular issues," wrote a nominator. "Her straightforward, gentle manner is underscored by a strong and passionate commitment to social justice." As chair of the President's Council on Women's Issues, Royster is helping to study how patterns of hiring, retention and climate at Ohio State have had a negative impact on female faculty, staff and students, with an eye to developing strategies to improve the University environment for women. Royster also has been active on the formation and implementation of a new Diversity Committee in the College of Humanities. The committee's action plan is based on a report of the Modern Language Association (MLA) Task Force Against Campus Bigotry, which Royster authored. As a scholar, Royster has a national reputation for her work studying African American writers, scholars and educators. Royster also has been active as a summer teacher at Middlebury's Bread Loaf School of English, where she teaches public school teachers from urban and rural districts across the country.

	Department of Sociology's Undergraduate Student Services
From left: Donna Crossman, Angela Henderson, Verta Taylor, Cynthia Pelak, Karyl Shirkey

The Undergraduate Student Services (USS) unit works to advise 1,000 undergraduate sociology/criminology majors, 25 percent of whom are minority students. The unit is comprised of Verta Taylor, director of undergraduate studies and professor of sociology; Angela Henderson, academic counselor and diversity coordinator; Karyl Shirkey, coordinating academic counselor; Cynthia Pelak, graduate administrative assistant and undergraduate adviser; and Donna Crossman, records and curriculum coordinator. "This is truly an outstanding staff which has worked hard to make OSU a livable and challenging place for students of all backgrounds and interests," wrote a nominator. USS has taken several significant steps recently to extend services to minority students, including the creation of a student roundtable, named AHANA for African American, Hispanic, Asian and Native American students. Roundtable discussions led to the formation of the Organization of Minority Students in Criminology and Sociology, which has sponsored forums on internships and law and graduate schools. The unit has created an AHANA listserv to disseminate information of interest to minority students and a "Diversity Directions" page on the Sociology Undergraduate Student Services Web site. The unit also provides an AHANA advising program, advised by Henderson, which provides another means to ensure that minority students can take advantage of the opportunities available to them at Ohio State.

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