Online Visioning Task Force (OVTF)
State of our Discussions. May 21, 2013
The Core Problem and Key Finding
The University is not meeting the needs for online and hybrid programs for current students, selfidentified prospective students, and market-identified potential students. These students are either not
enrolling or are enrolling elsewhere where they perceive programs better meet their needs. It is
apparent we do not offer many of the online degrees students are seeking and the online degrees we
have do not have the characteristics they are seeking and competitors provide.
Committee members identified personas of students of the future (Appendix 1). They will seek
enrollment and curriculum flexibility, mixed delivery modalities, more customization of their degrees
and the ability to enter and exit from programs fluidly. Those students of the future are appearing
today and many do not find a compelling reason to choose our institution over others.
The Evidence
Overall enrollment in online and hybrid courses at CU Denver is flat or declining (see page 5). While it is
true that the rate of growth in online enrollments is declining nationally, online enrollment is still growing
whereas overall higher education enrollment is declining and declining at an accelerating rate.
Key regional public and non-profit competitors such as CSU Online Plus (+150% in last 3 years), CSU
Global (currently almost 8,000 students) and Western Governors continue to outpace the national
online market in enrollment growth. Their students are not marginal students, but in most cases students
with prior college and often work experience who we would like to call our own and who would profile
well as part of our transfer student population.
Results of a very large survey CU Online conducted in April identified prospective students whom we
have failed to enroll as our students. As they look at other institutions, and the number one reason they
are doing so is because of the "programs" those other institutions offer (see pages 6-7.)
In our mid-term surveys of current online students, they continue to request that we expand our online
offerings in many areas such as psychology and accounting (see page 8.)
A comparison with regional competitors shows we have far fewer online degree programs and
certificates at both the undergraduate and graduate levels (see page 9).
MOOCs show a voracious appetite for higher education and a potential end to our monopoly over
the meaning and value of credentials and degrees.
1
The problem is inherent in our model
There are two characteristics of our model for developing and delivering online and hybrid programs
which need to be addressed.
1. Online courses and programs are developed organically on a voluntary basis according to faculty
and department interest and capacity. Their selection and development is not directly planned to
address market needs and competitive conditions. This method has the great virtue of producing
programs with strong academic unit support. Future initiatives by departments, schools and colleges
to develop online/hybrid programs should be encouraged and strengthened. However, voluntary
organic growth alone has not yielded either sufficient or adequately targeted online programs to
address student demand and market competition. Future online development needs to be more
targeted and responsive to student needs.
2. Online programs mirror campus practices, policies and procedures in most relevant respects. Many
of those practices, however, have been superseded by practices of our competitors which students
find compelling. These innovations include offering multiple start dates, fixed tuition, shorter courses,
credit for prior learning, and new interdisciplinary degree programs and programs targeted to
emerging job market needs. For us to engineer similar and unique innovative program features will
require flexibility, nimbleness and policy creativity to move beyond our campus model of instruction
that our online programs exclusively imitate.
There is an urgency to address this problem.
We believe the changes in this enrollment environment are not merely cyclical. If we continue to
develop and deliver online programs only as we have in the past there is no reason to believe the flat
to declining enrollment trend will not continue. We may be particularly vulnerable since the rate of
enrollment decline nationally is greatest among the adult population upon whom we are
disproportionately dependent.
There are also competitive forces at work that have not yet played out. Nearly every top university is
contemplating greater involvement in online instruction. For-profit institutions are attempting a
rebound with more competitive pricing and huge investments in adaptive learning and retention
practices to repair their positioning. There is evidence of increasing pressure on tuition pricing and
predictions of price erosion. By contrast, there is little evidence that the enrollment growth that has
occurred in the past through our model will return and it will take time for us to complement our
currently successful programs with additional ones with more compelling features.
Ideas for a potential response
1. Short term (immediately). Incremental and targeted growth of CU Online.
Do no harm to programs that are prospering and to processes that allow schools/colleges to
expand their online/hybrid programs as they wish. Programs that are healthy, growing and
meeting needs need continued support (see Appendix 2 for list of undergraduate majors by size).
2
However, rather than relying exclusively on organic growth, plan and intentionally increase the
number of online and hybrid degrees and courses in the areas of greatest market demand and
potential. We can leverage our existing program development, support and delivery model to do
so. The degrees to target for online development need to be further researched and discussed.
This plan has many benefits. It addresses the limits of our voluntary and organic method of online
program development. It can start immediately. Depending on its scope, development costs can
largely be covered by existing online reserves. It will leverage organizational strengths and build on
current human and material resources. Assuming new course/program development begins in the
fall of 2013, students should be able to begin enrolling in fall 2014 or spring 2015.
Uncovered Costs: Advertising. Amount TBD. Current reserves consist of online student fees and
cannot be used for advertising.
2. Intermediate Term (1-5 years). Create a new Online & Continuing Education Partnership
Organization
Create an innovative organizational structure, on a federated model, charged with collaborating
with schools and colleges to develop and administer alternative academic programs and services
and scoped to doing everything that we can't or find hard to do within the framework, support
structures and constraints of existing main campus programs.
Among the activities of this partnership organization may be:
a. Develop programs with innovative cost and tuition models.
b. Create modular degree programs that can be more easily customized to student needs
and aspirations.
c. Create programs and certificates of limited duration targeted at immediate needs.
d. Create interdisciplinary degree programs beyond the capacity or will of individual
schools/colleges to sponsor on their own.
e. Develop programs that do not follow the campus semester model. These can be online,
but also use accelerated, weekend or other course models.
f. Develop a program for rigorous yet streamlined assessment of prior and alternative learning
(e.g., student learning in MOOCs).
g. Solicit, investigate and sponsor development of worthwhile educational ideas and
innovations much like a technology transfer office functions for research.
h. Serve as an incubator (venture capitalist?) in the business of building things which can seed
or pilot new initiatives eventually destined for school/college sponsorship.
i. Develop and support community education and engagement programs (credit, noncredit, and enrichment) that can serve as pipelines for future students, donors, supporters
and other interested in varied levels of involvement with the university.
Financial model: The organization will be self-supporting after an initial start period and will share
revenue with participating schools/colleges and the central administration.
3
3. Long term (1-10 years). Institutional Transformation
Members recognize that higher education is changing and that the educational methods for all
areas of learning will be changed by these demographic, political and technological changes.
To adapt to these changes and flourish, program innovation and the use of technology must
infuse every program and college; flexibility, custom and experiential learning of all kinds will be a
hallmark of a student’s education even in traditional programs.
No one can “opt-out” of these developments and thrive. But we can embrace them and
strengthen our institution. We could, for example, adopt online technology use and expertise in
the conduct and support of teaching and learning and the education of students as one of the
signature features of our institution whether that learning is conducted as a supplement to
traditional classroom or lab teaching, clinical practice, hybrid or online learning modalities.
To have this become a signature of our university would take time and dedication – a life-long
learning effort for us as an institution. It may take an overhaul of basic policies so that RPT, for
example, includes reporting on use of technology in teaching. It may require all hires to have a
paragraph in their contract identifying the potential requirement to teach online or create online
content. It may require all graduates be able to demonstrate proficiency in the use of
technology in their discipline. It would require faculty support in the use of technology at a level
we do not have at present. It would take deeper engagement and a relationship with a larger
community of teachers, preceptors, practitioners and our communities than we now have or
have the technology or processes to support.
4. Foundational Requirements. (start immediate and persistently strengthen)
These initiatives require strengthening some of the institutional foundations on which their success
depends. Key areas needing attention include:
a. Improve faculty incentives and culture in the use of technology.
b. Improve our planning processes to map our curriculum and delivery planning to changing
market conditions and opportunities, cost structures, competitor threats and to enable us to
respond to innovative ideas and proposals.
c. Improve our student-centered practice including registration and billing flexibility, online
student services and student retention practices.
d. Strengthen our technology infrastructure and tools available for recruitment, teaching,
retention and outreach.
e. Create new budget, cost and revenue sharing models that will incentivize this development
and assure it will strengthen the financial status of the institution in the long run.
f. Improve our administrative/leadership structures to provide appropriate responsibility and
accountability for creating plans to achieve the above goals and executing them.
g. Improve our enrollment marketing and management capacity, particularly in graduate
programs and continuing education.
4
5
6
7
Spring 2013- What additional courses and degree programs would you like to see
offered online?
Any / All
CAP
Site Planning
Architecture
274
37%
8 1.00%
3
5
CLAS
Psychology
Science (general)
Biology
English
Communications
Ethnic studies
Sociology
Math
Chemistry
History
Spanish
Humanities (general)
Poly Scy
Religious studies
Writing
Anthropology
Stats
163
30
18
15
10
15
4
10
10
7
6
8
3
13
2
6
2
4
24%
COB
Business (general)
Accounting
All MBA
International business
Marketing
Management
Entreprenueurship
Health adminstration
Human resources
Project management
Finance
132
32
20
15
8
10
6
4
10
10
2
15
19%
COE
Engineering
5
5
1%
CAM
Art
Film
Graphic design
Video production
Audio production
Screenwriting
3D animation
Game programming
Music
50
12
8
3
6
5
4
3
5
4
7%
SOE
Education (general)
Ed Psyc
CPCE
33
20
7
6
4%
9
5
4
1%
SPH
Master of Public Health
Community Health
SPA
Criminal Justice
MPA
40 6.00%
30
10
8
9
APPENDIX 1. PERSONAS
OVTF Sub-group #3 Personas
March 21, 2013
Chris
Chris is a 26 year old junior pursing a degree in landscape architecture and design. She is a solo parent of a 5
year old daughter. She works 30 hours a week for a landscape design firm; the 30 hours a week job provides
her with healthcare insurance and the income needed (but barely) to cover her and her daughter’s living
expenses, her daughter’s after-school care, and some of her own education. She is a valued employee for many
reasons (e.g., her prior knowledge, her time and people management skills, and her Spanish fluency). Her
employer encourages her to work from home on occasion and allows her to use the company’s technology
(computer, printer, scanner, digital camera, etc.) for her school work.
Chris receives financial aid to offset the costs of attending university. Her financial aid is based on the number
of credits being taken, allowing her flexibility to pursue the course load that makes sense for her given her
employment and dependent care responsibilities. Chris’ financial aid documentation is available online, so she
can easily monitor it as well as easily communicate with her financial aid advisor.
Given the nature of the profession Chris is preparing for, much of her coursework is conducted off campus. The
students in the program are involved in community-based projects all over the city. Chris and the other
students meet physically at community sites, but collaborate on research and design work via social networking
and media tools. For example, they use Flickr to coordinate and archive their digital photos of work sites, and
they use Google Drive to share their research notes and write their design documents. Since her team
members are not always on the physical site at the same time, they use Google+ Hangouts to videoconference
to keep each other abreast of what work was accomplished during the day and what needs to be done (and by
who) the following day. The professor uses Google+ Hangouts for weekly team meetings and for scheduling onsite visits to assess progress.
Chris’ playground renovation project is located downtown. Because it is an urban setting, the team proposed to
the community stakeholders and city that the renovation consider the following three goals (a) make it a place
for families to gather, (b) make it a safe yet fun place that children fully enjoy, and (c) have it be a place that
expresses the diversity of the community it is serving. Before proposing the project, the team researched
community demographics and what makes a place fun and inviting to families. They also researched safety
issues related to playgrounds. All of this data was easily gathered via online databases and library resources,
and city & county personnel who were available to web conference with the team. They quickly discovered that
there was an organization in Ireland specializing in making playgrounds “fun”. After an initial email exchange,
the team used Google+ Hangouts to meet with the Irish organization and receive feedback on their plans and
designs for the playground renovation.
One time when Chris was at home with her daughter who was under the weather, two team members texted
her with questions and were able to send photos and video clips for her to respond to. It allowed the team
members to continue being productive because they were easily able to connect with her and get her feedback
on the spot.
In order to keep their professor, peers, and community stakeholders informed of their progress on the project,
the team set up a blog using WordPress. Every day, team members posted progress reports with photos and
video clips uploaded from their phones to their collaborative blog. Related, each team set up a YouTube
channel. Via this channel, the team members shared their progress-report video clips, but also shared a weekly
reflective 1-2 minute journal sharing what they had learned that week. The professor and other students
commented on these video clips, sharing their own insights.
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In order to assess the quality and viability of the design proposals and models, teams were required to present
their work to a review panel of community members, city and county representatives, and playground
designers. Because not everyone was able to be physically present for the review (e.g., the playground
designers were located in Phoenix, Los Angeles, and Dallas), the team created a video presentation (uploaded
to YouTube), then created a web page that provided access to the video presentation and all other supporting
design documentation, and sent the web page link out to the reviewers a week prior to the review. At the time
of the review, the team used Adobe Connect to present their work to the review team and receive feedback.
After revisions and a final presentation to the review panel who approved the design, the team was then able
to move into the next phase of the project. The students’ assessment was based on having the review panel
approve the design (regardless of how many iterations were required).
Persona 1: Smart, curious, active
This student is choosing UCD because they like the possibilities presented by Denver and the quality/price value
at UCD. A high achiever in high school, this student is seeking the opportunity to meet other students with
whom to collaborate and befriend on campus and, especially, for the intellectual challenges posed by
classroom discussions and projects. The student is already planning on a professional career or, at least, more
school.
Persona 2: Moderately bright, somewhat curious, locally bound
This student is choosing UCD because they want or need to stay in the area. Money is tight, so they will need to
work and possibly live at home for part of the time. They need to convenience of the downtown campus and
they hope to push their abilities at a more challenging school (e.g. than Metro). They vaguely think about
what’s after college, and they have some idea that UCD may provide them with more options (and entrees)
than other schools. This student’s needs the guidance and affirmation that can come from in-class learning.
Traci and Dan
The Executive Master of Public Administration is a degree program serving mid-career professionals who
typically hold mid- to upper management positions in public service (government and nonprofit) organizations.
The students are busy doing important work, and they have tough schedules. Their backgrounds and
occupational choices are very diverse and their career experiences very rich. They benefit enormously from the
time they spend together, no doubt learning more from one another than they do from their professor.
Traci entered the program last year. A career Foreign Service Officer, she holds a high level position in the US
Embassy in Oslo, Norway. Obviously, she cannot attend class in Denver, at least not on a regular basis. Online
classes make up much of her curriculum; she also interacts with other students using Adobe Connect,
conferences with other students to complete assignments online, and in May will attend an intensive (hybrid)
seminar for four days in Denver, later completing the course from Norway.
Dan is a career firefighter, now in the management ranks of a Denver metro area fire district. He has a highly
variable schedule, making it difficult for him to attend weekly class meetings. He has thoroughly enjoyed
spending time with other executive students in the Executive MPA intensives, offered twice annually, but he,
too takes courses online. He wants to keep up with friends, like Traci, on a regular basis so that they can
continue to share career experiences and thoughts.
Carmine
Carmine is a 38-year-old single mother who lives with her three children in the San Luis Valley. As a staff nurse
at the local hospital, she has reached the top of her career ladder and is looking for some career advancement.
Carmine’s nursing education is typical of student from a rural setting. She has always wanted to be a nurse and
11
started her nursing education in a LPN program. In her area, this was the quickest route to getting a job and
helping to pay for her education. She waited 9 months before she was accepted into the LPN program because
of the long waitlist. After working for a few years, she was able to save some monies to start her Associate
Degree program at the local college. She was very lucky to have her sister babysit her new baby. It took longer
than expected to complete her Associate degree as her husband lost his job and she needed to work more.
Upon graduation, she started as a staff nurse at the local hospital. While she raised her family, her dream was
to receive her BS in nursing. She was lucky that there were now online options for an RN-BSN program. She
liked the online option because of the convenience and the flexibility of the program. Her biggest hurdle was
the pre-requisite courses that were necessary to start the program. It was difficult to find and enroll in these
courses. She wished she had known more about these pre-requisites when she was in her Associate Degree
program.
Now as she looks to career advancement, she is more cognizant of her options and how she can best meet her
learning needs. She starts her search by first looking at the career opportunities in nursing. On the web, she
finds the latest projections for nursing in the State of Colorado. She becomes very interested in becoming a
Family Nurse Practitioner. With the focus of healthcare on health promotion, prevention and the management
of chronic diseases, this would be a very exciting new area for her and is a good fit with the new nurse
practitioner practices available in the San Luis Valley.
As an informed consumer, she is looking for a program that is accessible, flexible, and affordable. She expects
the program to have the necessary student supports for distant learners and they can provide any necessary
pre-requisite coursework. She is very interested in a program that can accommodate distant clinical
experiences that are built on an interprofessional collaborative care model. Although she took online courses
in the past, she is not looking for a video/Powerpoint lecture format. She wants a more active learning
experience at the graduate level. She wants to be able to interact with her classmates including medical,
pharmacy and dental students and with her instructors. She is willing to travel to campus for certain learning
activities but is hoping that the program can provide a variety of virtual patient care learning experiences. She
wants to start to build a network of colleagues that she can call upon as she starts her new role as a nurse
practitioner. She also hopes she can participate in some of the webinars, lectures and other events that are
accessible to campus-based students.
SK
SK is the chief pharmacist working in Egypt at a newly built and prestigious children’s cancer hospital. The
hospital has become the pride of Egypt as most of the population donates whatever they can to provide free
therapy to the children in need. The hospital’s medical staff is internationally trained, has strategic partnerships
with American Cancer Centers and even has received international accreditation by the American-based Joint
Commission. SK himself was trained at the local university for a more industrial pharmacy career. But he is a
good listener and has led his team of over 30 pharmacists to do their best to provide “pharmaceutical care” at
the hospital in the manner in which his American-trained physician colleagues have suggested. He would like it
if more of his pharmacy staff was prepared to pharmaceutical care when they were hired, but the only
pharmacy degree offered in Egypt is the same industry-oriented bachelor’s degree that he received. So he has
created regular staff training sessions during work hours to address this need. SK has a history of seeking
credible educational resources outside of Egypt to better his practice. He has become a Six Sigma Master Black
Belt by taking online courses. He and a few others have become Board Certified Oncology Pharmacists by
taking the American-based exam. What he knows he and others are missing is the clinical knowledge and
training of an American-based Doctor of Pharmacy degree. But he can’t send people to the US for four years to
obtain a traditional PharmD degree, they have families and it would cost too much. He realizes the staff can
hardly get a PharmD degree online, they’ll need the experience of working in the health care environment. SK
knows he is doing a good job at providing care at his hospital, his physician colleagues tell him so… But the
following thought nags him, “What are other pharmacists doing to improve care?”
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Appendix 2. Downtown Undergraduates Declared Majors
College
Major
College of Lib Arts & Sci UGRD
College of Lib Arts & Sci UGRD
College of Lib Arts & Sci UGRD
College of Lib Arts & Sci UGRD
College of Lib Arts & Sci UGRD
College of Arts & Media UGRD
College of Arts & Media UGRD
College of Lib Arts & Sci UGRD
College of Lib Arts & Sci UGRD
College of Lib Arts & Sci UGRD
Business School UGRD
College of Lib Arts & Sci UGRD
Business School UGRD
School of Public Affairs UGRD
College of Lib Arts & Sci UGRD
Coll Engineering & AppSci UGRD
College of Lib Arts & Sci UGRD
Business School UGRD
Business School UGRD
College of Lib Arts & Sci UGRD
Business School UGRD
College of Arts & Media UGRD
College of Lib Arts & Sci UGRD
College of Lib Arts & Sci UGRD
College of Lib Arts & Sci UGRD
Coll Engineering & AppSci UGRD
College of Lib Arts & Sci UGRD
College of Lib Arts & Sci UGRD
College of Lib Arts & Sci UGRD
Coll Engineering & AppSci UGRD
College of Lib Arts & Sci UGRD
Non-Degree UGRD
Non-Degree UGRD
Coll Engineering & AppSci UGRD
College of Lib Arts & Sci UGRD
Business School UGRD
College of Lib Arts & Sci UGRD
Business School UGRD
College of Lib Arts & Sci UGRD
College of Lib Arts & Sci UGRD
College of Lib Arts & Sci UGRD
College of Arts & Media UGRD
Coll Engineering & AppSci UGRD
College of Lib Arts & Sci UGRD
Business School UGRD
Business School UGRD
Biology
Psychology
Pre-Engineering
Pre-Medicine
Economics
Music
Fine Arts
Communication
Pre-Business
Pre-Nursing
Accounting
Liberal Arts - Undeclared
Management
Criminal Justice
Public Health
Mechanical Engineering
English
Finance
Marketing
Sociology
Business - Undeclared
Theatre, Film & Television
Chemistry
Political Science
English Writing Program
Electrical Engineering
Geography
Mathematics
International Studies
Civil Engineering
History
Non-Degree Undergraduate Level
Non-Deg H Sch Conc (MEUP Prgm)
Computer Science & Engineering
Pre-Pharmacy
International Business
Anthropology
Information Systems
Individually Structured
Pre-Physical Therapy
Physics
Arts and Media - Undeclared
Engineering - Undeclared
Pre-Education
Financial Management
Human Resources Management
# Students
1016
663
447
417
396
383
383
337
312
261
247
224
213
200
197
177
175
174
174
170
169
167
165
161
160
140
138
135
132
115
115
113
110
110
106
98
89
81
78
71
71
66
63
63
58
51
Notes
Online fall 2013
Now Online
Now Online
13
College of Lib Arts & Sci UGRD
Coll Architecture & Plan UGRD
College of Lib Arts & Sci UGRD
College of Lib Arts & Sci UGRD
College of Lib Arts & Sci UGRD
Business School UGRD
College of Lib Arts & Sci UGRD
Philosophy
Architecture
Pre-Dentistry
Spanish
Pre-Veterinary Medicine
Sports Management
French
48
40
39
38
21
14
12
14
15
16