•

The president and chancellors should continue to publicly encourage faculty use of
technology for teaching and learning.
The TLT Collaborative should have a steering committee that includes chief
academic officers and faculty members.
Discipline-based advisory groups should provide intellectual guidance.

•

•

“Information technology will play an increasingly important role in the teaching and
learning process over the next decade, so UNC must develop the support capabilities and
infrastructure to ensure that the new tools and techniques are employed in the most
effective and efficient manner.”

Imagine if…people everywhere in North Carolina could avail themselves of high-quality
higher education, either for career advancement or personal fulfillment, and could do it
at a time and place that is most convenient for them.

Most UNC schools have distance education programs; however, many of them
consist largely of on-site, face-to-face instruction at remote sites: Teachers go to the
students, rather than having the students come to campus.
A few UNC campuses have developed extensive programs of “technology
mediated” distance education, in which the instructor is in one location and the students
may be scattered throughout the state and beyond. This is the future of distance
education, because it allows an institution to serve many more people, and students can
“go to class” virtually wherever they are and whenever they want.

Goals

The IT Strategy Steering Committee saw four possible goals of a UNC distance
education strategy:
•Meet the state’s education and training needs by expanding access to underserved
populations.
•Alleviate capacity constraints:Accommodate the expected 31% increase in
enrollment over the next 10 years by teaching a large number of students online.
•Pursue new markets for education, such as “corporate learners” and “professional
enhancement learners,” in order to meet individual needs, generate revenue and
contribute to regional economic growth.
•Position UNC to capitalize on new opportunities, to be responsive to students’ needs
for flexible learning options, and to increase student choice.

“Given the rise in “e-business,” the increasing competition among colleges and
universities, and the demand for greater educational accountability, it is likely that
distance education will be a major driver of change within higher education.”

October 1999

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