Yahoo! CEO Marissa Mayer unleashed a new policy on February 25 saying employees would no longer be available to work from home. In an internal memo she stated, “To become the absolute best place to work, communication and collaboration will be important, so we need to be working side-by-side,” the memo said. “That is why it is critical that we are all present in our offices.”

Hello… does anyone see the irony in this? The company that has given us Yahoo! Mail and Yahoo! Messenger to allow us to connect with others remotely now says that employees must be face to face to communicate and collaborate.

WOW and backwards WOW.

Never mind the studies that say employees working from home are more productive and work more hours than their in-office counterparts. Then at an all-staff meeting several weeks ago a staffer asked Mayer whether her rigorous hiring practices had caused the company to miss out on top engineering talent in Silicon Valley’s hyper-competitive job market. She personally interviews all candidates applying for a job. Mayer dismissed the complaint that she had refused good candidates because they did not have degrees from
prestigious universities, and instead she challenged her staff to get better at recruiting.

Kind of reminds me of traditional academe. Despite the studies showing students in online and hybrid classes acquire knowledge better than their traditional in-seat counterparts, faculty and administrators are still resisting online education at many institutions. “I think some classes are ok online, but for those classes where students need to interact with a professor, there is not substitute for the face to face classroom.” This comment came from a community college faculty member at a faculty training I attended a couple of months ago.

Again…. WOW.

Many colleges are quickly trying to figure out how to get into the “online game” in an attempt to bolster failing traditional enrollments and to adjust to the changing marketplace of higher education. Just this week, I have had two inquires from institutions wanting eduKan to help them bring their programs online, to use our expertise and learning management system. Just like many are speculating that more and more traditional institutions who don’t embrace change are not going to be in business in the future, many in the tech world are speculating based on the decisions of Yahoo!’s CEO they are not going to be in business in the near future.

Next blog I will address Marissa’s hiring practices and how they parallel the hiring practices of traditional institutions.

Yahoo!

At the 20^th ICAI Conference’s Technology Showcase, Dr. Mark Sarver will be discussing how eduKan is using biometrics technology for student identity proofing to meet regulations, lower operational costs and maintain high levels of academic integrity for distance education.

Dr. Mark Sarver, CEO of eduKan, a consortium of colleges in Kansas, will be speaking at the International Center for Academic Integrity’s 20^th Anniversary Conference. Dr. Sarver will be talking about his choice to seek out a solution for identity proofing students enrolled in eduKan’s distance education program, to maintain a high level of academic integrity and to lower operational costs associated with physical proctoring. The ICAI conference originally was to be held at Princeton University in November, but Hurricane Sandy forced a reschedule to February 26-28^th, 2013 in San Antonio, Texas and will feature thought leaders who support the need to cultivate a culture of integrity in academic communities throughout the world.

Overview of Benefits of Technology used from BSI

The International Center for Academic Integrity (ICAI) was founded in 1992 to combat cheating, plagiarism, and academic dishonesty in higher education. ICAI offers assessment services, resources, and consultations to its member institutions, and facilitates conversations on academic integrity topics each year at its annual conference. The 20th International Center for Academic Integrity Conference’s theme is Influencing Culture, Advancing Integrity and is headed up by director, Dr. Teresa Fishman, from Clemson University in South Carolina and has members in 18 countries.

“We are excited to be speaking at the ICAI conference this year, representing the first distance education institution that has pioneered the use of BSI’s biometric technology for identity proofing as part of our learning management platform,” stated Dr. Mark Sarver, CEO of eduKan.

eduKan ran a pilot in the Spring of 2011 to test the viability of the BioSig-ID software for use in student identity proofing along with a plan to lower proctoring costs, protect student privacy and increase accountability while being easy to use. Dr. Sarver was able to realize a dramatic savings in operational costs and lower fees for students while proactively managing academic integrity for eduKan’s online campus. eduKan was nominated for a Sloan Consortium Effective Practice award for their advancement in using innovative technology to solve this critical need.

At ICAI, Dr. Sarver will share the key findings from the pilot, how it’s working now that it is rolled out for school-wide usage, and how eduKan is benefiting today by using BSI’s solution.

“We are on a fast growth path and needed to manage costs as our staff of six manages over 5,000 online student enrollments,” Dr. Sarver continues. “The risk-reward for adoption of innovative technologies comes down to the plan –one in which we very methodically stated clear goals and objectives to our technology partners and were able to realize them as a result of the hard work of our team’s execution.”

For more information on this conference and membership opportunities in the ICAI, please visit http://www.academicintegrity.org.

About eduKan

eduKan provides access to quality higher education, including ESL courses, via college degrees, certificates, and individual courses, with affordable online classes. eduKan was founded in 1998 as a cooperative effort between member colleges to offer courses via the Internet. eduKan’s consortium schools are all accredited Kansas learning institutions with excellent reputations and long histories of providing degrees in traditional settings, as well as through online courses. eduKan Consortium member institutions are: Barton Community College, in Great Bend; Colby Community College, in Colby; Dodge City Community College, in Dodge City; Garden City Community College, in Garden City; Pratt Community College, in Pratt; and Seward County Community College/Area Technical School, in Liberal. For more information, please visit http://www.edukan.org.

Dr. Sarver will be a panelist at the HigherEdTECH Summit discussing eduKan’s successful use of analytics to track student progress in distance education to improve student retention, identify at-risk students, & better manage learning outcomes.

Dr. Mark Sarver, CEO of eduKan, a consortium of colleges in Kansas, will be speaking at the 2013 HigherEdTECH Summit at the CES (International Consumer Electronics Show), Thursday, January 10^th 2013 at the Las Vegas Convention Center. Dr. Sarver will be joining a group of expert panelists who will be talking about using analytics gleaned from educational data to understand what’s working and what isn’t in addition to platforms and technology tools.

HigherEdTECH is presented by Living in Digital Times and brings together the educators, journalists, high tech experts, and policymakers changing higher education and showcases the latest technologies and digital services. The HigherEdTECH conference is held in the midst of the (CES) Consumer Electronics Show, the world’s largest technology arena and the best place to be part of this unique strategic dialog, preview the hottest digital innovations, and network with thought leaders and potential partners.

Mark Sarver is the CEO of eduKan, a consortium of colleges delivering online education. His prior experience in Advancement and Enrollment Management informs his expertise in higher education strategy and spans virtually all aspects of institutional management, including marketing and financial analysis. He has created, taught, and administered courses in leadership, organizational behavior, accounting, international business marketing and management for universities and community colleges around the country. Sarver has assisted faculty and administrators in conceptualizing and designing online courses given direction to schools for designing program assessment policies. His leadership experience bridges academic sectors that range from private to public colleges and universities to for-profit and not-for-profit institutions. He is a recognized speaker on educational innovation, emerging analytics-driven content, and engaging minorities in education through technology, and is considered an educational futurist.

Dr. Sarver will be joining a group of renowned experts in their fields at this HigherEdTECH Summit panel on Thursday, January 10, 2013
 Las Vegas Convention Center, North Hall, N256 from 3:00-4:00pm entitled “The New Math:  Is Analytics Adding Up?”  The panelists include Mark Sarver, Ph.D., CEO, eduKan, Jim Ambach, Senior Vice  President, Product Management, CourseSmart LLC, Babur Habib, Ph.D., CTO and Co-founder, Kno Inc. , Mike Sharkey, Director of Academic Analytics, University of Phoenix with Seth Reynolds, from The Parthenon Group as moderator.

For more information on the HigherEdTECH Summit and how to attend, please visit http://www.higheredtechsummit.com.

Here is a video interview of Dr. Sarver talking with Pearson about Project Aristotle and how eduKan is using analytics for creating better education opportunities for students.

[youtube http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6YzBhVsY36g]

About eduKan

eduKan provides access to quality higher education, including ESL courses, via college degrees, certificates, and individual courses, with affordable online classes. eduKan was founded in 1998 as a cooperative effort between member colleges to offer courses via the Internet. eduKan’s consortium schools are all accredited Kansas learning institutions with excellent reputations and long histories of providing degrees in traditional settings, as well as through online courses. eduKan Consortium member institutions are: Barton Community College, in Great Bend; Colby Community College, in Colby; Dodge City Community College, in Dodge City; Garden City Community College, in Garden City; Pratt Community College, in Pratt; and Seward County Community College/Area Technical School, in Liberal. For more information, please visit http://www.edukan.org.

About HigherEdTECH

HigherEdTECH 2012 is where higher education and technology converge at the International Consumer Electronics Show (CES) in Las Vegas, NV. To be held on Thursday, January 10, 2013 in the Las Vegas Convention Center, HigherEdTECH is an exciting mash-up of educators, technology visionaries, journalists and academic publishers. The HigherEdTECH Summit is presented by Living in Digital Times, producer of the following summits and exhibitions at CES: Digital Health, Fitness Tech, Kids@Play, MommyTech, Mobile Apps Showdown and Last Gadget Standing. For more information about HigherEdTECH, visit www.higheredtechsummit.com.

About CEA

The Consumer Electronics Association (CEA) is the preeminent trade association promoting growth in the $206 billion U.S. consumer electronics industry. More than 2,000 companies enjoy the benefits of CEA membership, including legislative advocacy, market research, technical training and education, industry promotion, standards development and the fostering of business and strategic relationships. CEA also owns and produces the International CES – The Global Stage for Innovation. All profits from CES are reinvested into CEA’s industry services. Find CEA online: www.CE.org and www.DeclareInnovation.com.

This is a replay of the LIVE eduKan TV talk show hosted by Dr. Mark Sarver on 19 October 2012. The topic covered: Technology: Students Using it & Faculty Trying to Keep Up

Guests – Dr. James Wallis II, professor at the Tarpon Springs campus of St. Petersburg College, who uses an active learning style that includes field research, facilated learning, and the use of the natural environments as the classroom and also joining us will be Scot Chadwick, VP at Pearson who is working on the next generation of learning management systems.

eduKan provides access to quality higher education including ESL courses via college degrees, certificates, & individual courses with affordable online classes.

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Dr. Mark Sarver of eduKan delivered the afternoon session on opening day at NUTN 2012 entitled “Innovating Assessment while Assessing Innovation” where eduKan was also honored with the 2012 NUTN Institutional Achievement Award.

eduKan, a consortium of colleges in Kansas, was honored with the 2012 NUTN Institution Achievement award at the 2012 National University Telecommunications Network (NUTN) 30^th Anniversary Conference in Kansas City, MO, where eduKan’s CEO, Dr. Mark Sarver, was also invited to speak on Innovation opening day. The National University Technology Network is a networking and professional development organization for innovative leaders in the advancement of distance education headquartered at the Dallas County Community College.

Dr. Mark Sarver Receives NUTN 2012 Institutional Achievement Award for eduKan

The NUTN Institution Achievement award recognizes an institutional member of the National University Technology Network (NUTN) for effective use of technology in teaching and learning and/or organizational administration (or administrative operations) that is exemplary, demonstrates leadership and commitment, and advances the field as an institutional model.

This year, eduKan was the honored recipient of the 2012 NUTN Institution Achievement Award with Honorable Mention going to Michigan State University, E. Lansing, MI and Savannah College of Art and Design, Atlanta, GA. Past winners include Dallas County Community College District, Dallas, TX, Memorial University of Newfoundland, Canada and Washington State University.

Award criteria for receiving this prestigious award includes (1) Organizational Commitment, where the institution uses technology in teaching on and off campus, involving administrative leadership, faculty, and support staff and utilizing goal setting processes; (2) Quality of Offerings of technology improves learning, access, faculty, student satisfaction, and organizational operations; (3) Effectiveness where the institution’s technology-assisted offerings enable faculty to teach large numbers of high-quality, online, blended or technology assisted courses with a high degree of student satisfaction and academic success; and (4) Advancing the field with programs or processes that have been exemplary, emulated and have substantially contributed to the advancement of teaching and learning through the effective use of technology.

“We are honored to be recognized for our technology advances at eduKan,” said Dr. Mark Sarver, CEO, eduKan. “The rigorous criteria and competition from other members up for this award was staggering, and winning this award means so much to our staff of six in Great Bend and to the six colleges that are the heart of eduKan.”

Dr. Sarver, eduKan’s CEO, was also present during the three day conference and gave an energizing presentation entitled “Innovating Assessment while Assessing Innovation” where he discussed how eduKan changed the way they were doing course assessment using data and analytics. Last Fall, eduKan started offering courses with digitally embedded content in partnership with Pearson where they not only found this was the best way to engage students but they were also able to track and measure how the students and the faculty were engaged. The data collected allows eduKan to proactively assess each course and locate any weakness so it can be redesigned to ensure successful student outcomes. Dr. Sarver also shared how eduKan is using analytics from the data collected on not only course assessment but student/faculty interaction and how this makes a dramatic change for the future success of online education.

About eduKan

eduKan provides access to quality higher education, including ESL courses, via college degrees, certificates, and individual courses, with affordable online classes. eduKan was founded in 1998 as a cooperative effort between member colleges to offer courses via the Internet. eduKan’s consortium schools are all accredited Kansas learning institutions with excellent reputations and long histories of providing degrees in traditional settings, as well as through online courses. eduKan Consortium member institutions are: Barton Community College, in Great Bend; Colby Community College, in Colby; Dodge City Community College, in Dodge City; Garden City Community College, in Garden City; Pratt Community College, in Pratt; and Seward County Community College/Area Technical School, in Liberal. For more information, please visit http://www.edukan.org.

About the NUTN Network

Headquartered at the Dallas County Community College District’s R. Jan LeCroy Center, the National University Technology Network (NUTN) is a consortium of higher education institutions and provides a networking and professional development arena for the advancement of teaching and learning in the distance education field. NUTN members represent a widely diverse group of innovative leaders in the advancement of teaching and learning. For more information go to: http://www.nutn.org.