Online Distance Delivery

Online Distance Delivery

of Programs

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Office of the Provost

Table of Contents

Introduction

Committee Members

Overview of Proposal Submission Process

Pre-Proposal

I. Proposed Distance Program Information

II. Collaboration with Other Units or Partners

III. Regulatory Considerations

IV. Define the Program

Proposal

V. Curriculum

VI. Delivery Method

VII. Demand for the Program

VIII. Costs and Funding of Proposed Program

IX. Course Development

Appendix

Sample Launch Timeline

Course Development Schedule Template

Online Term Options

Budget Template

Introduction

Thank you for your interest in developing a distance program. Innovative methods of program delivery for graduate programs are part of the Bradley University 2012–17 Strategic Plan, and they will, therefore, receive priority consideration at this time.

Before getting started, it is necessary to consider many aspects inherent in a distance degree or certificate program.

When a department wants to market a program as “online” or “hybrid” and promote it to students at a distance, the department will need to submit a proposal detailing that program to ensure all aspects of its implementation have been considered. The development, marketing and delivery of the program will require University resources such as My Online, instructional design and course development, technology support, financial aid and student support implications, etc. Additionally, targeting students outside the state of Illinois will result in additional regulatory requirements for those other states that will necessitate significant logistical work, fees and accreditation factors.

This proposal asks for information to support the viability of the business plan for your proposed distance program. An Advisory Committee will support you in the completion of this proposal, as well as will read and provide feedback on the clarity and viability of your proposal.

Committee Members

Heather Berkley
Sandy Bury
Dean Cantu
Kayla Carroll
Molly Cluskey
Ahmad Fakheri
Barbra Kerns
Andy Kindler
BJ Lawrence
Clara Miles
Jennifer Robin
Erich Stabenau

You may choose to revise your proposal based on the Advisory Committee’s feedback before submitting it to the Provost. Strong proposals will include supporting evidence indicating the proposed program’s alignment with the University mission, market demand, student success and outcomes, distinctiveness of the program, readiness for online and strong returns. Curriculum modifications are to be addressed by traditional University Curriculum and Regulations (C&R) procedures. (Note: Graduate distance programs will receive priority at this time.)

Overview of Proposal Submission Process

The submission process has two stages: Pre-Proposal and Proposal. The Pre-Proposal provides a structure for framing and presenting preliminary information to the Provost about a department’s intentions for a new distance program. Once the Pre-Proposal receives the Provost’s support to move forward, the department may work with the Advisory Committee on development of the Proposal. Below is a detailed outline of the submission process:

1. The Department(s) discusses plans for the distance program with the College Dean and completes the Pre-Proposal (Sections I–IV below).
2. The College Dean discusses the Pre-Proposal with the Provost to obtain support and approval for the Department(s) to proceed with development of a Proposal.
3. The Department Chair contacts Barbra Kerns to schedule a consultation/presentation.
4. The Department(s) develops the Proposal, Budget, and Course Development Schedule(Sections V–IX below) and, with the Dean’s approval, submits it to the Advisory Committee.
5. The Advisory Committee reads the documents and provides feedback to the Department(s), College Dean and Provost on feasibility and viability of planned distance program.
6. The Department(s) may revise the documents and submit them to the Provost.
7. The Provost approves, returns for revisions or denies the Proposal and meets with the College Dean.
8. The Provost identifies and charges an implementation team.

Pre-Proposal

I. Proposed Distance Program Information

Name of unit submitting the request.

Name of the proposed program.

Who is the primary contact person for this request?

What is the proposed launch date of the program? (See Sample Launch Timeline in the Appendix to determine a practical date.)

What degree or certificate is to be offered?

Type of Program

Indicate the type of distance program to be offered:

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●Existing Graduate Program

●New Graduate Program

●Existing Undergraduate Program

●New Undergraduate Program

●Existing Certificate Program

●New Certificate Program

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Note: Modifying existing programs or creating new programs must go before the University Senate Curriculum and Regulations Committee.

Do you plan to continue the residential program after the development of the distance program?

Attach a letter of support for the proposed distance program from your College Dean.

II. Collaboration with Other Units or Partners

Do you plan to have an external partner? If yes, please describe that partnership.

Will you be collaborating with another department or college? If yes, please describe that collaboration.

Attach a letter of support from the other College’s Dean.

III. Regulatory Considerations

The Higher Learning Commission (HLC) authorizes Bradley University to offer distance programs.However, HLC policies may impact how a program is offered and may require advance notification or approval.Please contact Jennifer Gruening Burge, director of institutional improvement, by email to to discuss to whom you plan to market your program and how it will be delivered.

Additionally, Bradley University is required to seek authorization from or register with all 50 statesto offer and provide distance programs to their residents.Strict limitations and regulations — that vary greatly state by state — govern the offering of distance programs.Applications and filing fees may be required.Please contact Julie Schifeling, credentialing coordinator, by email to to discuss your program, its method of delivery and the process for securing authorization to provide your programs outside Illinois.

Describe accrediting bodies and professional licensure requirements/regulations and any state regulations and authorization requirements.

How will compliance be achieved and maintained?

IV. Define the Program

Describe the program.

List the program outcomes.

Motivation

Briefly explain the motivation for delivering the program via distance.

Faculty

Describe the level of involvement and expertise of your department in support of delivering the program via distance.

Describe the faculty load and ability to design and develop courses or teach additional courses for the distance program.

To what extent will Bradley’s Instructional Design & Learning Technologies division or external partners be needed for course development?

Are additional faculty members necessary?

How will faculty be compensated for course development (e.g., in-load, over-load, stipend, other)?

Who will serve as program coordinator? (The program coordinator is the primary point of contact for program-level decisions related to distance program development and delivery.)

Proposal

V. Curriculum

Undergraduate Programs

How will Core Curriculum course requirements be met?

Is this a degree completion program?

Note: Transfer credits must follow the University’s/College’s transfer rules.

All Programs

Complete the summary table below with each course to be included in the degree or certificate program. (Also complete the Course Development Schedule Template in the Appendix after meeting with your course development team.)

Course Name and Number / Development Date Range (allow 5 months) / Offering Date / New Course (Y/N)

Total number of hours required for degree or certificate.

Number of hours in degree or certificate program core.

Number of hours in guided electives.

Number of hours in general electives.

Number of hours in Core Curriculum (if undergraduate).

VI. Delivery Method

The determination of a course being “online” or “hybrid” will be based on the definitions used by the Bradley Registrar’s Office:

●An “online” course is one that requires no face-to-face meetings on campus.

●A “hybrid” course (also referred to as “blended”) require at least one face-to-face meeting on campus.

Are there any on-campus or residency requirements?

Will there be any synchronous online sessions?

The University offers the following online terms: 3 week, 5 week, 7.5 week or 15 week. (See the Online Term Options chart in the Appendix for details.) Please indicate the course term length needed by completing the Course Development Schedule Template in the Appendix.

VII. Demand for the Program

Determining the demand for a potential program will require research both internal and external to the University. The Office of Marketing and Publications and the Smith Career Center may be able to provide insights in some of the following queries. An external market study may also be needed.

Student Demand

Clearly describe all evidence of student demand, using the prompts below as guidance for topics to consider/address. Market research analysis should be conducted at the cohort level and could be in the form of surveys of potential students and/or enrollments in related programs.

Describe the audience profile.

Describe the enrollment potential.

Describe degree/certificate production, including trends and the number and types of students who have graduated from this type of program nationally in each of the past five years.

Briefly describe the competitive landscape, taking the following into consideration:

1. Approximately how many institutions have similar programs? The College Board website provides a helpful search tool for this step at bigfuture.collegeboard.org/college-search. Once on the page, click “Majors & Learning Environment” for the search option.
2. What is the delivery modality for each program (i.e., online, hybrid, require some residency)?
3. Are the competitive programs accredited?
4. Are the competitive programs nationally ranked?
5. What are differentiators of the competitive programs?
6. On average, how many students are enrolled in the competitive programs?
7. What is the tuition for the competitive programs?

Describe the potential for this distance program to be offered through Bradley:

1. What are potential barriers?
2. What are potential challenges in offering a rigorous program through online or hybrid delivery?

What are potential differentiators that would cause prospective students to choose this degree/certificate from Bradley over the competition?

Postgraduate Demand

Clearly describe evidence of postgraduate demand for the degree/certificate. These opportunities may include postgraduate employment or entrance into other educational/professional programs (e.g., doctorate-granting institutions; medical, dental, veterinarian or other professional programs).

Evidence could include (but is not limited to) market studies, survey data, entrance rates and promotion rates associated with the degree/certificate. If applicable, describe employer demand for the requested delivery of the program, particularly if target students already are employed and lack the adequate flexibility to enroll in an on-campus program. Include average salaries of graduates, when possible (include local, state and national demand).

Estimated Student Demand for the Program

Project estimates for the first five years:

Academic Year / Estimated Degrees/ Certificates Conferred / Estimated Headcount/ Enrollment – Fall Semester / Estimated Credit Hour Generation

Does the department have the resources to offer the distance program while maintaining its on-campus version?

If not, please detail the additional resources that will be required.

Availability

Will the courses be offered regularly in an appropriate sequence, time frame and format that will allow students to complete degree or certificate requirements within the specified period (e.g., two years for graduate programs)?

Describe the frequency, availability and section enrollment caps of courses that will meet the needs of the target student population.

Provide a chronological curriculum map of the program.

Uniqueness

How does the proposed program compare with competitors’ programs?

What distinguishes the proposed program over the competitors’ existing programs?

Is the proposed program considered state of the art in the discipline?

Provide evidence that the proposed program is not unnecessarily duplicative of similar offerings in the state or region.

VIII. Costs and Funding of Proposed Program

The resource requirements of and planned funding sources for the proposed program must be detailed in order to assess the adequacy of the resources needed to support a quality program. This review is to assess overall need for funds and ensure the program will be efficient in its utilization of resources.

Provide costs of and funding sources for the proposed program and productivity goals by completing the Budget Template in the Appendix.

Sustainability

Describe how the academic unit is committed to offering the courses on an ongoing basis.

Describe the economics of the course delivery, including revisions to maintain currency of design and content, as well as to allow it to be self-sustaining after initial development.

IV. Course Development

Quality Course Design

Courses shall be comparable (quality instruction; measurable learning outcomes; active learning; engagement between and among students, faculty and content; and robust assessments) to courses taught on campus and shall meet the standards set forth in the Quality Matters (QM) Rubric.

Describe faculty preparation for developing and delivering online courses (e.g., all faculty have completed Quality Matters “Applying the QM Rubric” faculty development course and courses are designed to QM standards).

Meet with the instructional design and course development team (either through an external partnership or Bradley’s Center for Teaching Excellence and Learning Instructional Design & Learning Technologies division) to devise a plan for how courses will be designed to high quality and produced on the expected time frame. Include a course production schedule. (See the Course Development Schedule Template in the Appendix for details.)

Faculty/Student Interaction

Describe the methods and frequency of real-time and asynchronous interaction between faculty and students and among students enrolled in the course.

Academic Integrity

The University subscribes to Turnitin plagiarism checking software. Virtual proctoring of exams and other systems or practices may need to be considered to validate students are doing their own work.

Describe methods that will ensure academic integrity, including validation of student identity and measures for monitoring for plagiarism and cheating.

Student Confidentiality

Describe methods that will ensure the confidentiality and privacy of student personal data in order to comply with the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA).

Academic Calendar Requirements

Standards relating to the number of course meetings and total time spent in the course or satisfying course requirements shall be comparable to on-campus requirements.

Admissions, Retention, Assessment

Admissions standards shall be the same as those for the University’s residential programs. If proposing something different, please describe.

What is the average time to completion for this program? What is the maximum allowed?

Describe how the program’s success will be evaluated (e.g., increased graduate enrollment, higher student success rates, increased retention, cost savings, enhanced learning outcomes).

How will student success be measured?

How will student satisfaction be measured?

Academic Advisement

Who will be responsible for academic advising (e.g., program coordinator, divided among faculty)?

Will this program follow a specific carousel for classes? If so, please describe if electives will be included and how they will fit into the carousel.

How will off-carousel advising be tracked (e.g., program of study, DARS, u.achieve)?

How will the students in this program be registered for classes and by whom?

Program Information for Prospective Students

The University must provide adequate and accurate information to prospective students including (but not limited to) admission requirements, technology requirements, estimated time students will likely spend on course work per week, estimated or average program costs and other services available. Describe methods that will ensure adequate and accurate information is presented.

Student Services

Distance students shall have access to program guidance and academic support services, including admissions, enrollment, academic advisement, financial aid and related services on the same basis as residential students. Distance programs must make these services available in electronic format. Describe methods that will ensure this access is available.

Learning Resources

Distance students shall have access to facilities, library resources, learning resources and materials on the same basis as residential students. Describe the methods that will ensure these learning resources are available.

Technical Support

Students and faculty in distance programs shall have access to appropriate technical support services. Describe the technical support system available for hardware, software and delivery systems specific to the courses in the program.

Equipment and Software/Tools

Students must be informed in clear, understandable terms of the electronic and network resources necessary for successful completion of the program, including software, hardware and network requirements.

What, if any, additional technology or software will be needed for the program?

What will be the server needs for course materials?

Describe plans for video or multimedia usage.

Accessibility

Courses shall be designed, produced and tested to ensure accessibility to students with disabilities.

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Appendix

Sample Launch Timeline

Course Development Schedule Template

Course Code / Course
Title / Credits / Faculty / Term Length / Course Development Begins / Course Completion Date / Instructor Sign-Off Date / Course
Start
Fall 2015
New Student Orientation / 0 / 2/1/2015 / 7/1/2015 / 7/21/2015 / 8/1/2015
3 / 2/1/2015 / 7/1/2015 / 7/21/2015 / 8/1/2015
3 / 2/1/2015 / 7/1/2015 / 7/21/2015 / 8/1/2015
3 / 2/1/2015 / 7/1/2015 / 7/21/2015 / 8/1/2015
Spring 2016
3 / 6/1/2015 / 11/1/2015 / 12/1/2015 / 1/1/2016
3 / 6/1/2015 / 11/1/2015 / 12/1/2015 / 1/1/2016
3 / 6/1/2015 / 11/1/2015 / 12/1/2015 / 1/1/2016
3 / 6/1/2015 / 11/1/2015 / 12/1/2015 / 1/1/2016
Summer 2016
3 / 11/1/2015 / 3/1/2016 / 3/21/2016 / 5/1/2016
3 / 11/1/2015 / 3/1/2016 / 3/21/2016 / 5/1/2016
3 / 11/1/2015 / 3/1/2016 / 3/21/2016 / 5/1/2016
3 / 11/1/2015 / 3/1/2016 / 3/21/2016 / 5/1/2016
Fall 2016
3 / 2/1/2016 / 7/1/2016 / 7/21/2016 / 8/1/2016
3 / 21/2016 / 7/1/2016 / 7/21/2016 / 8/1/2016
3 / 2/1/2016 / 7/1/2016 / 7/21/2016 / 8/1/2016
3 / 2/1/2016 / 7/1/2016 / 7/21/2016 / 8/1/2016

Online Term Options