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University of Hawai'i |
(808) 956-8856 Telephone |
For Immediate Release: |
October 5, 1998 |
Contact: David Lassner, 808 956-3501 Cheryl Ernst, 956-8856 |
Hawai'i Ranked 2nd in "Wired" Higher Education Hawai'i was ranked second in the higher education category of a national analysis of state efforts to utilize digital technologies. Michigan topped the list with a score of 94 out of a possible 100 points. Hawai'i tied with Arizona, California, Kansas, Mississippi, Nebraska, Oregon and Washington for second place with a score of 83. The report, "The Digital State 1998," was produced by the Progress & Freedom Foundation in conjunction with Government Technology magazine. (The executive summary is on-line at www.pff.org/digital98.html.) For its higher education ranking, the report scored states on utilization of digital technologies to facilitate learning and communication, as well as for administrative functions such as applications and student loans. Overall, the report noted a 40 percent increase over last year's score in the higher education category. It reported a marked improvement in student access to computers on campus, availability of on-line admission and financial aid application information and forms and courses offered through distance technology. "The University of Hawai'i did well across most categories, but scored especially high in areas related to the delivery of instruction through interactive technologies," comments David Lassner, director of information technology. Earlier this year, the UH Board of Regents revised its policy on outreach to emphasize that distance learning-which includes off-site course offerings delivered in person or by technology-is an integral part of the mission and a primary responsibility of every UH campus. Nearly four dozen programs that grant credentials-from vocational certificates through master's degrees-at UH Manoa, UH Hilo, UH West O'ahu and the UH Community Colleges offered distance learning courses during fall 1997. Eighty of the 282 distance courses (accounting for 1,864 of the 4,901 registrants) utilized technology to deliver instruction. Distance learning was delivered to 15 UH campus or educational center sites, as well as to correctional facilities, hospitals, military bases, public schools and individual homes on six islands and to the Pacific Basin, Asia and the U.S. Mainland. The Western Governors University, a "virtual" university in which the University of Hawai'i participates, was cited as a "best practice." The Digital State 1998 report noted that "This cooperative effort aims to pool resources and avoid duplication in order to provide citizens across the region with affordable and accessible education options. Equipped with an on-line campus, on-line library, and on-line advising, this 'cyber' university is sure to change the face of higher education in the nation." |
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