5 Things Not to Cut from Your DL Budget

I recently read Fred Miller's Educause article, 10 Ways to Cut Your IT Budget. While I have long argued that distance learning is not really an IT function, there were a couple of cuts that he suggested that I would apply to distance learning. First of all, he said to wait another year before getting new computers. This is a no-brainer but probably gets overlooked and can save gobs of money. Another tip was to negotiate prices with vendors. Just a couple of years ago, this would have probably not worked, but now everybody knows that frugality is expected and cool.
Now, what would I NOT cut from a DL budget?

1. Personnel. No way, no how. As the economy helps to drive increasing DL enrollments, the entire system will fall apart without the support staff. It is quite likely that increased staffing would even provide an overall payoff in terms of even more enrollments.
2. Communication systems. This includes advanced telephones, live helpdesk systems, etc. We have to be more efficient in supporting faculty and learners than ever before and premiere communication is money well spent.
3. Course management systems. I suppose that some folks are thinking this is the best time to start looking at lower-cost home-grown systems and stop writing the mongo checks to you-know-who. Not me. The transition costs would be enormous in the short-run, and it's the short-run (hopefully) where we are all having our money woes.
4. Some travel. Clearly, I'm cutting back on the number of trips and having a lot of meetings by phone or online technologies. But I would not cut out all travel because I know that much of it really provides cost-benefit. At our annual DLA Conference, for instance, I learn more in three days from my colleagues about marketing, faculty development, student support, etc. than I normally do in six months. DL is a notoriously busy field, and we absolutely have to invest a little money and immersive time for learning. I have to pick and choose these opportunities carefully. A conference with a registration fee of over $400 is less likely to happen this year.
5. Marketing. This is probably one of the most important times for marketing online programs since the early 2000s.

My DLA Forecast for 2009

As we say goodbye to an unforgettable year, here's what I think is in store for 2009, at least in the world of online learning:

• A greater emphasis on the financial benefits of distance learning. Higher ed administrators who were previously lukewarm about DL will work on number crunching to see exactly how online learning lowers the instructional cost per student.



• Organizational structures will continue to evolve with DL departments increasingly aligned with academics rather than IT groups.



• eLearning will make its formal entrance into the mainstream with its appearance on the mission statements of more and more traditional institutions.



• Dramatically increased use of social networking tools (like Facebook) in online learning - for both instruction and support. Facebook will "age" a bit as more and more faculty and over 30 folks hop on for DL purposes and then get a little addicted themselves.



• Less one-on-one support for faculty as resources get further stretched (more courses but little or no new staff). The bad news is we'll see more group training sessions, but the savvy administrators will develop better, easy-to-use (and locate) online tutorials as well as mentoring programs.



• Big emphasis on green. Although gas prices are lower, the Summer of '08 is not forgotten. Online learning provides the obvious answer here. We'll slowly see more telecommuting of DL faculty and staff as well. Lots and lots and lots more online meetings.



• More streamlined approaches to quality, evaluation, and retention. More software entries such as that offered by Starfish Retention Solutions that will help us become accountable in a systematic way.



• Increased development and marketing of online courses and programs to the Hispanic community as well as those who support this population, such as teachers and healthcare providers.

Job Challenge Plus Fluid Environment Equals Incredible Support Staff

Basically, this is my simple take on continuous process improvement. As a organizational unit, we really never arrive. We must always, constantly, every day look for ways to do what we are doing better. Our rules and our roles are fluid. We will not maintain excellence if we rest on the laurels of yesterday and today. Every day I must make decisions, but rarely are these set in stone. Circumstances, opportunities, threats, and our own perceptions may change. Staff should not expect that what they are doing today is what they will be doing this time next year (or maybe even two months from now). Every year, I like to work with my own staff to re-evaluate their primary job responsibilities and shift these around a bit. In doing so, we consider how our organizational needs have changed, what areas need new blood or ideas, and what are the interests of each staff member. On a day-to-day basis, we are in constant learning mode, and never in a climate that sits by quietly focusing on the pre-determined tasks, but rather constantly challenging ourselves and one another, and listening very, very carefully to those faculty and students with whom we come in contact - for they are not necessarily saying the same things that they did last year. Sounds tiring? Well, not really. What is tiring is boredom and complacency.

Babies at Work?

Recently, a faculty member complained about another faculty member who kept bringing their child to work - not everyday, but frequently. She wanted a policy created that allowed for no children on campus at all. I know that there are some institutions that have such a policy, but I strongly believe that "no children" is too prohibitive. In these days of budget cuts and having to take on increased workloads with little or no salary increases, we have to be more family-friendly than ever. When my staff had little tiny ones (it was in our water for a while), I tried to be as flexible as possible, letting them bring their newborns to work for a short period of time or working from home when practical. Any disruptions are minimal and are offset by the job satisfaction of that employee and their retention as an employee. I would argue for policies that allow for greater work flexibility for working parents. One negative would be the potential risk to the institution (if the child were hurt), but several institutional policies simply state that the parent assumes such risk. There are lots of variables - what type of work the employee does, their proximity to other employees, etc. - and this is why policies should be flexible enough to allow for supervisors to take these variables into account when setting departmental policies.

A Crowded Office

When my staff first moved into part of an old house on our campus, there were just two of us. We steadily grew to six full-time employees, and more than a dozen part-timers or student assistants. Our offices look more like little bedrooms or living rooms than regular offices, so there is a built-in coziness and comfort. On the other hand, we are squeezed in pretty tightly. Everyone shares their space with at least one other person, and no one is really more than 10-20 steps away. Yet, even when given the chance to move to a spacious, modern building, we've hung on to our arrangement. Being this close has its advantages. First of all, we really have an understanding of what one another does, and are able to provide instant advice and immediate support to one another. So, if one person is taking a helpcall and is uncertain about the best answer, there is always another person nearby who can assist. This means a much faster response time for students and faculty - there's almost never a "let me find out and call you back." The proximity also means that we are unusually close and bonded - not that we don't get snippy and catty - but we're very much like siblings. At left is a picture of our team.

Seven Great Interview Questions for Hiring DL Staff

Let's move beyond the regular, the tried, and the true. Let's weed out those who really understand DL issues from those who have great scripted answers. Here's some good questions I like to use.

1. Do you believe that online degrees are equivalent in quality to campus-based degrees? Explain your answer.


2. What is the best way to evaluate the quality of a distance learning course or program?


3. What are the top three reasons that you believe that some faculty feel threatened by distance learning? What would you say to alleviate these fears?


4. Describe your experience taking an online course. What did you like and dislike? What would you have done differently if you were the instructor. These days, having taken an online course is usually a requirement for getting a job in my office.


5. What would you have liked to change about your previous employer? Be specific. Very revealing question for any job. I don't like it if they say, "Nothing. He/she was perfect."


6. Next, I give them 20 minutes to complete an essay on a question such as, "Our Online Psychology Program is experiencing disappointing retention, with many students dropping out of the courses or the program. What can we do in our office to address this and improve retention? This also gives me a good sense of their ability to work under pressure as well as their writing ability.


7. Finally, I put them on the phone and call them (from another phone) with a made-up question about our course management system (ex: how do I add a total grade column in the WebCT gradebook?). I can see how knowledgeable they are as well as how friendly and helpful they are in a support role.

Image by FreePhotosBank.com

A Complaint-Free Staff

Every year at our annual Distance Learning Administration conference, people comment with awe on the friendliness and cheerfulness of my distance learning staff. We are very bonded, and most of us have been in the department for ten years or more. However, we have had our moments and our tears. Back in the spring, I noticed that there was an unusual amount of cattiness and moodiness permeating our normally fresh air. I was pondering how to address it when I happened to hear about a "miracle" book. For our summer planning retreat, the staff (myself included) read and discussed The Complaint Free World. In this book, the author challenges the reader to go 20 days without complaining, criticizing or gossiping. He also describes how toxic these speech patterns are both to ourselves and those around us. We started the program, and the results have been amazing. Although none of us has actually made it a full 20 days (it is truly difficult!), we have all realized how, almost unconsciously, we were complaining, and it is at a far, far lower level now. I know that this book doesn't just apply to distance learning administration - it could be for any office, family, or organization - but it is at the top of my read list.