Two Models to Choose From

Virtual universities come in two models. First there is the new, stand alone online university; one that will have a very difficult road ahead getting established. The other is a stand-alone and/or an integrated online program development at an established traditional university. Regardless of the intent, getting established is a difficult and arduous road.

This seems particularly poignant when the motivation is to keep up with another school or schools or to naively start a virtual campus just to increase revenue and allegedly make huge profits. Attempts by major schools to do just that have usually fallen flat on their face. Many reasons can account for this. Mostly they are simply defined as internal struggles usually driven by traditionalist faculty unwilling to change. Thus, there is faculty resistance, student resistance, and administrator resistance, all reacting to-the negativity by faculty who may have not a clue as to the ultimate benefits to the student, themselves or the the school.

On the other hand, administrators trying to be all things to all people, go about pleasing no-one when they start bundling up successful on-ground classes with virtual classes. These so-called blended classes usually provide inept online faculty. Couple that up with the administrations selection of the wrong course/learner management system because they themselves have never taken an online class to know better, and you have the makings of a financial disaster waiting to happen.