Continuing
Education, Regional Programs and Summer Session
Unit Annual Report
2002-2003
Heather
Aagesen–Huebner — Community Program Specialist
Jacki
Anderson — Senior Office Specialist
Karen
Ellis — Program Associate
David
Fluegel — Community Program Specialist
Barbara
Hesse — Senior Administrative Specialist
Karen
Johnson — Program Associate
Karla
Klinger — Senior Academic Advisor
Roger
McCannon — Director
Thomas
McRoberts — Associate Director
Rose
Murphy — Associate Administrator
Ginger
Nohl — Office Specialist
Jennifer
Riley — Senior Administrative Specialist
Jean
Sasek — Principal Administrative Specialist
Jean
Valnes — Principal Accounts Specialist
Ben
Winchester — Coordinator
The
mission of Continuing Education, Regional Programs and Summer Session (CERP) is
to provide access to the University of Minnesota through educational outreach
to all lifelong learners in western Minnesota and beyond, and to enhance the
programs and services of UMM for current and potential students.
CERP
operates through three primary functional programs: Extension Classes and
Summer Programs, Regional Programs, and the Regional Advising Service; and it
oversees two somewhat autonomous units, the Center for International Programs
and the Center for Small Towns. During 2002-03 this unit also had an official
affiliation with the College of Continuing Education on the Twin Cities campus.
·
Extension
Classes and Summer Programs
these are UMM undergraduate classes and graduate credit courses (brokered from
U of M colleges) offered on- and off-campus during evenings and weekends, and
through distance education formats (GenEdWeb) and ITV. Also offered are the
undergraduate courses scheduled during the Summer Term (May Session and Summer
Sessions I and II), both on-campus and through study abroad.
·
Regional
Programs‹these are
outreach programs that connect UMM with communi-ties in our region through a
conference, workshop and institute format. They are primarily non-credit
offerings for targeted audiences, e.g., youth involved in the Henjum Institute
for Creative Study, area teachers participating in the Instructional Technology
Institute and human service professionals who attend the series of Human
Services Workshops. CERP also serves as a liaison with the West Central
District (14 counties) of the University of Minnesota Extension Service through
the co-sponsorship of workshops and information sessions, and by collaborative
work on community development initiatives.
·
Regional
Advising Service‹this is
an educational planning service for area non-traditional students and it
coordinates, with the Office of Financial Aid, select scholarships for adult
learners. During 2002-03 it operated on a limited basis.
There are also
two units under the jurisdiction of CERP that operate functionally as rather
autonomous entities.
·
The
Center for International Programs (CIP). This unit has a direct reporting line to the Vice
Chancellor for Academic Affairs and Dean and the Campus Assembly's
International Programs Committee plays an oversight role for CIP. There is a
separate section on CIP in this publication that also includes information
about the Global Student Teaching program and the English Language Teaching
Assistant Program, which are administered under CERP.
·
Center
for Small Towns (CST). This unit also has a direct reporting
line to the Vice Chancellor for Academic Affairs and Dean, and there is an
Advisory Council made up of UMM faculty/staff and regional community officials.
There is a special section under the narrative in this report on CST.
Together all of
these functions and programs are budgeted and integrated into the total
programming of CERP. This may seem
somewhat confusing, but on the whole it has worked remarkably well over the
past three decades.
Detailed records
have been kept on enrollments and registrations in all CERP programs over the
past 30 years. The overall pattern varies each year depending on the number and
kinds of courses offered, e.g., undergraduate, graduate, non-credit and study
abroad. In the early 1970's, program-ming included approximately two dozen
undergraduate courses annually offered primarily for the area's adult learners.
These were courses developed by UMM faculty or brokered from General College because
of their more practical and applied nature, which appealed to a business and
professional clientele. In the later 70's, non-credit continuing professional
education and personal development programs were initiated, with a special
emphasis on women. One program, the Women's Mobile Campus, drew 1,300
participants from 64 different communities during a two-year period.
Enrollment in
CERP programs has ranged annually from nearly 3,000 credit and non-credit
registrations in the 1980's to between 1,200-1,500 in most recent years. One
important factor affecting this trend is tuition. Between 1975 and today,
credit tuition has risen over 1,000%. Another factor is demography. West
Central Minnesota continues to slowly lose population and its people are
becoming older. A third factor is the growth and development of other
educational providers, including community and technical colleges and on-line
distance learning vendors, that now offer many programs for non-traditional
students.
Between 1983 and
1993, over 300 area teachers took courses to complete the Master of Education
programs we brokered. Also from 1994 until 2002, we offered the Master of
Liberal Studies program from the Twin Cities that enrolled 25 non-traditional
students during that time, including a number of UMM staff who were able to
attain masters degrees. Enrollments in the Summer Term, which is geared to
regular UMM day students, have shown modest increases since the change over to
semesters. Provided below is a summary for 2002-03. Dates included for 2002-03
encompass May Session 2002 through Spring Semester 2003.
CERP Credit Registrations: 2002-03
|
|
May Session 2002 96 |
|
Summer Session 2002 210 |
|
Directed Studies, Internships and |
|
Courses Out of Sequence Summer 2002
62 |
|
Summer Scholars 2002 25 |
|
Fall Semester 2002 233 |
|
Spring Semester 2003
294 |
|
Total Credit
920 |
|
CERP Non-Credit Registrations: 2002-03 |
|
Creative Study
Institute 2002
69 |
|
Instructional Technology Institute 2002 40 |
|
Human Services Workshop 2003 43 |
|
Teaching by Design Workshop 2003
195 |
|
Great Conversations
77 |
|
Total Non-Credit
424 |
During 2002-03
there were many accomplishments and programmatic highlights, but none more
deserving and fulfilling than having Tom McRoberts be recognized as one of the
recipients of the all-University President's Award for Outstanding Service. The
award was conferred on him on June 4 at Eastcliff by President Robert Bruininks
and most all of our staff were there. Congratulations again to Tom!
The
undergraduate courses currently offered, which can be viewed on the website,
have evolved over the past decade from offerings geared toward regional adult
learners to those appealing to a blend of both regular "day students" and
adults. Courses are intended to complement and enrich the UMM curriculum, e.g.,
Dance, Ceramics, Sign Language and Karate, as examples, that satisfy UMM's
general education requirements. Summer Term courses are drawn from the UMM
curriculum.
The graduate
level courses that CERP brokers are from other U of M colleges and are intended
to meet regional needs of teachers and other professionals. From time to time a
"cohort" is assembled so that entire masters degrees can be obtained in Morris;
the most recent examples are the Master of Liberal Studies and the Master of
Educational Technology.
The role that
CERP plays in the organization and administration of these undergraduate and
graduate courses complements and enriches the curriculum of UMM. Also, in
addition to serving students, these programs afford the opportunity for
faculty, and faculty spouses, to earn extra remuneration.
Program staff
working with these programs are: Tom McRoberts, Karen Ellis and Karen Johnson;
support staff include Jacki Anderson, Jean Sasek and Ginger Nohl (25% time).
A number of
programmatic "milestones" were reached this year. The Henjum Institute for
Creative Study celebrated its 30th year, Summer Scholars reached its
18th year and the GenEdWeb program completed its 6th year
of operation. Following are
programmatic summaries of each of these.
The Institute
was created in 1974 by Professor Arnold Henjum, UMM Division of Education, to
provide a unique arts enrichment program for junior and senior high school
gifted and talented students. This two-week non-residential program for
students in grades 6-12 is offered on campus each summer. Students take classes ranging from
vocal music, jazz ensemble, theater and dance to technology courses such as
computer art and web page design and art courses such as printmaking,
photography and raku.
Annual
enrollments have ranged from 235 in the early years of the program to 70
students in recent years. Students
have attended the Institute from 93 different K-12 schools in west central
Minnesota. In over 30 years,
approximately 4,100 students have attended the Creative Study Institute.
In the early
years, the program was funded by student tuition and fees, school districts,
local scholarships, state support for low-income families (Minnesota Higher
Education Services Office MHESO), and internal waivers from Continuing
Education. In recent years,
tuition support from K-12 school districts has dramatically decreased and MHESO
cut their funding entirely effective in 2003 for low-income families. In 2002,
with 69 students enrolled, the budget for the Creative Study Institute (excluding
administrative staff time)
totaled roughly $16,000.
A systematic
study of college enrollment of Creative Study students at UMM has not been
completed. Anecdotally, there have
been many students who do attend UMM, achieving undergraduate degrees. Several Creative Study Institute alumni
have returned to teach in the Institute.
This
program began in 1985 and is a college-level, two-week summer residential
program for academically talented high school juniors. It offers an introduction to college
education and campus life while showcasing UMM strengths including academic rigor,
undergraduate liberal arts, small classes taught by recognized faculty,
individual attention, supportive staff and active campus life. Applicants to
the program write a one-page essay, are recommended by their counselor or
teacher, and should be in the upper 20% of their class. Students take one of two courses, each
carrying two credits: "Human
Reproduction and Biotechnology:
Tinkering With Nature" (Van Gooch/Tom Turner) or "Writing Workshop: Growing Up American" (Roland
Guyotte/Dwight Purdy). The
majority of participants are from MN, ND, SD and WI.
The average annual budget is
$30,000. The program is supported
by student tuition and the Chancellor's subsidy for housing. Students who meet income guidelines
receive scholarships, either partial or full. Until this year, MHESO also
provided scholarships for qualifying students; with the state's financial
crisis, that program has been discontinued‹at least temporarily and perhaps
permanently.
Because of their very rewarding and
successful experience during the program, a significant number of Scholars
enroll here as freshmen (or even PSEO). Seven hundred eighty-seven (787)
students from over 375 high schools have participated in the program since its
inception in 1985; an average of 20% (or 157) have gone on to enroll at
UMM.
In the spring
of 2002, GenEdWeb completed its sixth year as a program of online UMM lower
division, general education courses offered via the World Wide Web to distance
education students. Originally the
program's mission was to serve nontraditional college students who were not
able to attend college classes at a local college campus by providing courses
that met Minnesota Transfer Curriculum guidelines.
Enrollments have
grown from 52 students in 1997-98 to over 132 students in 2002-2003 (average
course enrollment is now 17.7). Over the past 6 years, 485 students have taken
GenEdWeb courses.
Pre-registrations for fall of 2003, show 77 registrations in GenEdWeb
courses with another 40 pre-registered for spring 2004 and 40-50 more students
projected for Summer Term 2004.
During
the academic year, 85- 90% of GenEdWeb registrations have been PSEO students.
From 1998 to 2001, PSEO GenEdWeb students who become UMM freshman ranged from
3% to 10%. Of the 69 PSEO students
in GenEdWeb in 2001-2002, 11 or 15.9% matriculated as freshman at UMM in
2002. In 2002-2003, six GenEdWeb
students applied to UMM, with three entering as freshmen in 2003 (5% - 3 of
59).
In
the early years, the program began and was supported through cooperative
initiatives and included support funds from: Continuing Education and Extension's Program Innovation
Fund; University of Minnesota Distance Education Council; University of Minnesota,
Morris Dean's Office; Technology Enhanced Learning Grant; and, Vice Provost for
Instructional Technology and University Partnerships Office.
During the first
two years of the program, grants and subsidies provided a portion of the
$80,000 or $90,000 budget. In
2002-2003, program expenses totaled approximately $65,000. Reduced expenses in recent years can be
attributed to more electronic marketing, lower infrastructure support costs and
no new course development stipends.
Also, in 2002-03
a new program series was brought into being‹workshops for area Human Service
professionals‹with the successful launching of a workshop entitled, "Understanding and Bridging
Differences." Dr. Tammy Faux, new to UMM, has served as an expert in this
field. She first assisted in doing a market research study to determine the
needs and then assisted in organizing the workshop. This effort is also being
guided by an advisory panel of area human services professionals.
Further, two
programs involving technology in teaching were held during 2002-03. The
Instructional Technology Institute was held in August 2002 and was co-sponsored
by the NTNT grant of the Division of Education and staffed by several campus
units, namely Computing Services, Briggs Library and Media Services. The Teaching
by Design Workshop (which drew 195 area teachers) was held in March 2003.
Following is a narrative of the Center for Small Towns
The
Center, which was established in 1995, created a new strategic plan entitled
the "Renewed Focus" for 2002-04. This coincided with a grant proposal and
subsequent award totaling $187,000 from the Blandin Foundation for the 2-year
period. The "Renewed Focus" theme of the grant places priority on the
improvement and expansion of the programs and services the Center for Small
Towns provides to small towns. Three overarching goals have been established:
During
2002-03, arrangements were made for Dr. Randy Cantrell, Professor and Community
Research Development Specialist at the Center for Applied Rural Innovation,
University of Nebraska, Lincoln, to serve as a visiting scholar to advise on
the work of the Center. Cantrell visited on three separate occasions and
provided two written reports.
Efforts
were also undertaken to improve the financial structure and establish secure
on-going funding. The Center was approved as an External Sales Unit of the
University and established fee-for-service schedules.
Accomplishments
for 2002-03 in each of five strategies are provided here.
1. Data
Analysis and Research (DAR)
This was a new
component of the Center introduced in 2002-03. A full-time coordinator, Ben
Winchester (P&A staff), was hired to oversee program development
activities. Dr. Engin Sungur, UMM Statistics, assisted in DAR's development.
Dr. Randy Cantrell also provided much input and review.
Progress in this strategy
were several fold. A Civic Engagement Workbook for Statistics that brings
community data into the statistics courses at UMM was created. A
fee-for-service contract for data analysis was secured with the Midwest
Assistance Program allowing for compensation of two twenty-hour/week student
positions during the summer and oversight/ coordination time. Two research
reports were completed for rural advocacy agencies. A Rural Community Field
Project interdisciplinary course was created and is now offered through regular
registration at UMM; this course provides an educational experience in a rural
learning environment that focuses on rural issues of community life,
demography, culture, environment, and policy.
2. Program Assessment and Evaluation
David Fluegel, Community Program Specialist, was the lead staff
for this strategy. This past year the Center assisted the U of M Center for
Rural Design in presenting a feasibility study in Ortonville and in
facilitating a community visioning and planning process in Traverse County.
Staff assisted the West Central Regional Sustainable Development Partnership in
a regional planning process, and recruited UMM faculty and students to assist
in these activities. Also, we presented our Service Deliverables to Rural and
Community Development organizations and other community and regional planning
groups.
Other projects this year included: the evaluation of a federally
funded 21st Century Department of Education grant by a consortium of
three K-12 schools; evaluation of the UMM portion of the Bush Foundation grant
activities that support the use of technologies in student learning; and,
initial exploration was conducted to consider expanding the evaluation service
by providing formal training to clients in evaluation processes.
This
component is an essential function of the Center. Heather Aagesen-Huebner,
Community Program Specialist, was the lead staff. In
order to continue to systematize the process of hiring and working with
students to accommodate the steady turnover, a "Program and Procedures" manual
has been completed. This manual is
a comprehensive guide for working with students and community groups, and it
includes information on topics such as recruiting, hiring, training, creating
work plans and evaluation and assessment.
A pilot project, the High School Technology Team, was initiated
during the summer of 2002. High
school students completed web sites for three local community groups, created
training manuals, and provided training on the maintenance of web sites. Since the pilot was very successful, it
will likely be repeated in future summers as a way to help eliminate gaps in
service over summer months.
The Center's Morris Administrative Intern (MAI) was trained in all
aspects of student employment and assisted the lead staff in this area. Center
staff and the MAI coordinated the application and joint presentation, along
with the coordinator of the Teaching Reading and Enabling Children program,
entitled "Small University + Small Town = Big Success" at the National
Service-Learning Conference in Minneapolis. This was the Center's third
successive presentation at the National Service-Learning Conference.
All
of the Center's staff participated in these activities. The goal for the year
was to maximize and leverage resources among agencies and organizations. These
activities were with rural and community development
organizations as well as with other higher education institutions.
Discussions
between Center staff, Dr. Sungur, Dr. Cantrell and the Center's Advisory
Council, regarding a Conversation Series to be held during Dr. Cantrell's visit
in the spring of 2003, led to the decision to develop an Annual Symposium on
Small Towns. The date was
scheduled for June 10-11, 2003 and the working theme was "Rural Minnesota: A
Century of Change." Topics
included an examination of the past and future trends in rural culture,
economies, education, health, and environment. Celebrating rural life with music and festivities was an
important aspect of the Symposium.
A
concerted effort was made to work more closely with our organizational partners
in these changing times. Center
staff met with and discussed potential areas of collaboration with the
Minnesota Design Team, Minnesota Planning, the Western Area City and County
Cooperative, Minnesota Rural Partners, the West Central Initiative, the Rural
Help Network, the West Central Regional Sustainable Development Partnership,
and USDA Rural Development.
In
addition, David Fluegel actively participated on the 2003 Minnesota Rural
Summit planning committee, which includes representatives from dozens of
community and rural development agencies and organizations statewide and is
annually attended by 300-400 people.
Again, all of the Center's staff
participated in these activities. The Center brokered
the services of the Center for Rural Design to projects in the Big Stone Lake
area and Traverse County, then assisted the projects by recruiting the services
of UMM faculty and students. Three students worked jobs/internships with these
projects.
The Center continues to work with the Center for Urban and
Regional Affairs (CURA) on their Community Assistantship Program (CAP). The
Center distributes program information and updates, assists communities in
completing requests for student research assistants, and then recruits students
for projects in West Central Minnesota. Staff from the Center participated in
the review of community applications and assisted in placing five UMM students
in CAP positions during this period.
The West Central Regional Sustainable Development Partnership
(RSDP) began an initiative to find a solution to the problems of making
insurance more affordable and accessible to farmers and businesses by forming a
Health Care Purchasing Alliance. The Center provided staff to participate on a
committee to develop strategies in creating the Alliance and recruited UMM
faculty and students to conduct related research.
Detailed
records are kept for all program areas. The following is a summary:
|
Involvement in Center for Small Towns Programs
2002 03 |
|
|
Small
Towns Served |
37 |
|
UMM Students Involved |
212 |
|
Jobs and Internships |
25 |
|
IS Community Development Class |
1 |
|
Statistics and Geography Classes |
186 |
|
Morris Area High School students |
3 |
|
Census Training (UMM faculty & staff) |
8 |
|
UMM Faculty |
12 |
Plans for 2003-2004
Prescriptive
cuts in the Center's budget, as a result of UMM's budget reduction, will
inhibit the hiring of UMM faculty and students. Funds for the MAI position and
most of the workstudy funds were also lost for next year. The grant dollars
from the Blandin Foundation will end in June of 2004. The Center will be
challenged to replace these financial losses with alternatives in order to
maintain and grow its program operations.
The Center for
Small Towns is one of many advocacy groups dedicated to rural issues and rural
development. It has become increasingly clear that the Center is one of a very
few higher education units in the country that are identified specifically or
exclusively with small towns. Dr.
Cantrell helped us to realize that this small number of organizations provides
an opportunity to claim a national niche.
The First Annual
Symposium on Smalls Towns, held June 2003 at UMM, was successful in attracting
notable speakers. The speakers are among the best-known observers of rural and
small town conditions in Minnesota and include: Joseph Amato, Professor
Emeritus of History, Southwest State University; Robert Bergland, former
Regent, U.S. House of Representatives and U.S. Secretary of Agriculture; Randy
Cantrell, Professor and Community Resource Development Specialist, Center for
Applied Rural Innovation, University of Nebraska; Jack M. Geller, President of
Minnesota Center for Rural Policy and Development; John Fraser Hart, Professor
of Geography, University of Minnesota; Martha McMurry, senior research analyst,
State Demographic Center, Minnesota Department of Administration; Paul Olson,
President, Blandin Foundation; and Ben Winchester, Coordinator of Data Analysis
and Research, Center for Small Towns, University of Minnesota, Morris. The
event attracted 112 people from across the state with interests and a
wide-range of responsibilities in small communities.
A CST Fellows
Program is being explored by the Center for increasing involvement of UMM
faculty in small town and rural issues. This program has potential for
generating additional knowledge to help small towns adapt to 21st
century change, strengthen the Center's relation-ships to the statewide
academic community, and add breadth and depth to the Center's and UMM's
visibility.
Over the past 32
years, including 2002-03, CERP was officially connected through a joint powers
arrangement with both UMM and the College of Continuing Education on the Twin
Cities campus. This joint
affiliation ended on June 30, 2003, as CERP was "transferred" to UMM. According to the Letter of Agreement
signed by Chancellor Sam Schuman, Dean Mary Nichols and Executive Vice
President and Provost Christine Maziar, "this transfer is intended to support
the efficient and cost-effective administration of continuing education efforts
in western Minnesota." As a unit
of UMM, CERP now becomes part of a network of autonomous University of
Minnesota continuing education providers similar to programs on the Crookston,
Duluth and Rochester campuses, with each reflecting their regional uniqueness. All programs, personnel, physical
assets and budgeting will be reassigned to UMM. Early in the 2003-04 year, attention to the details of this
transfer will need to be worked through, such as the establishment of all new
budget account codes (CUFS) and tuition attribution formulas (IMG). Assistance and support from the UMM
Administration will be needed and has been assured. Financial challenges will need to be met over the next 2-3
year period of time. Programmatic
reviews, new program development, market studies and strategic planning are
currently underway in order to continue the excellent programming and services
of CERP.