WASFAA's DISTANCE LEARNING COMMITTEE
by Jack Johnson

(second in a series of articles concerning Distance Ed issues)

This is the second in a series of articles intended to provide WASFAA membership with a working knowledge of Distance Learning, and the issues that surround this important aspect of our profession.

Across the country financial aid professionals are attempting to develop processes that best serve students seeking instruction that is delivered from a distance. Below are two basic considerations that affect an institution's ability to provide Title IV federal financial aid to their students.

Correspondence Programs: Schools whose educational programs have over 50 percent of their courses delivery through correspondence are not eligible to participate in Title IV federal financial aid programs. However, schools who provide correspondence courses that do not exceed 50 percent of their course offerings may disburse aid to students taking those courses. Under this scenario, students are only eligible to receive 1/2 time disbursements of Pell Grant even though they may be enrolled in 12 or more hours of correspondence course work.

Instruction Delivered Electronically: For financial aid purposes, courses delivered outside of the traditional classroom utilizing tape, diskette, the Internet or other electronic delivery means are considered eligible for financial aid in the same manner as courses that are provided in a traditional classroom setting. Under professional judgement, the financial aid professional may adjust the student's budget to reflect costs different than the institution's traditional student budget. However, under current regulation, if the institution's courses that are delivered electronically exceed 50 percent of their course offerings, then those courses are considered correspondence, and the institution becomes ineligible to participate in Title IV programs.

The Reauthorization Act: Large numbers of courses and programs can now be delivered electronically, and with "Virtual Universities" becoming a reality, congress is revisiting the "50 percent rule". Within the Reauthorization act, the house bill provides for "Demonstration Projects" in which the Department of Education can waive provision in Parts F or G of the Title IV programs for pilot schools involved with distance learning. The Department of Education must annually report to Congress on these projects. They are responsible for reporting the impediments to the development of distance learning, and will provide proposals for regulatory change. The Senate bill limits the number of these projects to 5, which can be expanded to 15 after congress evaluates the initial 5 projects. Under these bills, the Department of Education will be able to waive the 50 percent rule and computer related cost of attendance associated with the delivery of education from a distance. Generally, the traditional institution should not currently find the 50 percent rule a barrier to their distance learning effort. It is hoped the process defined by congress will allow institutions the flexibility to expand their distance course offerings for students seeking financial aid, once they are willing and prepared to move beyond the current 50 percent curriculum limitation.

Categorizing Distance Learning Providers: Four types of distance learning providers were identified in a report titled "Assuring Quality in Distance Learning" prepared for The Institute for Higher Education Policy. This report, dated April 1998 includes:

• The Military Services
• Corporate Universities
• Unaffiliated Distance Learning Providers
• Postsecondary Providers

The article explains the U S Army plans to design a total of 535 courses by FY 2003, in addition to building 204 facilities and 745 classrooms. In 1995, over $50 billion was spent on training by employers. There are estimates that over 1000 corporate universities now exist. Unaffiliated learning activities are not credit bearing, degree, or credentialing programs. They often provide courses of interest for personal enrichment. According to a 1995 survey, 33 percent of higher education institutions (Post Secondary Providers) offered distance learning courses and another 25 percent planned to offer such courses by the current year (1998).

Within the Postsecondary Institutions category, there are a number of models that can be used to identify institutions providing distance learning courses and programs Institutions may "fit" into more that one category within each model. It may be helpful to identify three models that seem to be emerging:

Sole Providers: These are institutions that provide complete programs. In most cases, the course offerings will be a mix of traditional on-campus courses and courses provided at a distance. However, traditional universities may shift their educational delivery system to electronic processes making current or new programs part of the "Virtual Universities" process.

Consortium/Entanglements: Institutions may join together to provide education programs to students located away from the institution. In many cases, the institution offering the degree or certification is identified as the Home Institution. Institutions offering courses that are accepted and applied by the Home Institution to a degree or certification may be identified as a Host Institution. Examples of consortium agreements that can be viewed on the WEB may be obtained by contacting: Johnsonj@eou.edu

Brokering Institutions: These merging institutions offer no instruction, but are willing to broker or purchase distance learning course offerings from other postsecondary providers and use these courses to develop educational programs. Because all of the course offerings would be delivered from a distance, these institutions are often categorized as Virtual Universities. Western Governor's University is designed to provide educational Programs under this scenario.

Questions regarding distance learning issues may be addressed to: Johnsonj@eou.edu