The demand for distance-accessible graduate-certificate and master's-degree programs in public health is increasing among currently employed, as well as aspiring, professionals. However, schools confront considerable costs for the development, delivery, evaluation, and continuous improvement of distance-accessible certificate and degree programs. These costs pose a significant barrier to some schools. As an alternative to a public health school's developing and maintaining such programs independently, it could participate in an academic consortium for this purpose. Such a consortium could be comprised of academic institutions from a defined geographic area - such as that proposed for the Central Appalachian Public Health Training Center. Individually, consortium members could contribute existing or newly developed distance courses to fulfill curricular needs. Together, they could produce higher-quality, more comprehensive curricula more quickly than any one of them could produce alone. The curricula of such programs could be tailored to the assessed educational needs of public health agencies within the relevant geographic area. Consortium members could offer reciprocal recognition of credits for the distance-accessible courses included in co-sponsored curricula. An ancillary benefit of degree and certificate programs offered through the consortium would be the opportunity for public health professionals from proximate jurisdictions to participate together in some in-person portions of the curriculum, thus sharing acquaintance, experience, and expertise. The foundation of an academic consortium for distance education should be a common data base of distance-courses, mapped by professional public health competencies, and including for each course its cost, distance medium, and calendar of availability.
Learning Objectives: 1. Describe the necessary organizational and technical components of an academic consortium for distance education. 2. Compare this public health model to distance education consortia in other fields. 3. Assess progress toward implementing this model in Pennsylvania and Ohio. 4. Evaluate this model for application in other parts of the country
Keywords: Professional Training, Distance Education Development
Presenting author's disclosure statement:
Organization/institution whose products or services will be discussed: None
I do not have any significant financial interest/arrangement or affiliation with any organization/institution whose products or services are being discussed in this session.