MEMORANDUM

To: Hugh Devine, College of Natural Resources, Co-Chair
     Sharon Pitt, Learning Technology Service, Co-Chair
     Carolyn Argentati, Libraries
     John Ambrose, Undergraduate Affairs
     Bob Beichner, College of Physical and Mathematical Sciences
     Leslie Dare, Student Affairs
     Meredith Davis, College of Design
     Michael Harwood, Facilities Division
     George Hodge, College of Textiles
     Virginia Lee, Faculty Center for Teaching and Learning
     Duane Larick, Graduate School
     Gerry Luginbuhl, College of Agriculture and Life Sciences
     Jay Levine, College of Veterinary Medicine
     Stan North Martin, Information Technology Division
     Michael McElroy, College of Management
     Roger Rohrbach, College of Engineering
     Jane Steelman, College of Education
     Sarah Stein, College of Humanities and Social Sciences
     Michael Vasu, College of Humanities and Social Sciences
     Candace Goode Vick, College of Natural Resources
     TBA, Undergraduate Student
     Ephraim Schechter, University Planning and Analysis, ex officio
     Karen Helm, Accreditation Liaison, ex officio

From: Stuart Cooper, Provost

Date: September 3, 2002

Subject: Learning in a Technology-Rich Environment

I invite you to help shape NC State's future by serving on the team that will plan our 21st century learning environment. Emerging technologies will continue to provide new opportunities to reinvent teaching and learning. To provide the highest quality education for our students, we must anticipate and continuously prepare to take full advantage of those opportunities.

The team is charged with the following.

  • Develop a vision for the 21st educational environment at NC State, emphasizing the central role that technology will play
  • analyze and assess strengths, challenges, and opportunities for the university in relation to student learning and the learning environment, particularly as facilitated by technology
  • Develop goals and strategies for building on our current strengths and achieving the vision
  • Identify resource needs associated with strategies and propose priorities among those alternatives
  • Propose an implementation plan, including assignment of responsibilities and a schedule

This plan will not only help direct the future of our university, but it will also help us prepare for reaffirmation of accreditation by the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools (SACS) in 2004 (see: /UPA/accreditation/index.htm). SACS has revised the entire reaffirmation process, which now requires preparation of a Quality Enhancement Plan (QEP). Upon recommendation of the deans and executive officers, Chancellor Fox has selected "Learning in a Technology-Rich Environment" as the QEP focus. The topic was selected on the basis of a general description (attached), however, your team may define its own goals and strategies for the plan for the university. Regardless of the direction that the team chooses, the result should be a plan in which learning will drive the acquisition and deployment of technology, rather than the reverse.

Hugh Devine, College of Natural Resources, and Sharon Pitt, Learning Technology Service, will co-chair this team. Please provide opportunities for substantial, campus-wide input. The proposed plan should be submitted to me by October 1, 2003, to allow for executive review before submitting it to SACS in January 2004.

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