SACUA discusses Internet education on fathom.com

By Lisa Hoffman

Daily Staff Reporter

At yesterday's Senate Advisory Committee on University Affairs meeting, University President Lee Bollinger discussed the effects of the University joining fathom.com, a global online education community.

"It is important to know whether or not many people are going to find this an optimum way to learn," Bollinger said.

Reasons for joining the online education alliance, he said, include increasing revenues, bringing the University to a global stage and creating better partnerships between students and faculty members and between the University and corporations.

Bollinger said raising funds through the alliance is not the primary aim of fathom.com.

"It is naive to say that making money is the central part," Bollinger said. "Clearly there are other purposes than a revenue stream."

In their ongoing discussion of intellectual property, SACUA members questioned Bollinger on some specific details about joining the online community, particularly the quality of online education and the ease of severing ties to fathom.com if necessary.

"Individuals are going to look for something in return," said SACUA member Don Deskins, a sociology professor. "Eventually, it's like the diploma machines we have now," referring to his concern that the University could become preoccupied with the financial benefits of the venture.

Bollinger said as of now the University will follow its current policy of not granting credit for online courses through fathom.com, adding that the real benefit of the alliance is the educational "richness and resources" of the global partnership.

Online learning, Bollinger said, is a significant educational venue. It is something "more interactive, more visual and more packaged," Bollinger said, but the actual success of this type of learning is rather unpredictable.

"We know very little about how people learn," he said.

In other discussion items, SACUA members said they were concerned about the faculty's lack of information about the two admissions lawsuits filed against the University.

U.S. District Judge Patrick Duggan, who is presiding over the case challenging College of Literature, Science and the Arts admissions, is considering whether to grant a mottion for summary judgement, where he would then rule on the case solely on evidence already presented, circumventing a trial.

Duggan's decision is expected in the next few weeks.

The case challenging the University's Law School is set to begin in January.

"It is entirely possible that the judge will say that the facts aren't in dispute, and there is no need for trial," Bollinger said.

If the LSA case does go to trial, Bollinger said he expects the case to be in court for three to four weeks and spoke of the possibility of a limited trial, which would limit the trial to a specific end of the case, rather than the entire suit.

"Every selective public University in the country would be affected adversely by the ruling" if the plaintiffs win, Bollinger said.

"This is the University's policy with roots that go back 150 years," Bollinger said. "There is a deep value of the place."