Archive for August, 2007

Reader and HEE member Elliot Lopez, Project Manager for University Communications at UC Davis, has beaten me to the punch with his online survey about Web CMS in higher ed. This was indeed on my to-do list for September ;-)

Anybody contemplating a CMS selection and implementation in higher education will kill for some fresh data about Web CMS’s. Thanks to Elliot you won’t have to cross that line (and I won’t have to do the survey myself).

Just take his online survey before the end of the day this Friday, August 31st.

More than 60 people have already taken the survey while 40 more have started it. So, it should definitely help uncover some interesting trends.

UC Davis will share the results with everybody in a few weeks (and, I’ll make sure to publish any interesting findings on this blog).

I’ve already posted a couple of times about this 3-webinar series about online videos scheduled on September 11, 12 and 13 (with the 50% discount for HEE members, the total price for the webinars is just $150 – more information is available at www.higheredexperts.com/onlinevideos) I designed for Higher Ed Experts, so this is just a quick reminder of the registration deadline.

Registration will close on September 1st at 8 PM ET (but since this is a Saturday, you might as well pick this Friday as the last day to register).

If you plan to attend, you can register online.

Don’t forget to join Higher Ed Experts first at www.higheredexperts.com/register if you’re not a member yet – membership is free and open to people working in universities and colleges).

Here’s a list of the institutions that have already confirmed their registration for this series:

• State University of NY at New Paltz (*)
• The College of New Jersey
• Lynn University (*)
• University of Alberta
• Hudson Valley Community College
• The College of Wooster
• Sacred Heart University
• Stony Brook University
• Virginia Commonwealth University
• UW-Green Bay
• Purdue University
• Tufts University (*)
• Saint Anselm College
• Alfred University
• Harvard University

What makes me really happy is that this list includes 3 returning “customers,” i.e. institutions that enrolled in previous live or on-demand webinar series (the ones tagged with *). This tells me that these professional development series are heading in the right direction.

Lately, I’ve read more and more negative comments about SecondLife. Many inside and outside of higher education have questioned the return on investment of SL campuses for universities and colleges as Jeff Young from the Chronicle of Higher Ed wrote a few days ago in the Campus Wired Blog:

More than 100 colleges have set up some kind of presence in Second Life, according to officials at Linden Lab, the company that runs the environment. But are those campuses attracting enough visitors to make the investments worth it? Earlier this year we published an article and a video tour of Case Western Reserve University’s virtual campus, which it used to give tours to prospective students. But during more than a month in which Case Western students were on hand to show folks around, only 40 people wandered by, according to college officials.

Perhaps that’s enough to make it worth the effort — they did get some news-media coverage, after all. Are any college officials working in Second Life starting to have second thoughts?

While I don’t think institutions should bet all their marketing (or academic) dollars on SecondLife, I definitely think SL offers a very interesting and rich platform for distance learning, but also for any types of learning that can’t take place easily in the real world.

As regular readers know I’ve been following the latest developments in crisis communication for a while. I just wrapped up a feature article about the topic for University Affairs to be published in the October issue of this Canadian magazine.

Thanks to UA editor Peggy Berkowitz, the article will also include some reporting about an emergency training exercise that was conducted on August 15 at The University of Western Ontario – that was 2 weeks after I submitted my final draft.

At Western, the exercise had some consequences for the campus community: University Drive was closed during several hours.

This is one of the reasons why these drills can’t be run too often on real campuses.

But, what about on virtual campuses?

If your campus has already been replicated in SecondLife, it wouldn’t take much (ok, you’d have to train your emergency team to move around in SL) to schedule these trainings there.

I knew emergency response training was already taking place in SL when I started to write this post, but I stumbled upon a great initiative by Idaho State University while searching for a couple of examples.

The Idaho Bioterrorism Awareness and Preparedness Program (IBAPP) and the Institute of Rural Health at Idaho State University launched a few months ago Play2Train, a virtual “playground” to run emergency response exercises:

This virtual environment spreads over two islands Asterix and Obelix (65536 x 2 sq. meters), with one island dedicated to a virtual town and the other a virtual hospital. The design of this virtual environment is influenced by dioramas frequently used by emergency services to support their tabletop exercises. A diorama is a partially three dimensional full-size replica or scale model of a landscape typically showing historical events, nature scenes, cityscapes, etc. for purposes of education or entertainment

What they are doing is really great (I’m embedding below the 16-minute video where Ramesh Ramloll, the project manager of Play2Train, explains what it is and what it can do):

Now, if it were possible to “unpack” — on any SL university campus — special crisis/emergency scenarios leveraging what has been done on the Play2Train islands, this would provide the next best thing to these emergency drills that have become so crucial for institutions after the Virginia Tech Tragedy.

Don’t you think so?

Just do like today’s teens…

“Nearly two-thirds of the young people surveyed said they think that the Internet, instant messaging, cell phones and other technologies make people happier, and 61% said those things make them feel closer to their family,” said eMarketer senior analyst Debra Aho Williamson.

But, the relationships between teenagers/young adults and technology go even further than happiness: life. As shown on this graph published by eMarketer yesterday in “Internet Keeps Young People Upbeat”

Conducted by Knowledge Networks in April 2007, this MTV-Associated Press study hasn’t uncovered any ground-breaking trends, but it’s always nice to be able to use some fresh stats to back up your initiatives on the Web.

After interviewing Fred Stutzman for my UB column about social networking websites, I invited him to present the first session of Social Networking Websites Week, the 5-webinar series I designed for Higher Ed Experts:

October 1st, 2007 1PM-2PM ET
Visa for MySpace and Facebook: do’s and don’t’s for higher ed institutions exploring the new social networking frontier
Fred Stutzman, a facebook and social networking expert working on his Ph.D. at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill’s School of Information and Library Science, will provide an introduction to the unwritten rules of these popular social networking websites. He will also discuss the best strategies for higher ed administrators and marketers to engage students in these new spaces for best results.

Fred has been studying facebook for a while now. He is a recognized expert on the topic of social networks. Along with danah boyd, he was quoted in this week’s cover story of Newsweek written by Steven Levy: “Facebook Grows Up.”:

Meanwhile, some in the college community—the company’s most passionate users—are not happy that Facebook is welcoming swarms of people whose absence was previously appreciated: older people. “Facebook is becoming a different place as it attempts to mass-market itself,” says Fred Stutzman, a University of North Carolina grad student who researches social networks.

If you’re wondering if or how to use social networking websites as part of your marketing and communication strategies, you should definitely consider registering for this 5-webinar series priced at only $250 for HEE registered members (membership is free for people working in higher ed institutions: www.higheredexperts.com/register)

For more information about Social Networking Websites Week, go to www.higheredexperts.com/socialnetworking

Interactive Recruitment Manager at Norwich University, Karlyn Morissette might be a new comer to the flourishing higher ed blogosphere, but she has been blogging about other topics for a while. She shares ideas and opinions along with a few rants at “Interactive Recruiting.”

1) Why did you decide to blog about interactive recruiting in the first place? Can you tell us a bit more about your experience with blogging?

I started my blog primarily as a way to make mental notes for myself during the work day as I was preparing my presentation for eduWeb. I wasn’t sure if anyone would read it or not, but thought that if other professionals could pull something from it, then it certainly couldn’t hurt anything. Though it originally just started as a way for me to manage my ideas, I thought it was a different prospective than the higher ed community had seen, as so few schools out there have a position like mine. Additionally, most of the blogs you see are from vendors or consultants and while they can certainly offer valuable advise, I would rather hear from someone who is actually in the trenches executing ideas and hoped that my colleagues at other institutions would feel the same.

My experience with blogging actually started way back in 2000 with a DeadJournal blog that I created during my freshman year in college (though at that time, the term “blog” hadn’t become mainstream yet). I’ve continued blogging about various subjects on and off since then, most recently running one of the most-read political blogs on MySpace. In the end it was this blogging that prompted me to start my interactive recruiting blog: I had so many great conversations with people who agreed and disagreed with me in my political blog and also met some of the smartest people I’ve talked to through the comments section. I love discussing what I do with people as it helps generate new ideas and thought that if the blog did catch on, it would be a great way to share knowledge within the community.

2) How is your blogging received by your administration and the rest of your campus community?

Actually very few people in my campus community, including those in my own office, really know about the blog. I told my manager about my idea before I started it to see if she had any objection to it and thankfully she didn’t so off I went. I’ve never hidden it, mind you. It’s just not something I’ve actively advertised. The thing is, I want my blog to be my open, honest opinion about certain subjects without any feeling of need for self-censorship. Unfortunately those of us who work in higher ed know that (ironically) oftentimes university politics and strong personalities take priority over a free exchange of ideas. I wouldn’t want to feel like I have to suppress my consideration of an idea or a technology to avoid a member of the community reading it and blasting off an e-mail to everyone and their mother about this crazy person working in the admissions office. After all, blogging it about being real. How can I ask my students and other colleges to embrace that if I’m not willing to do it myself?

A funny thing actually happened this week with the blog. The President of the University was surfing the web and came across the post I made doing a running commentary on Bob Johnson’s keynote at eduWeb, in which I outspokenly disagreed with the presentation more than once. He e-mailed it to my boss and VP, who then forwarded it on to me. Though my name was at the bottom of the post, I’m not sure that anyone of them put the two together in the first reading to realize the writer worked for them. I’ll admit I was a bit hesitant to reply stating that I had written it because I wasn’t sure if they found the blog to be interesting in a good way or a bad way :-)

3) You also repost your twitter updates on your blog. Do you see any opportunities for admissions officers to use twitter in interactive recruiting?

Twitter is an intriguing tool and I do think eventually it could have opportunities in interactive recruiting. We’re already starting to see some interesting adoptions of it by individuals and businesses – John Edwards and Barack Obama are using it as a campaign tool and NPR uses it to update its “followers” on the latest news stories. However, right now, I think it’s sort of like Second Life in terms of its possibilities with interactive recruiting…It’s one of those tools that web geeks drool over as the next big thing but that the general population, specifically teenagers, hasn’t adopted yet. Of those who have, I don’t know that they want to use it as a tool to communicate with admissions offices. Though it is an idea that I plan on experimenting with in this upcoming recruiting cycle, I’m not sure we’re at a place yet where it could be as effective as more “traditional” methods of interactive recruiting, such as blogs, e-mail and instant messaging.

But, first let me start with an important and necessary disclaimer:

HEE college rankings shouldn’t be taken seriously. If you read these lines and you are looking for a way to find the right college, the US News issue about Best Colleges in America is definitely better suited for your eyes.

Don’t think I need the disclaimer, my dear readers?

Well, think again.

Yesterday, we went very close to what I would call a delicate situation during an email exchange I had with a Senior Research Analyst from a well-known expert, independent nonprofit organization “whose mission is to work for a fair, just, and safe marketplace for all consumers and to empower consumers to protect themselves.”

This Senior Research Analyst had signed up for an HEE membership last Wednesday. So, I followed up with this person to find out the reason behind this sudden interest.

And, yesterday, during our email exchange, I was asked about “my looking at college rankings information” as well as the timing of the release of HEE college rankings.

Wow.

I quickly explained that HEE rankings were just a fun initiative, a sort of stress reliever for higher ed folks – nothing more. I also provided some references to more serious alternatives to the US News college rankings.

But, imagine for a minute what could have happened in a few months, hadn’t I been so honest?

• Millions of college applications submerging the admissions office at Tidewater Community College (the first institution listed on the final HEE rankings)?
• A dramatic decrease in the candidate pool at Yale University (#39)?

Yeah, it’s kind of scary. Now you see that my disclaimer was definitely not optional ;-)

So, without further ado and despite the fact that I’m breaking the media embargo I set myself for Friday 12AM ET (like the other guys), here are the final HEE college rankings (institutions are ranked by their number of HEE registered users and alphabetically):

1. Tidewater Community College 18
2. Duke University 10
3. Penn State University 8
4. SUNY 7
5. Georgetown University 6
6. Clemson University 5
7. Harvard University 5
8. Rutgers University 5
9. UNC – Chapel Hill 5
10. Ithaca College 4
11. Johnson & Wales University 4
12. Oregon State University 4
13. Texas A&M University 4
14. Texas Tech University 4
15. Tufts University 4
16. UC Davis 4
17. University of Alberta 4
18. University of Kentucky 4
19. University of Michigan – Dearborn 4
20. University of Nevada 4
21. Wheaton College 4
22. Alfred University 3
23. American University 3
24. Auburn University 3
25. Concordia University 3
26. DePaul University 3
27. Georgian Court University 3
28. HEC Montreal 3
29. Louisiana State University 3
30. Michigan State University 3
31. Philadelphia University 3
32. Rochester Institute of Technology 3
33. Rollins College 3
34. University of Arkansas at Little Rock 3
35. University of Florida 3
36. University of Nebraska – Lincoln 3
37. University of Sydney 3
38. University of Washington 3
39. Yale University 3
40. York University 3

I’ve already written about college presidents who blogged. I even interviewed Michael Crow, ASU president, when he started his blog: The President Post.

However, this is the first time I stumbled upon a president vlogging (or video blogging) on YouTube… and Dickinson College‘s President Durden does a pretty good job at it in “Dickinson takes on U.S. News Ranking system.”

Posted Monday, the 6-minute video (probably a tiny bit too long) features President Durden in his office explaining us his “distaste” with the US News and World Report College Ranking system.

The topic is timely, and the president dressed casually almost looks like your typical YouTuber.

This video is part of a series about the State of the College 2007 Update available on Dickinson College’s YouTube channel along with close to 100 videos.

My only problem with the video is that it lacks some context when it’s embedded (the college name and its website address should be included in the video itself at the beginning and the end)

What do you think? Does YOUR president have videos on YouTube? Let me know by posting a comment below or emailing me at karine@collegewebeditor.com I’d love to feature more.

A couple of weeks ago, I launched a new breed of college rankings: Higher Ed Experts’ College Rankings.

While I can’t reveal if my ultimate goal is to compete with US News & World Report ;-0, I can confirm that the HEE College Rankings will be published this Friday – the day the magazine’s list will be released.

You still have a few hours (about 30 or so) to try to bump up your institution’s rank before the final results are announced on this blog on August 17.

So, take the “I-can-get-my-institution-to-the-top” challenge: tell all your colleagues to sign up for a free HEE membership at www.higheredexperts.com/register and let’s have some fun for a change!

Need some help to rally your troops, just use the YouTube video I created for the challenge (viewed already more than 220 times).

Preliminary Higher Ed Experts’ College Rankings (Top 40 by number of HEE registered members)

A few institutions have improved their ranks since the list was first published on August 3rd and Yale has made it to the top 40 ;-)

1. Tidewater Community College – 18
2. Duke University – 10
3. Penn State University – 8
4. SUNY – 7
5. Georgetown University – 6
6. Clemson University – 5
7. Harvard University – 5
8. Rutgers University – 5
9. UNC-Chapel Hill – 5
10. Johnson & Wales University – 4
11. Oregon State University – 4
12. Texas A&M University – 4
13. Texas Tech University – 4
14. UC Davis – 4
15. University of Kentucky – 4
16. University of Michigan-Dearborn – 4
17. University of Nevada – 4
18. Wheaton College – 4
19. Alfred University – 3
20. American University – 3
21. Auburn University – 3
22. Concordia University – 3
23. DePaul University – 3
24. Georgian Court University – 3
25. HEC Montreal – 3
26. Ithaca College – 3
27. Louisiana State University – 3
28. Michigan State University – 3
29. Philadelphia University – 3
30. Rochester Institute of Technology – 3
31. Rollins College – 3
32. Tufts University – 3
33. University of Alberta – 3
34. University of Arkansas at Little Rock – 3
35. University of Florida – 3
36. University of Nebraska-Lincoln – 3
37. University of Sydney – 3
38. University of Washington – 3
39. Yale University – 3
40. York University – 3

Well, the official switch to the new redesign is scheduled for tomorrow, but Jason Simon, Director of Creative Services at NC State University, sent an email to share the good news.

I wanted to make you aware because it encompasses a lot of the things you have been talking about lately. In particular, we have gone to great strides to build university-wide support (not an easy thing to do at a public university with 31,900 students).
We have also really made an effort to use video throughout the site, using Flash video with closed-captioning from XML files. We’re also hoping that over time we can get some user-generated content through the Share Your Story feature. All the content on the top tier is new.

BEFORE

AFTER

Following in the footsteps of Ball State University, Duke University, Ohio State University and Cornell University among others, NC State used a www.ncsu.edu/redesign/blog“>redesign blog throughout the process to keep everybody updated and engaged.

The institution has also made accessible its new website in beta a month before the final launch to help users get accustomed to it and submit feedback.

What do YOU think?