Officials anxious to get new technology working

Distance learning has the potential to save the University $30,000 per year, but first it would have to fix the problems it is having with firewalls.

In November 2003, the University received a $388,000 grant from the Department of Agriculture, which gave the University money to switch to technology that allows video conferencing over the Internet instead of using phone lines. The switch could be more cost-effective because conferencing can be done over bandwidth the university already owns instead of paying to use phone lines. "It got kind of costly to do," said Carroll Walker, computer information specialist. "Now that we don't have phone line charges, it's free for the taking."

Because of the firewall problems, the University has not been able to save money since switching over to the new technology. But Walker said once the problems are fixed, the University can potentially save $30,000 per year.

"We are working through the problems right now," Walker said. "By next year we should be saving money on this." Walker said SIUC has been using video conferencing for almost ten years. Video conferencing is a system in which video and sound are exchanged back and forth between two or more sites. SIUC professors and students use the conferencing for anything from classes to discussions to job interviews.

The University is now the "bridge" for multiple colleges in southern Illinois to utilize Internet video conferencing. SIUC, along with area community colleges, are part of a group called Southern Illinois Collegiate Common Market. These schools all have video conferencing systems that communicate with each other. SIUC's role is to connect the schools with distant locations for conferencing. Unlike SIUC, Rend Lake Community College in Ina has been able to save money with the new program, in addition to having more video conferencing sights than any other school in southern Illinois with 13, and one more on the way.

Carla Lewis, coordinator of Distance Learning and Media Technology at Rend Lake, said the new technology has allowed them to save $40,000 per year. Lewis said she likes the new technology because the video is higher quality and easier for the instructors to use. "It's not as choppy and not as susceptible to phone line problems." Lewis said. "It's more user-friendly for the instructors."

One of the new things SIUC has planned for the video conferencing is to use it for Disability Services. Lisa Caringer, a senior sign language interpreter for Disabilities Services, said the video conferencing would allow a sign language interpreter to be in one place and interpret for a class in a different location. She said this is something that may be a necessity because of an interpreter shortage.

"Sign language interpreters are in high demand," Caringer said. "Some of the outlying areas outside of Carbondale like community colleges and high schools have particular problems finding quality interpreters, so our idea was to use our distance technology to broadcast our interpreters into their classrooms."

SIUC History Professor John Simon, and executive director of the Ulysses S. Grant Association headquartered at Morris Library, has used video conferencing in several of his classes. He said it is something he thinks people at SIUC need to take advantage of. Simon said with the help of distance learning personnel, he has been able to do things he never thought would be possible. "I'm very big on it," Simon said. "We can do things that were just a few years ago unimaginable."