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The specific objective of this proposal is to conduct a series of planning sessions where representatives of the four participating institutions will develop a detailed plan for class sharing among the institutions. Many issues, including but not limited to tuition, class numbering, class needs, instructor availability, future team members, resources and delivery format must be addressed. Without first addressing these issues and developing a plan that the institutions can successfully implement (an administrators and boards will approve), any cooperative class sharing plan my not succeed. These sessions will develop the answers to these issues and develop a plan that will serve as the basis for a full proposal that will be submitted to the Higher Education Challenge Grant Grogram in 2008. The ultimate objective of this project is to develop a series of undergraduate classes (approximately 8) within the plant agricultural sciences that may be shared among the participating institutions. These classes would be made available to all of the participating institutions through some type of, or a combination of, web-based distance education resources (i.e. web-based learning centers, Blackboard, WebCt, Tegrity, video, etc.). The classes to be offered would depend upon the needs of the participating institutions (to be determined). For example, Arkansas and Oklahoma may need a Plant Growth and Development class that Louisiana offers. Louisiana could contribute this class to the pool of classes. Arkansas might contribute a Plant Anatomy class that Mississippi and Louisiana need but do not currently offer. In theory, each institution would contribute between 1 and 3 classes to the pool. This will allow the participating institutions to offer classes from the pool to their students as needed. As we develop a needs list, we will identify where the needed classes are being offered and where willing faculty participants exist. We will also identify important classes (especially related to emerging issues food safety, use of plant secondary products, international agricultural markets, etc.) that none of the participating institutions currently offer and willing faculty members who will develop the new classes. By developing a pool of shared classes, we will be able to answer each of the problems identified above and offer a broader and richer curriculum to our students while more efficiently utilizing our collective teaching resources.
NON-TECHNICAL SUMMARY: Reductions in resources available for teaching and the loss of faculty teaching positions over time have place significant pressure on curricula in the plant agricultural sciences. In many cases, class offerings have been downsized and this has resulted in a less diverse and thorough curriculum. This planning project will allow the four participating institutions to develop a detailed plan that will be used to prepare a Higher Education Challenge Grant proposal in 2008 for the sharing of faculty and resources in developing both core and new advanced classes in the agricultural plant sciences. This will increase efficiency, improve the curriculum of the participating institutions and serve as a model for other institutions. <P>APPROACH: Many issues must be addressed in order to successfully develop a series of shared classes using faculty as each institution. Any concept for sharing of faculty and resources for curriculum enhancement must begin with a planning project to address these issues. Some of the major issues include institutional class needs, current class availability, available faculty resources, technical issues related to class sharing, tuition sharing and delivery methods. During this planning project, we will conduct a series of sessions to address these questions and develop answers. Where necessary, the faculty representatives will serve as a liaison back to the faculty in the various departments involved in the plant sciences and seek input from a broader range of faculty. The administrative representatives will serve to answer administrative questions that arise and to serve as a liaison back to higher administration when questions arise. During this planning project, we will conduct four sessions with specific objectives for each session. The first session will be conducted at Mississippi State University and will focus on administrative structure, student credits and tuition issues. The second session will be conducted in Oklahoma State University and will focus on class numbering systems, teaching needs, and classes offered by each institution. Representative from the participating institutions Registrars Offices will attend to provide input regarding to classes coding, numbering and registrations issues. The third session will be conducted at the University of Arkansas and will focus on delivery methods and systems and will include invited speakers on the subject of distance education delivery methods. The final session will be conducted at Louisiana State University and will serve to summarize findings, discuss faculty input and make final decisions. After this planning project is completed, a full proposal will be prepared and submitted to the Higher Education Challenge Program for implementation of the resource sharing project.