Drexel Online Celebrates National Distance Learning Week
By Sabrina Ram
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Drexel University Online will celebrate National Distance Learning Week (NDLW) with its eighth annual awards ceremony, honoring exceptional leaders, faculty and staff for their accomplishments and dedication to online learning, on Tuesday, November 11, 2014 at the Academy of Natural Sciences of Drexel University.
In an effort to create greater awareness of distance learning and to recognize exceptional leaders and best practices in the field, Drexel University Online founded NDLW, in conjunction with the United States Distance Learning Association (USDLA).
“Online education plays a very important role here at Drexel, where our stated mission is to provide every student with a valuable, rigorous, experiential and technology-infused education,” said Susan Aldridge, PhD, president of Drexel University Online. “In fact, overall, more than 13,000 Drexel students are taking at least one course online, which is certainly consistent with campus trends nationwide.”
With distance learning exponentially growing throughout the years, Drexel has been a premier leader of online education since 1996. At Drexel, more than 7,500 unique students from all 50 states and 20 countries are pursuing a bachelor's, master's or certificate.
More than 7.1 million students were enrolled in at least one online course through a university during fall 2012, according to a January 2014 online education report by the Babson Survey Research Group and College Board. At the secondary school level, over 700,000 high school students are taking one or more courses online, and nearly 40 states have established state-wide or state-lead virtual schools.
“National Distance Learning Week is a celebration of learning transformed through technology,” said Jenny Jopling, president of the USDLA. “During the week of November 10th, modern learning discoveries will be shared through 29 live webcasts hosted on usdla.org, made possible by the USDLA and Drexel University Online. These webinars will be a perfect rally of professionals from a variety of distance learning perspectives, offering a wealth of knowledge to those in the online learning industry who work hard to continually enhance education.”
Created in 2007, NDLW seeks to celebrate the tremendous growth and accomplishments occurring today in distance learning education, while showing appreciation to those who make an indelible mark in the field and with students. This year’s celebration will feature Drexel alumnus Shawn Brown, who is the vice president and chief operating officer for the Northeast Ohio Council on Higher Education. Brown was a 2008 graduate of the online Master’s in Higher Education program and is the first online graduate to serve on the Drexel University Alumni Association’s Board of Governors.
“I am honored to participate in Drexel University Online’s National Distance Learning Week celebration,” said Shawn Brown. “Drexel University offers the best of both worlds, a name you can trust and a quality education that is accessible anywhere in the world.”
For more information on Drexel University Online’s 2014 NDLW ceremony, please visit www.drexel.com/NDLW or contact Sabrina Ram, director of strategic communications at Drexel University Online, at 215.895.0511 or sr62@drexel.edu. Also, follow the conversation on social media at #DrexelNDLW.