The author considers himself exceedingly blessed by the leadership opportunities and experiences he has had in his personal and professional lives. In retrospect, they form a study in contrasts: excellent leaders and mentors versus unsurpassed examples of poor leadership; outstanding organizations with wonderful people versus dysfunctional…

For several years prior to 2000, students and faculty at McMaster University rated classrooms below those at peer universities. In the case of many classrooms, the teaching environments were outdated and the technology was old. The provost determined in 2000 that they needed to make a long-term investment in their learning spaces. For sound…

At Dartmouth College, the author teaches a course called "Security and Privacy." Its early position in the overall computer science curriculum means the course needs to be introductory, and the author can't assume the students possess an extensive computer science background. These constraints leave the author with a challenge: to construct…

For five years, Advanced Learning Technologies (ALT), a unit within the Board of Regents of the University System of Georgia (USG), has worked with faculty and staff to develop the eCore, an electronically delivered core curriculum for the University System of Georgia. The eCore contains courses leading to the completion of the first two years of…

The Computer Incident Factor Analysis and Categorization (CIFAC) Project at the University of Michigan began in September 2003 with grants from EDUCAUSE and the National Science Foundation (NSF). The project's primary goal is to create a best-practices security framework for colleges and universities based on rigorous quantitative analysis of…

Year after year and on survey after survey, the need for faculty development is consistently identified as a primary factor influencing the adoption of new instructional technologies in higher education. Calls for faculty development have rarely been matched with extended discussion of how faculty grow and learn, however. Existing activities to…

Describes a hybrid approach to online learning, which employs the best characteristics of online education and the interactivity that typically characterizes face-to-face classroom instruction, and the lessons it offers for institutions entering the online arena. (EV)

Describes studies with undergraduate business students concerning the use of technology for teaching. Findings indicated that the commonly-accepted "no-significant-difference effect" did not occur; in fact, students performed better when offered face-to-face interactions. (EV)

Discusses how Web portals can best serve higher education institutions if portal designers first understand and satisfy user needs. Shares findings from a usability study of an Indiana University enterprise portal application, which indicated that many existing interaction design principles still apply. (EV)

Describes how, when used effectively, data warehouses can be a significant component of strategic decision making on campus. Discusses what a data warehouse is and what its informational contents may include, environmental drivers and obstacles, and strategies to justify developing a data warehouse for an academic institution. (EV)

Explores why technology has an optimal role to play in stimulating vibrant exchange and keeping universities poised between the traditional monastery world of careful reflection and the modern marketplace world of dynamic give-and-take. Offers examples of information technology functioning in this way. (EV)

Presents an interview with Douglas Van Houweling, president and CEO of the University Corporation for Advanced Internet Development (UCAID), the formal organization supporting Internet2, and recipient of the EDUCAUSE Award for Excellence in Leadership. (EV)

Explores four arguments for an expanded definition of literacy to include the multimedia language of the screen. Describes efforts to develop this literacy in students at the Institute for Multimedia Literacy at the Annenberg Center of the University of Southern California. (EV)

Discusses why new best practices in information sharing are substantially reinventing all organizations, and why knowledge sharing, if it sparks innovation, changes in organizational dynamics, and new sources of value, can offer strategic differentiation in academia and e-learning. (EV)

Describes five course redesign models (supplemental, replacement, emporium, fully online, and buffet) used by grantees of the Program in Course Redesign sponsored by the Pew Charitable Trusts. The grants helped colleges redesign instruction using technology to achieve quality enhancements as well as cost savings. (EV)