Taking online courses has become a delivery mode of choice for many students. This collaborative study focuses on the impact of college readiness; technological resources, and course design on student success in an online introduction to computers distance education course within the Kentucky Community and Technical College System (KCTCS). The study included 8,255 KCTCS students enrolled in online (3,340 students) and in-person (4,925 students) sections of an entry-level computer literacy course (CIS100) in the fall 2010 semester. Recent statistics of student success in the Kentucky Community and Technical College System (KCTCS) show higher numbers of students fail or withdraw from online courses than in-person courses. Enrollment in online courses in the Kentucky Community and Technology Community System (KCTCS) has increased from 1,336 to over 127,000 in just over 10 years, thus this issue of student failure in online courses must be addressed. This dissertation consists of three primary parts: (1) a technical report written by a three-person research team representing a synthesis of the collaborative research, (2) an individual research study focused on the impact of technological resources on student success in online classes, and (3) an individually written reflective essay exploring ways that online course management might be improved to increase student success. Following an introduction to the study, Chapter 2 describes an analysis of the impact of technological resources on success in this online course, particularly students' Internet capacity. Analysis of the results indicates that the actual speed of connection to the Internet that the student has is a contributing factor in the success of students in online courses. Further analysis of student comments regarding obstacles to engaging in CIS100 are found in Chapter 3, a policy essay offering a three step process to improving student success relative to issues found with the online management system Blackboard. Recommendations include improved online student support, improvements in institutional infrastructure to provide more consistent server speeds, and improved quality control methods for developing and teaching courses online. Finally, the author provides concluding thoughts regarding the influence of stakeholders--students, faculty, and administrators--on the growth of online distance education. [The dissertation citations contained here are published with the permission of ProQuest LLC. Further reproduction is prohibited without permission. Copies of dissertations may be obtained by Telephone (800) 1-800-521-0600. Web page: http://www.proquest.com/en-US/products/dissertations/individuals.shtml.]