2007 Campus Technology Innovators: Portals
TECHNOLOGY AREA: PORTALS
Innovator: Rio Salado College
Enhancing the eLearning experience with a truly
comprehensive, customized portal
As a higher education institution without a physical campus,
Rio Salado College (AZ) relies on its web portal to deliver
and manage courses, support and communicate with students,
provide information to the college community, and
more. In the past, an out-of-box solution from FirstClass had served the college's
needs well; however, with some 60,000 students
(27,000 of them online) and growing, Rio
Salado needed a customized, scalable portal
solution with built-in online support, to provide a
more user-friendly experience and mesh with
the school's integrated approach to eLearning.
In a partnership with tech giants Microsoft and Dell,
Ed Kelty, dean of IT, and Angela Ambrosia, faculty
chair for web technology and innovation, led a
cross-functional team of more than 100 faculty
and staff across numerous departments to develop
RioLearn, a completely integrated online
course management, support, and delivery system
now used for all of Rio Salado's online courses.
(MSS Technologies also played a consulting role in the project.)
Technology choices. A combination of technologies
were used to create the customized RioLearn system:
- RioLearn interface: Microsoft Windows SharePoint
Services 2.0
- Base operating system: Microsoft Windows 2003
- Back-end database: Microsoft SQL 2000
- E-mail and calendaring: Microsoft Exchange 2003
- Back-end and front-end servers and data storage: Dell
- Assessment tools: Questionmark Perception
ON RIO SALADO’S
user-friendly portal, all
aspects of a student's
learning experience are
completely integrated
and always just a click away.
A powerful portal. Now, through one portal, students
have access to every college resource: With the click of a
mouse, they can access assignments and grades, e-mail their
instructors, contact the help desk, and more. Faculty can manage
their courses, receive instant alerts when assignments
are completed or grades are reported, and manage threaded
discussions. Rio Salado can manage and deliver course content
faster and more easily than ever before, providing students
with the most up-to-date information. And the scalable
system is ready to handle a future load of 100,000 or more
eLearning students annually.
Enhanced user experience. The typical Rio Salado student
is a busy 29-year-old, trying to juggle career and family
while getting an education. Key to the project development
was making sure RioLearn was extremely user-friendly, says
Ambrosia. "Time is the number one barrier for successful completion
of a degree. We wanted to make sure that RioLearn
was fast and easy."
Along the left side of the RioLearn interface lie all student-related
functions, such as a student's account, online tutoring,
his or her personal UPeers space (a customized
social networking site for Rio students, akin to
MySpace), software and hardware discount purchase
programs, and more. In the middle of the
interface are class-related functions, including a notification
of new e-mails, course news and events,
instant alerts, and quick links to the course syllabus
and lessons. Along the right-hand side are college-related
functions such as the bookstore, class
schedule, registration, an electronic library with
24/7/365 librarian chat, and financial aid information,
among other things. In essence, all aspects of a student's
learning experience, including instant access
to 24/7 technical and instructional help desks, e-mail,
and helpful phone numbers, are completely integrated
and always just a click away.
RioLearn continues to be customized and
enhanced as needed by students, faculty, and staff.
For example, one recent update was the integration
of a program called Wimba,
allowing students to leave voicemail for their instructors
via the internet. Using a microphone and personal
computer, students can leave messages
without needing to pick up the telephone.
Competitive edge. Student response to RioLearn has
been overwhelmingly positive, including user comments such
as, "It's really easy! Most of the things that I needed were right
there. I found it very useful," and "I found it easy and organized;
it took me right where I wanted to be." That user satisfaction
is crucial, emphasizes Ambrosia, especially in the online
arena, where students now expect information and services
instantly. "Students today demand that the information they
want be accessible when they want it. Otherwise, they will go
elsewhere," she says. Those demands are met quickly and
easily, thanks to RioLearn: "We made sure that the information
students need is at their fingertips."