TCS Education System Offers Videoconferencing to All Students
- By Mike Hohenbrink
- 02/07/12
The TCS Education System (TCS ES) will provide access to desktop videoconferencing to more than 5,000 students in its affiliated colleges. The move makes TCS ES the first institution of higher learning in the country to offer such access.
Specifically, TCS ES has reached an agreement with Citrix to provide access to GoToMeeting for every student in the system's colleges. The new agreement is an expansion of a previous partnership begun last spring when access to the videoconferencing service was made available to faculty and staff. After seeing the popularity of the offering at that level, the school made the decision to expand access to allow students access as well.
"We saw a swift adoption rate across the system and colleges on the faculty and staff side and are even more eager to see where the students take the platform," said Donald Tom, associate vice president of information technology services for TCS ES. "Technology is at its best when it enhances collaboration and brings people closer together. We think GoToMeeting delivers both to our learning community."
Features of the service include:
- High-definition video;
- One-click access;
- Compatibility with either Mac or PC; and
- Access for up to six computers at once.
Down the road, possible uses include virtual study rooms, virtual dissertation defenses, and facilitation of student association meetings across multiple locations.
TCS ES will also use the service to foster greater cooperation among the system's separate campus locations and to expand international offerings according to information released by the organization.
"One of our organization's chief objectives is to always seek new technology to enhance the advancement of teaching and learning," said TCS Education System President and CEO Michael Horowitz. "We found that platform with GoToMeeting. It's collaborative; it builds and strengthens relationships; and it gives students within our system a new tool to connect with each other."
Founded in 2009, the non-profit TCS ES comprises The Chicago School of Professional Psychology, The Santa Barbara and Ventura Colleges of Law, and Pacific Oaks College, as well as Garfield Park Preparatory Academy in Chicago and Pacific Oaks Children's School in Pasadena, CA.
More information on TCS ES is available at tcsedsystem.edu, and more information about Citrix can be found at citrix.com.