The University of Tennessee Health Science Center (UTHSC) will celebrate National Distance Learning Week November 6-10. During this time, online and e-learning institutions across the nation will highlight distance education growth and its acceptance as a proven form of learning, while also educating faculty about distance learning and showcasing program accomplishments.
Last fiscal year at UTHSC, 98 students graduated from online programs, 295 students were enrolled in online programs, and 100 students were new to online programs.
At UTHSC, students are at the center of every program and its courses. College department heads are also appreciative of the positive student outcomes in their online programs. “I have seen the online medical laboratory technician (MLT) to medical laboratory scientist (MLS) program change the career path for our graduates,” said Kathy Kenwright, EdD, MLS (ASCP) SI, MB, associate professor and Chair of the Department of Clinical Laboratory Sciences and program director of the Medical Laboratory Science program in the College of Health Professions at UTHSC. “Two of our 2013 graduates have already moved into supervisory roles, while other graduates have been able to advance on the medical laboratory science career ladder. These career moves would not have been possible without earning their BS degree and they were able to do it while working full-time.”
Associate professor in the Department of Acute and Tertiary Care and program director of the Doctor of Nursing Practice program in the College of Nursing, Bobby Bellflower, DNSc, NNP said, “Distance education enhances quality as evidenced by certification pass rates that exceed national means. For several programs, our certification rates for first time candidates is 100 percent. It requires innovation to increase and maintain quality”.
Colleges on campus are not the only entities dedicated to online and e-learning. The Teaching and Learning Center (TLC) received a grant from the Tennessee Higher Education Commission in 2016. In collaboration with six colleges of UTHSC, online programs and faculty, there is focused quality effort to build within the institution and enhance UTHSC’s reputation for delivering high-quality online, distance, and hybrid/blended courses and programs.
“The TLC will continue this important by offering faculty development opportunities, course reviews, course certifications and a symposia highlighting online, distance, hybrid, blended teaching and learning at UTHSC”, said Karen Shader, PhD, associate director of the TLC, who specializes in instructional design and online/eLearning.
Visit https://academic.uthsc.edu/tlc/events/ndlw.php to see the full list of UTHSC National Distance Learning Week events. To learn more about the distance learning programs at UTHSC, visit https://academic.uthsc.edu/tlc/online/index.php.
UTHSC currently has ten distance learning programs which include:
• Certificate in Clinical Research
• Certificate in Adult Gerontology Acute Care – Nurse Practitioner
• Certificate in Psychiatric – Mental Health Nurse Practitioner
• Certificate in Health Informatics and Information Management
• Certificate in Health Care Quality Improvement
• Master of Dental Hygiene (MDH)
• Registered Nurse to Bachelor of Science in Nursing (RN-to-BSN)
• Doctor of Nursing Practice (with the exception of the nurse anesthesia concentration)
• Medical Laboratory Technician to Bachelor of Science in Medical Laboratory Science (MLT to BSMLS)
• Master of Heath Informatics and Information Management (MHIIM)