Follow the Money: Managing Funding to Structure Post-COVID Online Development from Rapid Response Quality to High Quality
Concurrent Session 9
Brief Abstract
As we transition to post-COVID ‘new normal’ and recover from rapid response online course and program development, strategically managed funding supporting project management can help motivate fatigued faculty and move us back to the focus on high quality, media rich, and pedagogically sound application of instructional design for online learning.
Presenters
Extended Abstract
As we transition to post-COVID ‘new normal’ and recover from rapid response online course and program development, strategically managed funding supporting project management can help motivate fatigued faculty and move us back to the focus on high quality, media rich, and pedagogically sound application of instructional design for online learning. Just as the pandemic began to wreak havoc with students, faculty and administrators in higher ed, Virginia Tech embarked on a year-long project to develop an online offering of Computer Science courses and Master of Engineering program to support the state-wide initiative to feed a Tech Talent Pipeline inititative (https://www.insidehighered.com/news/2019/11/08/virginia-pledges-1-billio...). The course development was supported by funds made available through resources provided to vT as a funded 4-VA institution (https://4-va.org/). Moving the project forward as it competed for faculty and instructional designer time and effort in the midst of the rapid response to go fully online and selectively hybrid for some courses was a tremendous challenge. Along with project management, it became clear that the funding agreements would become the lynch pin for keeping work moving forward and on tach. Through the use of an overall Memo of Understanding that took the funding proposal elements and expanded those to clearly outline objectives and desired outcomes along the project timeline and Letters of Agreement for individual participants funded to conduct the work of the project, we were able to clearly articulate the expectations of funded faulty and other participants, maintain periodic check-in and status reports along with tracking of work completed that triggered incremental release of funds. With the oversight of a Sponsor's group, the guidance of a Steering Committee and dedicated project management following the funding requirements, the project and course development was successfully completed on time and with full engagement of faculty involved. The project entered Phase 2 to complete one additional undergraduate course and to lay the foundations for an extension of the work to plan for the process of sharing course and course elements to support the efficient and effective movement of students through two- and four-year Virginia institutions so as to support the Tech Talent Pipeline Initiative.
The process of aligning funding, incremental release of funds, and articulated expectations and outcomes with project management is one that we continue to refine and use to support major efforts post-COVID to shift from online course development in rapid response mode back to the focus on high-quality and media rich courses for online programs. This session will provide a short background for context, discuss the process including the challenges and response to those challenges, feedback from faculty participants and the final report of the initial phase of the funded project. We will then look at the components of the process to examine how these can be adapted and utilized for other programs and at other institutions.
The session will incorporate polls, shared writing space, surveys to allow for continued conversation and sharing of ideas, potential adaptations and outcomes of the application of the process by participants.