Why was Lamar University interested in distance learning?
Dr. Simmons: Lamar University has a long and rich history in distance education dating back decades to off-campus course delivery and, so-called, telecourses. Online delivery is the next evolutionary step in distance education. Lamar is challenged in its growth by a limited geographic recruiting area. We were already capturing a very high percentage of college-going students from the region. We were already building some of the best faculty, programs and facilities for students in the state, and filling our residence halls as quickly as we could build them. We had to ask ourselves, where is there opportunity for growth? The answer was the expansion of online courses and programs. Also, when you think about growing a university, what you are really doing is being a good steward of the investment the state has made in you. We saw distance online learning as an opportunity to help the state meet its need for high-quality teachers while leveraging the investment the state has made in us. B
