Last March, the Board of Trustees of the University Arkansas System approved the creation of a new 100 percent online institution. But as Jacqueline Froelich reports, some worry eVersity will compete with UA bricks and mortar campuses across the state as well as existing UA online schools.
Below is a statement issued by director of UA Global Campus in Fayetteville, received after broadcast filing deadline:
“The faculty and academic departments at University of Arkansas have spent more than 10 years developing online degree programs and courses with the hope of making higher education more accessible to people across Arkansas. The fruits of this labor are showcased at the University of Arkansas ONLINE website at http://online.uark.edu. We know that not every person who wants a degree from the University of Arkansas can make it to the Fayetteville campus to study, but thanks to advances in technology and Internet access, we are removing that location barrier by offering courses and programs online. We know that there are about 358,000 Arkansans who have some college but no degree. We hope that the flexibility of online learning will help them and others obtain their degrees – either through the Fayetteville campus, one of our sister institutions or, in the future, the U of A System. — Javier Reyes, Vice Provost for Distance Education
