Despite the distance some students may face when looking at options for school, Longwood is now making that decision easier for individuals in Southern Virginia. Offered through the College of Professional and Graduate studies, students from Martinsville and Emporia can now attend classes as if they were actually in the classroom. Even though they are 150 miles apart, students from these areas can achieve their degree just like traditional students here on campus.
Dr. Jeannine Perry, dean of the College of Graduate and Professional Studies, said, "Longwood is trying to reach out to the whole span of Southern Virginia because other schools aren't. We are looking at areas of a lot of unemployment due to the textile industries, and many of the people going through the classes now are first generation college students."
Students in these areas are required to earn their associate degree first before enrolling in Longwood's classes. This in turn waives goals one through 11 of Longwood's general education requirement.
Currently, liberal studies is the only degree offered, but other programs such as criminal justice and business are being looked at. Graduate programs are not offered yet for liberal studies because those degrees can be found online. "We want to help them get the bachelor degree before they decide to jump to their masters," said Perry.
To help these students get the full classroom experience, Longwood utilizes VTC, which is a type of broadcast technology in which professors can broadcast their lessons on television.
Adjunct professors, which are professors that work part-time and live in the area, are also relied on to help connect with these students. Adjunct professors were developed out of the Distance Education Collaborative, which was formed to help faculty and adjunct professors use the distance technology, such as VTC, effectively. The workload for these professors does not increase or decrease with distance learning.
Perry said they hope to have full-time faculty teaching in the areas eventually; however she said that is currently too much to ask of professors right now. Perry said the program has grown tremendously since its start, from three to now 24 people enrolled between the two sites. Despite the growth, two dozen still does not justify a full-time faculty member. "It will never be a huge number, but we're pretty happy with what we have now," said Perry.
An adviser is stationed at each site so students have a person physically located in the area when they need questions answered. Professor Don Butler is the director at the site in Emporia while Dr. Pam Randall is the director in Martinsville. Another place that Longwood is looking to expand is to the South Boston area and partnering with the Southern Virginia Higher Education Center. The department might eventually partner with John Tyler Community College based out of the Richmond area; however, Perry said they are not quite ready to do that.
Much like student Sarah Poarch, mentioned in Longwood's recent press release highlighting the partnership, many of the students are hard workers and eager to earn their degree. "I think some people think these students are slackers, but really they aren't. They're really hard workers," said Perry.
