thinkPhD

Congrats to NCU! The latest newsletter is very nice.

Take a look at this link.

My good friend, Dr. Milton Kabia, is highlighted in the newsletter. Hooray for Dr. Kabia!

Northcentral University sent out an email today introducing its new logo. Here’s a sneak peak….

http://lp.ncu.edu/newbrand/

The school is rebranding itself! The new logo colors are blue for learning and knowledge, and burnt orange reminds us of Arizona (where the school is located). The two overlapping strips represent the student and faculty relationship. The promo mentions a flame, but I did not see one. The flame would stand for the “fire of enlightenment that education produces.”

The new branding will be introduced in February.

Click the link (http://lp.ncu.edu/newbrand/) and tell me what you think about our new brand….!

Our NCU Provost Dr. Barnaby B. Barratt, PhD, DHS announced recently: 

In 2010, we will gradually change over to the use of ebooks. This not only seems appropriate to an online University (and will save countless trees), but will also be significantly less expensive for Learners.

I am very concerned about the strategic move to ebooks. Even though I have a Kindle 2 and enjoy ebooks, I often use my printed textbooks referencing several things at the same time. I might put my fingers in several places and compare. With ebooks, I can set up placemarkers, but they don’t stick out the edges for quick searching. I use sticky notes and my books have lots of them sticking out marking pages.

We use etexts at the University of Phoenix, where I am an adjunct. I found that students rarely read the texts! They pay for the “use” of the etexts (less than a paper textbook) but pay, nonetheless. They do not have eternal access to the book, either. When I buy a book at the store, it is mine forever. I can mark in it, read it multiple times, or pass it alone to someone else. Perhaps ebooks are OK for some classes but those in which the texts are used (not just purchased) we really need paper textbooks.

In addition, those of us who live in a rural area with insufficient bandwidth, struggle with downloading ebooks or large files or even watching YouTube. I have a limited amount of bandwidth before HughesNet activates their Fair Access Policy. If the etext file were kept resident on the school website, would we be able to permanently “mark” our copy for easy retrieval of information?

I have a whole bookshelf of textbooks that I have accumulated through the years, and I still refer back to these texts, especially when I prepare lesson plans or write papers or articles. Books are just a part of who I am – and even though I love the new technology of etexts / ebooks, I disagree that they are always appropriate in a classroom environment. The technology is not advanced enough to meet the needs of the serious student.

Books are an investment in learning; the use of etexts is like renting the textbook. I hope that NCU gives the students an opportunity to choose if they want to use etexts or buy the book.

Me? I will buy the book. The one made out of paper.

~~ 

Articles:

Do free e-texts reduce sales of print textbooks?

Integrate digital and media literacy as critical elements for education, report says

I read today on the Northcentral University website that G.I. Jobs magazine will include NCU in their Guide to Military Schools, which will be published in September 2009. I think this is a great honor! The news release states that this recognition ranks NCU in the top 15% of universities. Go NCU Roadrunners!

I am thankful for the service and sacrifice of our military men and women. As the wife of a Navy vet, I understand some of the issues that families must face. As an instructor, I see quite a few soldiers and vets in class, especially when I taught at the University of Phoenix in Columbus, GA. The flexibility of online asynchronous learning often meets the needs of military learners. If you are a student wishing to complete his/her education, consider online or distance learning. There are many schools with excellent programs and tuition discounts. Military service coupled with education makes a very hire-able employee!

Great news for those considering NCU! An August 4, 2009 press release indicates that Northcentral University has received confirmation of certification from the United States Department of Education to participate in the Federal Student Financial Assistance Programs authorized by Title IV of the Higher Education Act (Title IV, HEA Program). This means that students can apply for federal student aid programs.

Many students need financial aid to fund their education. Previously, all financial aid at NCU was through private lenders such as Wells Fargo. Students can now fill out the FAFSA (Free Application for Federal Student Aid) and be considered for federal financial aid. This is welcome news for those considering NCU. If you have any questions, contact the NCU financial aid office at 888-327-2877 extension 8080.

Does it make sense to get a degree? Absolutely! Do the math…here are three Value of a College Degree calculators:

•  http://www.csgnetwork.com/futvaldegreecalc.html
• http://www.calcxml.com/do/col05
• http://calculators.collegetoolkit.com/college-calculators/rescalcval.aspx

If you live in Maryland, Virginia, or Washington, DC, and are a PhD learner at Northcentral University, you are invited to become a member of the NCU_PhD_Study_Group. This is a private Yahoo group for our region. In our group, we will be able to send group emails, post web links, tips, advice, chat, vent, etc. If you are interested in joining, contact me through the NCU messaging system. Our first order of business is to develop a charter. Next, we will discuss whether we want to set up a f2f (face-to-face) meeting, how often and when. Thirdly, lets spread the word and invite others to join. Let’s make this study group a valuable tool.

NCU has increased doctoral program tuition costs from $495 to $525 per credit hour as of Jan 1. A 3-hour course is now $1470 per course. I am lucky to have my tuition locked in until 06/30/09. Even with the increase, NCU’s doctoral program costs about $30K compared to University of Phoenix ($45K), Argosy ($47K) and Capella ($43K).

I am convinced that I will recoup the costs of tuition by increasing my pay as an adjunct and in career advancement. I wish that I had gotten my MBA earlier in life and followed it with my PhD. Those opportunities were not available to me as a young person. If I were just starting out, I would get as much education as I possibly could to move my career along faster. I did not realize how important education would become to me later in life. The cost is great but the advantages are greater. A tuition increase is a small price to pay spread over many years.  

I finally finished assignment 4 in MGT5016, Managing Change, and submitted it this morning. It has been tough now that I am back to grading papers and teaching. There is one paper more left to write. This has been a particularly stressful class because the assignments require that I write as if I were a CEO implementing change in my organization.  I chose to be Bob Nardelli, new CEO of Chrysler, LLP. Through the course of the four assignments, Bob has had to deal with a number of challenges as outlined in Peter Senge’s The Dance of Change: The Challenges of Sustaining Momentum in Learning Organizations. Poor Bob!

I had already picked the “new” Chrysler as my company when I heard that Bob would be CEO. The company has also trudged through issues with the UAW, including negotiations and now agreement. Wow, could that have been more Twilight Zone? In one way, I was lucky to have picked a company that that has had a lot of change, but then most of the recent changes are appearing in periodicals, not peer-reviewed sources. It generally takes several months for authors to submit analytical papers to journals for publication. My peer-reviewed sources are “pre-LLC” so in some cases I had to hypothesize how Chrysler would manage some of the issues now. “Now” meaning as a privately-held firm managed by Cerberus and under the leadership of Bob Nardelli, ex-CEO of Home Depot.

I am working on the last assignment:
Final Paper: There is a final paper for the course.The paper should be written on some aspect of change the Learner would like to know more about or the paper could be on the selection of another company the Learner leads through a change process. onsider yourself the CEO if you are writing about another company.The normal length of this paper is 15 pages, excluding references, title page and table of contents.

I am focusing on my own organization, MeadWestvaco. We have experienced a lot of changes, some of which have been effective and others have been mere window-dressing. If it walks like a duck and quacks like a duck, it is a duck, even if you call it a horse. It seems as though corporations have a peer group that they must keep up with….and “transformation” is the new mantra. If you don’t have a change initiative going on somewhere, you just aren’t in the “in” group. I want to explore what is truly change and what is not. I have some ideas and I sent a note to my Mentor, Dr. Arthur Smith, today for clarification. I am itching to get started on the writing part (and get it over with).

For the rest of the afternoon, I am planning to work on the basement getting it ready for company at Thanksgiving and putting together another file cabinet for my office. And of course, preparing the lesson plans for Monday’s class. That class is in week four of five.

This week Eric started a new Yahoo group and if you are an NCU learner, you will want to check this out. Remember, this group is strictly for learners and you must verify enrollment. The group has really grown – we already have 19 members in just a few days!

Click to join nculearner

I called and talked to my academic counselor, Rita, about which course to choose next. She was very helpful as we discussed the various Doctor of Philosophy in Business Administration specializations:

Applied Computer Science

Business Quantitative Methods

Computer and Information Security

Criminal Justice

Electronic Commerce

Financial Management

Health Care Administration

Homeland Security

Human Resources Management

International Business

Management

Management Information Systems

Management of Engineering and Technology

Marketing

Organizational Leadership

Public Administration

Sports Management and Leadership

I had a number of credits to transfer to the program and so very soon I must make a decision as to which specialization to follow. Right now, I am considering Management, Organizational Leadership, Marketing, Financial Management or Business Quantitative Methods.

My original plan included working on a topic that was related to my current employment working in the seconds field. I have been trying to figure out which one of the specializations that it fits in! Of course, I do not have to choose something related, I should choose something that I enjoy or have some prior knowledge or work experience. I will take another look at the courses that are offered; perhaps I can narrow down to two specializations and choose a course that is in both of them.