Coverage.
The following policies are intended to promote effective operation of the telecommunications system outlined in the Plan for Development of a Statewide Telecommunications System (adopted by the State Board of Education, May 13, 1987). The system does not exist as a single entity, but is composed of various components owned and operated by units of the State Board of Education and by private and public entities outside the control of the State Board of Education. The Simplot/Micron Technology Center shall serve as the network center for all telecommunications activity conducted under the authority of the State Board of Education. These policies apply to units under the governance of the State Board of Education and all entities, public or private, utilizing the system.
The Board encourages development of a broad range of cooperative ventures that use telecommunication technologies to improve educational delivery to the citizens of Idaho. Use of electronic technology to deliver education/training to citizens of the state who live in areas distant from college and university campuses is particularly encouraged. These technologies may include, but are not limited to, one (1) or more of the following: open-channel television, closed-circuit television, cable television, low-power television, communication and/or direct broadcast satellite, satellite master antenna system, microwave, videotape, video disc, and telephone line.
Access.
a. Each college and university and area vocational-technical school should support a baseline of telecommunications origination capabilities consistent with the Educational User Requirements outlined in the Plan for Development of a Statewide Telecommunications System. These capabilities shall complement but not duplicate the configuration of systems and capabilities of the Simplot/Micron Technology Center outlined in 7.c.
b. The use of the telecommunications system shall be shared among higher education, public education, and professional-technical education agencies. State Department of Education instructional television service in existence at the time these policies are adopted will, where feasible, be continued with existing scheduling priority.
c. Each educational agency utilizing the telecommunications system shall have access to all components of the system.
d. Other non-educational state agencies may share the use of the telecommunications system on a cost and time-available basis.
e. Out-of-state educational institutions may be allowed access to the telecommunications system for accredited instructional purposes on a cost and time-available basis when approved by and in cooperation with the primary emphasis institution under whose role and mission the proposed use would fall.
f. Non-public organizations may be allowed access to the telecommunications system on a cost-plus and time-available basis.
g. Interstate cooperation in educational telecommunications which results in improved program quality, program delivery, or cost efficiency is encouraged. Participation in the Western States Educational Telecommunications Cooperative is also encouraged.
Priorities.
a. Interactive telecommunications shall be given priority above non-interactive uses.
b. Educational uses shall be given priority above administrative uses.
c. Program origination shall be determined by role and mission with primary emphasis institutions responsible for providing or authorizing courses by telecommunications to areas of the state underserved by the emphasis program.
Operations.
a. The sponsoring agency shall ensure that faculty and other users of the telecommunications system receive adequate training.
b. Cooperative development of user training utilizing the resources of each agency should be encouraged.
c. Operators of each component of the delivery system under Board control shall maintain the component for all users.
d. Reception sites for instruction delivered via telecommunications (other than reception in homes or on main campuses) must be reported to the Board.
e. An institution will notify the executive director prior to conducting an experiment with a new instructional delivery system. An institution must receive Board approval before inaugurating any new instructional delivery system and must demonstrate to the Board's satisfaction that the system is compatible with existing systems and does not duplicate the functions and capabilities available at the Simplot/Micron Technology Center.
Program Delivery.
a. Courses and programs delivered via telecommunications, except those sponsored by the State Department of Education, must conform to program approval and review policies (Sections III.G. and H.); to institutional role and mission policies (Section III.L.2); to primary service region policies (Section III.L.3); and to quality assurance policies for off-campus instruction (Section III.L.6).
b. All courses and programs delivered via telecommunications, except those sponsored by the State Department of Education, must meet the same quality standards as required by the Board and the institutions for on-campus courses and programs delivered through traditional means.
c. If an institution other than the State Department of Education proposes to deliver instruction via telecommunications in a service region assigned to another institution, the proposing institution must notify the primary service institution according to procedures outlined in Board approved continuing education/off-campus instruction policies (Section III.L.3.c).
d. Institutional conflicts regarding service region, role and mission, and associated matters related to instruction delivered via telecommunications shall be submitted in writing first to the respective institutional chief academic officers, and secondly, if resolution is not achieved, to the Board's chief academic officer for review and resolution.
6. Credit/Registration.
a. All credit courses, except those co-sponsored by the State Department of Education, delivered via telecommunications must be applicable to a campus-based degree or certificate program approved by the Board.
b. Each institution shall determine the credit and requirements for courses delivered by telecommunications to statewide audiences. Such courses shall carry information regarding the institutions which have approved the course for credit, the amount of credit, the requirements, and any restrictions on transfer that may exist.
c. Each institution shall determine whether a course is acceptable as transfer credit in compliance with Board policy on articulation.
d. Non-credit, fee-based short courses and workshops shall generate fees for, and be the responsibility of, the institution originating the workshop. Non-credit activities shall comply with primary emphasis designations and role and mission statements. An institution that receives a request to offer non-credit activities coming within the role and mission of another institution must convey the request to that institution. If the institution under whose role and mission the request comes chooses not to respond, the institution that receives the request may do so.
e. Cooperative development and offering of credit courses by telecommunications between institutions is encouraged. Institutions may mutually agree upon a division of fees and FTE's for such cooperatively developed and delivered courses.
Governance.
a. General governance of the use of the telecommunications system by agencies of the State Board of Education shall include the following duties:
(1) Upon request, provide advice and consultation to the State Board of Education and the Office of the State Board concerning matters of telecommunications policy and system development.
(2) Review and approve proposed schedules of course offerings and non-credit workshops to be offered by telecommunications outside of an originating institution's primary service area.
(3) Coordinate and approve joint acquisitions of technology-based instructional materials, facilities, equipment, and services.
(4) Provide for ongoing policy development and recommendations affecting telecommunications to the State Board of Education.
b. General governance of the telecommunications system shall be coordinated by a Telecommunications Council, composed of the chief academic officers of the Board and the four-year and two-year public institutions of higher education, the State Department of Education, the SBOE agency heads, the director of the Simplot/Micron Center, and the director of the Eastern Idaho Technical College. The chair of the Telecommunications Council shall be elected by the Council. The Telecommunications Council shall report to the Academic Affairs and Program Committee.
c. Day-to-day management, operations, and scheduling functions of the telecommunications system shall be the responsibility of the general manager of the Idaho Educational Public Broadcasting System working in conjunction with the network center and other components of the system. The general manager of IEPBS, working in conjunction with the network center, will also provide those non-duplicated system resources such as satellite uplinks, statewide telephone bridge, data network head-end, and similar unique facilities and equipment of the Simplot/ Micron Technology Center.
d. Appeals of decisions made by the general manager of the Idaho Educational Public Broadcasting System or the Telecommunications Council, shall be made through the executive director to the Board.
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