Program Requirements

LEEP3 is a site-independent, distance education scheduling option for the Master of Science degree offered by the Graduate School of Library and Information Science (GSLIS) at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. Begun in 1996, it offers an alternative to the two other scheduling options:(1) on-campus (students can pursue the degree on a full- or part-time basis) and (2) Fridays Only (students who live within commuting distance can pursue the degree on a part-time basis by attending classes only on Fridays during the fall and spring semesters).

All GSLIS students must meet the same standards for admission and satisfy the same degree requirements (10 units (40 hours) of course work including 1.5 units of required courses). LEEP3 students are expected to be strong academically, able to learn independently, and willing to collaborate with the GSLIS faculty in designing and refining new ways to deliver instruction.

Publicity and recruitment for LEEP3 have been accomplished through web pages describing the program, announcements placed in relevant listservs, entries in directories of distance learning programs, and targeted mailing of brochures to employing organizations who may have staff seeking to earn a professional degree.

Students begin the program with a 12-day stay on campus in the summer, during which they complete a 1/2 unit required course (LIS 390 Libraries, Information & Society), as well as a number of non-credit technology workshops. This period offers ample opportunity for the students to get to know one another and to develop a sense of community. Thereafter each course in which they enroll includes one on-campus session that provides opportunities to use materials that may otherwise be unavailable, to do presentations, to interact with guest speakers, and to continue to build a sense of community. The courses emphasize group work and projects for which it is very important that these students have built relationships that enable them to work effectively together electronically. Courses may have up to two hours per week of "live" interaction at a regularly scheduled time, with the rest of the communication accomplished asynchronously. In addition to instructor-authored web pages, students make use of textbooks, coursepacks, and materials available at libraries near their homes or obtained with the assistance of the Extramural Library.

Courses Offered to LEEP3 Students in 1996-98

In addition to the two required courses (Libraries, Information & Society; Information Organization & Access), the following courses have been offered to LEEP3 students as electives in the first two years of the program:

	Information System Analysis and Management
	Library Administration
	Using Networked Information Systems
	Information Resources Management
	Reference Sources and Services
	Grantsmanship
	Online Information Systems
	Media Programs and Services for Children and Young Adults
	Reference Service in the Social Sciences
	Cataloging and Classification I
	Community Information Systems
	Information Storage & Retrieval
	Interfaces to Information Systems
	Business Information
	Legal Issues in the Electronic Environment

We expect there to be a growing degree of integration among the School's three scheduling options. Although LEEP3 students have priority for enrollment in sections of courses designated as LEEP3, students in other scheduling options (Fridays Only and on-campus) can and do elect to take these sections on a space-available basis. Such students are required to take special LEEP3 technology workshops to allow them to be full participants in the course.

Faculty

LEEP3 courses are taught by GSLIS faculty and qualified adjuncts. All full-time GSLIS faculty are expected to teach in LEEP3 on a regular basis (at least one course every two years). In the initial implementation of LEEP3, faculty have been given released time to prepare their courses for delivery via LEEP3 as well as a reduced course load the first semester they teach in LEEP3. Just as geography is not a barrier to being a LEEP3 student, adjunct faculty also can teach in LEEP3 from a distance. In the first two years of the program, adjunct faculty in Madison WI, Bryn Mawr PA, Chapel Hill NC, and Columbia MO have all taught LEEP3 courses. Each LEEP3 student is assigned a faculty advisor with expertise matching the student's interests, so all faculty have an opportunity to be involved in academic and career advising of LEEP3 students.

Students

Thirty-one students began the program in summer 1996 and an additional thirty-seven began studies in summer 1997. Of this total of 68, 21 are from out-of-state, residing in Alaska (2), California (2), Connecticut (2), Georgia (1), Idaho (1), Iowa (1), Massachusetts (1), Michigan (1). Montana (1), New Hampshire (2), Oregon (3), South Dakota (1), Utah (1), Virginia (1), and the Virgin Islands (1). In-state students reside in all parts of Illinois. Many students are working in libraries and seek the degree to qualify for more responsible positions. Others are working in other settings and seek the degree either to qualify for work in libraries or to gain knowledge and skills useful in working as information professionals outside libraries. Most students are enrolling in two courses per semester, but some choose to take one or three. Students range in age from their early 20's to late 40's.

Staff

A full-time technology coordinator and 2-3 graduate assistants provide training and technical support to faculty and students. The technology coordinator works with each faculty member preparing a course to identify the technology available to support the instructor's goals for a course. Other technical support tasks include troubleshooting when students call or e-mail regarding technical problems, helping faculty put material online, setting up and monitoring synchronous sessions, and identifying and evaluating possible new technologies. The GSLIS Associate Dean provides general oversight of the program and one office staff member has primary responsibility for responding to inquiries regarding LEEP3. GSLIS staff and faculty handle review of applications and admissions. Extramural Programs staff coordinate course registration and referral to other University offices such as Financial Aid.

Technology Used

Students must have access to the necessary technology at work or at home, including hardware (either IBM-compatible or Macintosh personal computers), software, and network connectivity. Technologies currently in use support the following activities: asynchronous discussions via an electronic bulletin board (class discussions via threaded text messages; audio responses to text messages); live session interactivity (class presentations by faculty, students and guest lecturers; group web browsing; text-chatting; desktop sharing; break-out rooms for small group discussions); archive of live sessions (including all class components--audio, images, text--with events synchronized for seamless playback); collaborative document creation and editing (create, edit, and share documents online without leaving one's web browser).

Other Program Features

Students may request a mentor with whom to discuss their experiences in the GSLIS program. Mentors may be a professional in the field who shares their interests or lives nearby or a more experienced GSLIS on-campus student. Various approaches are used to make LEEP3 students feel more connected with events on campus. Lectures are recorded and made available using RealAudio through the LEEP3 web pages. Live sessions with the Dean are scheduled once a semester as a forum to discuss student experiences with the program.

Costs to Students

Students pay full tuition charges at the in-state or out-of-state rate, depending on where they reside. They register through Extramural Programs and are also charged a $30 per course registration fee. Students need to budget for books and supplies, technology upgrades, transportation for campus trips, housing during campus trips, and Internet access.

For More Information:

LEEP3 home page: http://leep.lis.uiuc.edu   [This provides links to course syllabi but other course materials arepassword-protected]

LEEP3 support page: http://leep.lis.uiuc.edu/support.html

LEEP3 general information: http://alexia.lis.uiuc.edu/gslis/leep3/index.html

LEEP3 technology requirements: http://alexia.lis.uiuc.edu/gslis/leep3/computer.html