Center for Distance Learning
1020 East Wendover Avenue
Suite 202
Greensboro NC 27411

E-mail: distance@ncat.edu
Toll Free: (888) 498-6752
Phone: (336) 256-0355
Fax: (336) 256-0357

Faculty FAQs

Online Course Development and Enhancement

Distance Learning Course Delivery

Online Course Development and Enhancement

Q: Who is eligible to develop or enhance online courses? Return to top of page

A: All faculty and departmental chairpersons, with departmental approval, are eligible to develop online courses.

Q: How can I develop or enhance an online course? Return to top of page

A: A request must be made to CDL for online course development or enhancement by the dean or chairperson. 

Awards are made based upon the following criteria

Q: Are faculty paid by CDL to develop or enhance online courses?Return to top of page

A: All faculty and departmental chairpersons who have departmental approval and applications that have been approved by CDL are compensated for online course development and significant online course revision. An online course development or enhancement contract shall be signed by the faculty, chair, dean, and the associate director for the Center for Distance Learning.

Q: What are the compensation rates for online course development or enhancement? Return to top of page

A: Fulltime faculty, including departmental chairpersons, are compensated at the rate of $4,500 per 3 semester credit hour course for the development of online courses. An online course development contract shall be signed by the faculty, chair, dean, and the associate director for the Center for Distance Learning.

Adjunct faculty are compensated at the rate of $4,000 per 3 semester credit hour course for the development of online courses. An online course development contract shall be signed by the faculty, chair, dean, and the associate director for the Center for Distance Learning.

Faculty and departmental chairpersons who have departmental approval are compensated at the rate of $1,500 for significant online course revision. An online course enhancement contract shall be signed by the faculty, chair, dean, and the associate director for the Center for Distance Learning.

Q: How do I get an online course development shell or access to an online enhancement shell?Return to top of page

A: After approval has been given by the department, online course development shells can be requested from CDL.

Q: What support services are available to faculty developers or enhancers?Return to top of page

A:   CDL will provide the following:

Q: After completion, how are online courses reviewed? Return to top of page

A: The development and enhancement activities are divided into three faculty cohorts: fall, spring, and summer.  Course developers/enhancers must present the completed online course to a review committee, which includes members of CDL, the department chair, dean and other veteran developers to ensure that courses are prepared to meet quality standards.

Distance Learning Course Delivery

Q: How are faculty hired to teach distance learning courses?Return to top of page

A: It is the responsibility of the department to hire faculty and process all employment packets.

Q: Does CDL pay faculty to teach distance learning courses?Return to top of page

A: CDL does not provide financial support for the delivery of all distance learning courses for the following reasons:

Q: What are the delivery rates for teaching a distance learning course?Return to top of page

A: Distance Learning Course Delivery Rate for Fulltime Faculty: Fulltime faculty, excluding departmental chairpersons, shall be compensated for instruction at a rate of $4000 per 3 semester credit hour course, assuming the course is an overload for the faculty member and minimal enrollment is met. An instructional delivery contract shall be signed by the faculty, chair, dean, and the associate director for the Center for Distance Learning. Departmental chairpersons shall receive no additional compensation for online course delivery.

Distance Learning Course Delivery Rate for Adjunct Faculty: Adjunct faculty shall be compensated at the rate of $3,000 per 3 semester credit hour course, assuming minimal enrollment is met. An instructional delivery contract shall be signed by the faculty, chair, dean, and the associate director for the Center for Distance Learning.

Q: What is the payroll process for distance learning courses?Return to top of page

A: When CDL provides notification of financial support for distance learning course delivery,

Q: How are distance learning courses offered? Who enters the course information in SIS?Return to top of page

A: Distance Learning Proposed Course Offering Forms must be submitted to CDL for all courses that will be offered through distance learning delivery mode (Online, Interactive Television (ITV), or face-to-face through extension programs).

All courses must be previously developed for online course delivery before submitting to be offered online.

The Center for Distance Learning must be contacted prior to placing any distance learning course in the Banner System.

Q: What are the minimum and maximum course enrollments?Return to top of page

A: Minimal enrollment for undergraduate courses other than support courses offered to students in all degree completion programs shall be 12 and 10 for graduate courses.

The maximum course enrollment for distance learning courses is 25 students, unless the department chairperson or dean elects to increase the enrollment. A written communication (letter, email, or fax) must be sent to CDL.

Q: Who approves increases in maximum enrollment?Return to top of page

A: The department chairperson or dean can elect to increase the enrollment. A written communication (letter, email, or fax) must be sent to CDL.

When an increase in the maximum course enrollment is made, chairpersons must inform faculty as soon as possible.

Q: How do I transfer course information in Blackboard?Return to top of page

A: In order to have information placed in an online course delivery shell on Blackboard, the chairperson or faculty member must make this request in writing to the eLearning Systems personnel, (Bessie Nkonge – 256-1258, bessien@ncat.edu. The following information is needed:

Q: How do I archive course materials?Return to top of page

A: Click Export Course from the Course Utilities page. The Export Course page will appear.

Enter the Course ID of the course to be exported. Click Course List to browse a listing of courses for an ID.

Click the check box next to each area to be exported to the .ZIP file.  Any areas not checked will not be archived

Q: How do I have an archived course uploaded to Blackboard?Return to top of page

A: In order to have archived course information placed in an online course delivery shell on Blackboard, the chairperson or faculty member must make this request in writing to the eLearning Systems personnel, (Bessie Nkonge – 256-1258, bessien@ncat.edu). The following information will be needed:

Q: How do students register for distance learning courses?Return to top of page

A: Students may register for online courses by using either of the following methods:

Method 1
Option A Students can enter their courses using Aggie Access Online with the call number(s) for the course(s).
Option B Departments may enter course information on SIS.

Students who enroll themselves or in their departments are responsible for obtaining online course access information from the schedule booklet or on the CDL website, http://www.ncat.edu/cdl.


Method 2: The courses will be entered by CDL if the student completes a Student Agreement Form  and the form is: 
Option A Faxed to our Office
(336) 256-0357
Option B Brought to our Office
Center for Distance Learning
1020 E Wendover Avenue Suite 202
Greensboro NC 27411

Students who are enrolled in courses by CDL will receive a confirmation email which contains online course access information.

Online course access information can also be found in the schedule booklet or on the CDL website.

Q: Can on-campus students enroll in distance learning courses?Return to top of page

A: Yes, students can enroll in both distance learning and on-campus courses during the course of a semester.

Effective Fall 2007, all Distance Learning (DL) sections will be charged by the hourly rate.  This means there is no limit to the tuition and fees a student will pay for DL or DL plus on-campus sections.  For all on-campus sections, there are no extra tuition or fees for taking more than 12 hours (Undergraduate; 9 or more for Graduate).  This is NOT true for schedules containing DL sections.  ALL DL sections will be charged to the student; therefore, any student taking 12 or more hours of on-campus sections (Undergraduate; 9 or more for Graduate) will pay full tuition and fees for the on-campus sections and will pay for each DL section.

This policy is in compliance with the tuition and fees policy set forth in the UNC Policy manual. 

Q: What is the tuition for distance learning courses?Return to top of page

A: Please consult our rate table by clicking DL Tuition and Fees.

All distance learners pay a fee of $5 for a Student ID card. The rights pertaining to the card are limited to use of library services, identification as a student in establishments other than NCA&TSU, identification as a bona fide NCA&TSU student on campus.

All distance learners pay a technology fee of $10 per semester credit hour for graduate students and $8 per semester credit hour for undergraduate students.

Q: Is there an attendance policy for distance learning students?Return to top of page

A: Regular class attendance is expected of all students. If assignments are missed, the decision as to whether the work may be made up will be determined by the professor and student.

Q: Some students enrolled in my distance learning course have never attended, logged on, or submitted assignments. Can I drop these students?Return to top of page

A: No. It is the student's responsibility to be aware of his/her schedule. You may try to contact the student to get him/her to from your class. If you are not successful in reaching the student and the student has not withdrawn from the course by the end of the last drop period, you must give the student a failing grade.

Q: How do students withdraw from distance learning courses?Return to top of page

A: A student who wishes or is asked to leave the University prior to the deadline during the semester shall complete and file official withdrawal forms. These forms may be obtained from the University Counseling and Testing Center located in Murphy Hall, room 108 (Withdrawal from the University) or the Office of the Registrar, 1st floor Dowdy Building (Dropping a course). They should be completed and submitted to the Office of the Registrar.

Note: Effective, February 14, 2007, Distance Learning students who are not in proximity of the University, may send a communication to the Center for Distance Learning at distance@ncat.edu or (336) 256-0357 (Fax), requesting to drop your distance learning course (s) or to be withdrawn from the University. Please include:

  1. your Full Name,
  2. Banner ID Number,
  3. distance learning course(s),
  4. daytime contact information,
  5. last day of attendance,
  6. and the reason for the withdrawal.

We will complete your form, secure all required signatures, and submit to the Registrar's Office. Students who are on-campus or within proximity of the University, should follow the same procedure for dropping and withdrawing on-campus courses. 

Students with Financial Aid:

For students with financial aid, please contact your financial aid counselor at 336-334-7973 to see how this drop will affect your aid for upcoming semesters.  To see who your financial aid counselor is, please click on this link: www.ncat.edu/%7efinaid   and scroll to the bottom. 

Students who withdraw from the University within 15 calendar days of the beginning of the final examination period for the semester shall receive a 'W' in all classes enrolled. Failure to execute and file these forms will result in a student incurring the penalty of receiving an 'F' for each course in which he or she was enrolled during the semester in question.

Q: What is the deployment procedure for military students?Return to top of page

A: As soon as you know that you will be deployed, please immediately fax a copy of your orders to Mrs. Eve Andree at (336) 334-7567 and email the following:

If you have not received acknowledgement within a week, please notify Mrs. Andree as soon as possible at evea@ncat.edu or (336) 334-7567.

Q: I emailed my student(s) and the email returned with an error message of “unknown user.” Why is this?Return to top of page

A: The email account needs to be activated. After requesting and receiving an NC A&T email account, students must send out a test email message and receive a response to activate the email account.

Students must use the email address assigned by N.C. A&T State University in order to access Blackboard for online courses.

Q: I emailed my student(s) and the email returned with an error message of “rejected for policy reasons.” Why is this?Return to top of page

A: Here are the circumstances for which an e-mail may be rejected by the e-mail server for policy reasons:

Q: What about textbooks for distance learning courses?Return to top of page

A: It is the responsibility of the department to provide the Bookstore with proper textbook information for all distance learning courses.

Q: Are course evaluations conducted for distance learning courses?Return to top of page

A: The Center for Distance Learning conducts student opinion surveys for all distance learning courses at the end of each term. Reports are disseminated to deans, chairpersons, and faculty.

Q: What support services are available for faculty teaching distance learning courses and for distance learning students?Return to top of page

A: CDL will provide the following for faculty:

CDL will provide the following for students:

NOTE: Students must get their pin #s from their academic advisor or department chair.

eLearning Systems and the Help Desk will provide the
following for students and faculty:

Other Student Support Services for Distance Learning Students

 



Copyright © 2006 Center for Distance Learning, NC A&T State University. All rights reserved.