Louisville, KY -- Bellarmine College has received a $48,450 Ameritech Distance Collaboration grant from the Foundation for Independent Higher Education (FIHE).
The grant will fund a project designed to use technology to support an integrated curriculum in chemistry. Its goal is to reform the first- and second-year chemistry curriculum at Bellarmine, the project’s lead institution; Huntington College in Indiana; and Illinois Wesleyan University and Illinois College in Illinois. The colleges will establish a web site through which students learn collaboratively and cooperatively via "chat rooms", virtual reality laboratories and homework exercises and use auxiliary text materials on-line. The web-site design also will enable on-line sharing of chemistry equipment located at Illinois Wesleyan, creating cost savings for all participating institutions.
The grant, which is funded by Ameritech, is one of five collaboration grants totaling more than $248,000 awarded to 17 of FIHE’s member colleges and universities. The grants are designed to encourage use of communication technologies in ways that stimulate collaboration and innovation among FIHE-member colleges. FIHE is awarding the Ameritech grants as part of its Partnership for Private Colleges campaign, a four-year initiative to raise $16 million to develop innovative, collaborative and technology programs that create efficiencies in higher education. Bellarmine is a member of the Kentucky Independent College Fund, the local affiliate of FIHE.
"We are extremely pleased to receive Ameritech’s support for this innovative venture," said Dr. Joseph J. McGowan, Jr., president of Bellarmine College. "The development and application of new technology will create unique improvements in how students learn, the productivity and collaborative nature of that learning, and the efficiency through which this can be done by sharing scarce institutional resources."
"Productive, long-term collaborative efforts like these will help private colleges continue to thrive," said Ron Blake, president of Ameritech Enhanced Business Services and a FIHE board member. "We commend Bellarmine and its partner colleges for their enthusiasm, teamwork, and commitment to the work that’s being funded. This project is a wonderful example of how colleges can work together and use technology to solve tough problems."
Ameritech (NYSE: AIT) serves millions of customers in 50 states and 40 countries by providing a full range of communications services. Ameritech has a strong tradition of giving back to the communities it serves and last year contributed more than $25 million to 2,000 nonprofit organizations.
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