Going the Distance With John F. Ebersole
Excelsior College’s president discusses the untapped potential of distance learning
John F. Ebersole
Title: President, Excelsior College, Albany, N.Y.
Previous Title: Associate Provost and Dean,
Extended Education, Boston University
Education: Bachelor’s, U.S. Naval War College,
MBA and Master of Public Administration,
John F. Kennedy University
That we live in a brave new world of higher education technologies is an understatement. As the demographics of the postsecondary market continue to change, the essential issue is whether traditional colleges and universities are prepared to keep pace. Online education has been considered ahead of the curve in recognizing, adapting to and accommodating the oncoming technological, demographic and economic trends. Yet it is still not as widely used or accepted in higher education teaching and leadership circles as one might expect. In January, John F. Ebersole was named the second president of Excelsior College, a world leader in distance education. Ebersole recently sat down with Diverse editor in chief Frank L. Matthews to discuss the challenges and opportunities to be found in the constantly evolving environment of distance education and learning.
DI: Do you see the digital divide as being a barrier to distance learning colleges, particularly in accessing poor and minority communities?
JE: I think that the so-called digital divide is a reflection of the economic divide. I think that if young people have access to the technology, to the Internet particularly, whether they’re in inner-city communities or rural communities or urban communities or suburban communities, they master it very quickly. So it’s the economics of being able to afford the equipment, being able to afford the software, being able to afford the Internet connectivity.
