1. Online Schools
Melody Nolan
08/04/2015
Before beginning this project, I didn’t think much of online education. As a person who is
home-bound, I miss one-on-one human interaction, and the claim that anything less can be
an equivalent was, frankly, insulting. However, I kept an open mind, and as a result, I now
have a more positive view of online education. This change in attitude did not come from the
schools, faculty, rankings, or awards. They came from the innovative things being taught such
as breast-feeding and relations between law enforcement and civilians.
When I began this assignment, I didn’t think much of it…it seemed pretty straight-forward:
Identify the top 20 online universities and provide specific information on each. I had no idea
what I was getting into! There is enough propaganda on these schools to fill the White House,
and separating the truth from the lies, choosing and ranking the schools was tantamount to
making an honest, concerted effort to decide the most worthy candidates for the next
Presidential campaign across all party lines.
It wasn’t difficult to narrow the scope. The problem was ranking the schools. A summary of
my process and the results is below. I hope that you are satisfied with my work and that my
conclusions provide you with the information you want and need.
First, I cross-referenced the following sites to see which schools they had in common.
http://www.bestcollegereviews.org/top/online-colleges/
http://www.affordablecollegesonline.org/best-colleges-online/
http://www.thebestschools.org/rankings/best-online-colleges/
http://www.onlineu.org/top-colleges
http://www.affordablecollegesonline.org/best-colleges-online/
Next, I ranked them. Using information from the same sites, I developed a point system. Each
school was awarded one point for each of the following:
a) 50% retention rate or higher
b) Faculty credentials ranked 90% or higher
c) Student services and technology ranked 60% or higher
d) Student engagement ranked 65% or higher
e) Listed among the top 10 accredited online programs
f) Listed among the top 20 “best value” online programs

2. The results are below:
a) 7 points:
1. University of Florida
b) 5 points:
1. Walden University
2. Liberty University Online
c) 4 points:
1. Arizona State University
2. Boston University
3. New York University Online
4. George Washington University
5. Northcentral University
6. University of La Verne
d) 3 points:
1. Capella University
2. Saint Leo University Online
3. University of Illinois – Springfield
4. Washington State University
5. Western Governors University
e) 2 points:
1. Strayer University
2. DeVry University
3. Colorado Technical University – Online
4. University of Texas Online - Dallas
5. University of Virginia Online
6. Post University Online
*A note about the University of Phoenix, which also made the list with 2 points: When I researched the news, I
learned that it is being investigated by the Federal Trade Commission. Enrollment is steadily decreasing, and
several programs are losing accreditation. Therefore, I made the decision not to include it in my report.
http://www.thedailybeast.com/articles/2015/07/31/death-of-a-diploma-mill-university-of-phoenix-going-down-in-
flames.html
http://abcnews.go.com/Politics/wireStory/ftc-investigating-online-college-university-phoenix-32767120
Finally, in order to rank them within these categories, I used information from
http://colleges.startclass.com/ coupled with my own impression of the schools based on their
websites, blogs, and student comments.

3. 1. UNIVERSITY OF FLORIDA
a) Degrees offered: Undergraduate, graduate, doctorate; certificates; specialized studies/continuing
education; electives for on-campus students only
b) In the news:
1. http://www.orlandosentinel.com/features/education/os-new-uf-online-admission-20152016-story.html
a new UF program known as PACE (Pathway to Automatic Campus Enrollment,) allows 118 students to
take online courses for at least two semesters, after which they gain automatic admission.
2. Blog: Sentinel School Zone: Andrea Felder of UF's admission said she was not aware of a program
similar to PACE in the nation.
c) Contacts:
Distance Learning Programs Support:
1. Kristin Carlton: Academic Programs Administrator: (850) 644-1882
2. Amber Hernandez: Academic Program Specialist: (850) 644-4114
3. Christina Quick: Academic Program Specialist: (850) 645-0393
4. Carol Quarles: Academic Program Specialist: (850) 644-4890
5. Samuel Brewer: Academic Program Specialist: (850) 645-9922
2) WALDEN UNIVERSITY
a) Degrees offered: Undergraduate, graduate, doctorate; certificates
Additional information: over 47,800 students; regional and specialized accreditation
b) In the news:
1. GoodCall.com, 6/25/15: discussion of community relations between citizens and law enforcement.
Dr. Ben Tafoya.
c) Contacts:
1. Jonathan Kaplan, JD: President
2. Dr. Eric Riedel: Chief Academic Officer
3. Dr. Ben Tafoya: School of Public Policy and Administration; undergraduate degree Program Director
3) LIBERTY UNIVERSITY ONLINE
a) Degrees offered: High school diploma; Associate’s degree; Undergraduate, graduate, doctorate;
certificates
Additional information: over 95,000 students; Christian
b) In the news:
1. http://www.usnews.com/education/online-education/liberty-university-232557 Programs as ranked by
U.S. News and World Report
c) Contacts:
1. J. Matt Barber: Associate Dean for Online Programs, Adjunct Assistant Professor of Law
2. Deidre Akers: Faculty Support Coordinator for Online Programs

4. 4) ARIZONA STATE UNIVERSITY
a) Degrees offered: Undergraduate, graduate; certificates
Additional information: over 95,000 students; Christian
b) In the news:
1. http://www.usnews.com/education/online-education/arizona-state-university-104151 Programs as
ranked by U.S. News and World Report
c) Contacts:
1. Casey Ambrose: Dean’s office, Director of Marketing and Communications
2. Brian Frost: Continuing Education Department, Business Analyst
5) BOSTONUNIVERSITY ONLINE
a) Degrees offered: Undergraduate, graduate; certificates; individual courses; professional
courses/continuing education
b) In the news:
1. www.bu.edu/online/news.html U.S. News Ranks MET Online Programs among Best for Veterans
2. http://www.bu.edu/met/2015/05/11/metropolitan-college-wins-usdla-best-practices-award/
(USDLA) presented Boston University with the Platinum Best Practices Award for Distance Learning
Programming: Anatoly Daniel Hillman, Eric Friedman. Dr. Alison Pedley, Dr. Jacqui Milton, Tanya
Zlateva.
c) Contacts:
1. Eric Friedman: Director (617) 358-1977 efried90@bu.edu
2. Rob Haley: Assistant Director of Educational Technology and Production (617) 358-6298
3. Dan Hillman: Assistant Director of Instructional Design (617) 358-5987
6) NEW YORK UNIVERSITY ONLINE
a) Degrees offered: Undergraduate, graduate; certificates
Additional information: offers free online college courses and videos to anyone through Academic Earth.
*See article of interest II
b) In the news:
1. http://www.usnews.com/education/online-education/new-york-university-OENG0102/engineering
BU’s online engineering program ranked #8 in the nation by U.S. News and World Reports. The program
has 138 students.
c) Contacts:
1. Robert Ubell: NYU Polytechnic School of Engineering, Vice Dean, Online Learning
(646) 997-3407 robert.ubell@nyu.edu
2. Mayra Ortiz, Administrative Assistant epoly/Enterprise Learning
(646) 997-3626 mayra.ortiz@nyu.edu

5. 7) NORTHCENTRAL UNIVERSITY ONLINE
a) Degrees offered: Undergraduate, graduate; certificates
b) In the news:
1. http://www.bbb.org./phoenix/business-reviews/schools-academic-colleges-and-
universities/northcentral-university-in-prescott-vlv-az-35004413/ rated A+ by the Better Business
Bureau
2. http://www.usnews.com/education/online-education/northcentral-university-444130 Programs as
ranked by U.S. News & World Report
c) Contacts:
1. Eric Stoddard: Chief of Staff estoddard@ncu.edu
2. Dr. David Harpool: General Counsel, Chief Compliance and Human Resource Officer
dharpool@ncu.edu
8) GEORGE WASHINGTON UNIVERSITY ONLINE
a) Degrees offered: Undergraduate, graduate, doctorate
b) In the news:
1. http://www.gwhatchet.com/2015/05/18/archaeology-professor-designs-first-online- companion-
course-for-field-work-in-kenya/ David Braun, Paul Schiff Berman
2. http://military.gwu.edu/ Discusses “Operation GW Valor,” a program striving to meet the needs of
military members, veterans and their families.
c) Contacts:
1. Nelson Carbonell Jr: Chair of the Board of Trustees
2. Steven Knapp: President
3. Paul Schiff Berman: Vice Provost for Online Learning and Academic Innovation
9) UNIVERSITY OF LA VERNE ONLINE (aka virtual campus)
a) Degrees offered: undergraduate, graduate
Additional information: 295 undergraduate students
b) In the news:
1. http://www.usnews.com/education/online-education/university-of-la-verne-1216/bachelors U.S.
News and World Report tied its Bachelor Degree Programs in 18th place.
c) Contacts:
1. Stephen Lesniak: Director of Admissions (909) 448-4995 slesniak@laverne.edu
2. Jesse Martinez: Associate Director of Admissions (909) 448-4961 jmartinez@laverne.edu

6. 10) CAPELLAUNIVERSITY
a) Degrees offered: Undergraduate, graduate, doctorate; certificates; free sample classes
b) In the news:
1. http://www.huffingtonpost.com/timothy-weiderhoft/your-work-experience-can-help-you-complete-a-degree-
3-tips-from-an-adult-learner_b_7890906.html
2. http://www.startribune.com/capella-s-barbara-butts-williams-talks-about-workforce-education-twin-cities-
changes/318478541/ Barbara Butts-Williams
3. http://www.capella.edu/blogs/cublog/10-questions-with-capella-social-media-specialist-ryan-pena/
Ryan Pena
c) Contacts:
1. Barbara Butts-Williams: Executive Dean
2. Ryan Pena: Social Media Specialist
11) WESTERN GOVERNORS UNIVERSITY
a) Degrees offered: Undergraduate, graduate, teaching credential
Additional information: Due to its “Responsible Borrowing Initiative,” WG Online has not raised tuition since
2008
b) In the news:
1. http://www.theatlantic.com/business/archive/2015/07/a-college-without-classes/400115/
c) Contacts:
1. Joan Mitchell: Vice President of Public Relations (801) 428-5463 jmitchell@wgu.edu
2. Mitsu Phillips: Associate Provost of Mentoring
12) ST. LEO UNIVERSITY ONLINE
a) Degrees offered: Undergraduate, graduate, doctorate; post-Master’s level certificates only
Additional information: Catholic; ranked among the nation's most military-friendly institutions by G.I. Jobs
and Military Advanced Education magazines.
b) In the news:
1. http://www.usnews.com/education/online-education/saint-leo-university-137032 Ranking of programs as
determined by U.S. News and World Report
2. http://www.theatlantic.com/business/archive/2015/07/a-college-without-classes/400115/
d) Contacts:
Distance Learning Department:
1. John Cain: Assistant Vice President (352) 588-7458 john.cain@stleo.edu
2. Randi Kinney Senior Program Coordinator (352) 588-7335 randi.kinney@stleo.edu
3. Beth Hyde-Hood Instructional Analyst (352) 588-7347 beth.hyde-hood@stleo.edu

7. 13) UNIVERISTY OF ILLINOIS – SPRINGFIELD
a) Degrees offered: Undergraduate, graduate; certificates; certifications
b) In the news:
1. http://www.usnews.com/education/online-education/university-of-illinois-springfield-148654/
Rankings according to U.S. News and World Report: Online Bachelor’s programs tied for 20th; online
graduate business programs (excluding MBA) tied for 17th. Candace Meserole, Dr. Laurel Newman
c) Contacts:
1. Candace Meserole: Academic Advisor and Online Coordinator cmese2@uis.edu
2. Dr. Laurel Newman, Director of Online Programs in the College of Business and Management
14) WASHINGTON STATE ONLINE (aka GlobalCampus)
a) Degrees offered: Undergraduate, graduate, certificates, individual classes
b) In the news:
1. http://www.usnews.com/education/online-education/washington-state-university-236939 Rankings
according to U.S. News and World Report: MBA ranked 7th; 212 enrolled in this program.
c) Contacts:
1. Ryan Risenmay: Clinical Assistant Professor of Digital Media and Communications
2. Sasi Pillay: Vice President of Information and Technology; Chief Information Officer
3. Richard Miller: Program Reporter
15) STRAYER UNIVERSITY
a) Degrees offered: Associate’s degree; undergraduate, graduate
Additional information: New R.N. to B.S.N. program
b) In the news:
1. http://topics.nytimes.com/top/news/business/companies/strayer-education-inc/index.html
discusses the MBA program as taught through the Jack Welch Management Institute.
Jack Welch.
c) Contacts:
1. Dean Sippel: Chief Executive Officer, Jack Welch Management Institute
2. Jack Welch: Executive Chairman, Jack Welch Management Institute
3. Dr. Andrea Backman: Dean, Jack Welch Management Institute
4. Dr. Michael Zeliff: Dean of Faculty, Jack Welch Management Institute
5. Dr. Daniel Szpiro: Dean of Executive Education, Jack Welch Management Institute

8. 16) DeVry UNIVERSITY ONLINE
a) Degrees offered: Associate’s degree; undergraduate, graduate, certificates
Additional information: New R.N. to B.S.N. program; Regional accreditation
b) In the news:
1. http://www.usnews.com/education/online-education/bachelors/ programs as ranked by U.S. and
World News Report
2. https://www.insidehighered.com/quicktakes/2015/04/24/changes-devry-university/ Changes for
DeVry University: 14 campuses closing and converting to online-only programs. Daniel Hamburger
3. The Journal Sentinel, 4/23/15. Wisconsin’s only campus will close; 247 students must complete
degrees online. Melanie Wright.
c) Contacts:
1. Daniel Hamburger: DeVry Education Group, President and CEO
2. Joan Bates: Director of Investor Relations
17) COLORADO TECHNICAL UNIVERSITY - ONLINE
a) Degrees offered: Associate’s degree; undergraduate, graduate, doctorate; “Doctoral Advantage”
program which allows courses to be counted towards both Master’s and Ph.D.
Additional information: 20,826 students; 18,061 undergraduate students
b) In the news:
1. http://www.usnews.com/education/online-education/colorado-technical-university-
OCIT0346/computer-information-technology/ Program ranked by U.S. and World News Report. Tied in
18th place for the best online information technology program. There are 466 students enrolled. Keith
Armstrong
c) Contacts:
1. Andrew Hurst: President
2. Keith Armstrong: Graduate Programs, Director of Admissions (855) 230-5555
18) UNIVERSITY OF VIRGINIA ONLINE
a) Degrees offered: Undergraduate, graduate; certificates
b) In the news:
1. http://www.vdh.virginia.gov/ofhs/dcn/vdhbreastfeeding/consortium.htm/ The Virginia Department of
Health works with the University of Virginia’s online program to provide a Breastfeeding Training Course
and a Maintenance of Breastfeeding Certification Program free of charge. *see article of interest III
c) Contacts:
School of Professional and Continuing Studies:
Faculty:
1. Steven Levine
2. Celeste Murphy Greene
3. Ana Abad-Jorge
4. Laura Frey-Horn

9. 19) POST UNIVERSITY ONLINE
a) Degrees offered: undergraduate, graduate; certificates
Additional information: Total undergraduate enrollment is 10,684
b) In the news:
1. http://www.usnews.com/education/online-education/post-university-130183 Program rankings as
determined by the U.S. and World News Report
c) Contacts:
1. Veronica Montalvo: Director of undergraduate admissions (203) 596-6164
2. Dr. Scott Eckert: Online undergraduate associate faculty member
20) SUNY SCHOOL OF TECHNOLOGY ONLINE – DELHI
(SUNY stands for State University of New York and consists of 64 campuses)
a) Degrees offered: Undergraduate, graduate, R.N. to Bachelor’s in Nursing; continuing education
b) In the news:
1. Blog of The State University of New York: 7Campuses RankedAmong Best Online Education Programs; this
was by U.S. News and WorldReport for 2014 and included SUNY Delhi as the best online bachelor’s degree
program in the United States. *see article of interest I
c) Contacts:
1. Robert Piurowski: Undergraduate Programs; Director of Admissions (607) 746-4550
2. Misty Fields: Online MS Nursing Education (607) 746-4519 gradstudies@delhi.edu

10. ARTICLE OF INTEREST I:
Blog of the State University of New York
GENERAL
Seven Campuses Ranked Among BestOnline EducationPrograms by U.S. News
by Maxwell Morgan
Seven SUNY campuses have been ranked among the nation’s best online degree programs
by U.S. News and World Report for 2014, including SUNY Delhi ranked the best online
bachelor’s degree program in the United States. The strong rankings come ahead of the
rollout of Open SUNY, the 64-campus-wide online education center that represents more
students than any other online learning network.
U.S. News & World Report Best Online Education Program Rankings
2014 Best Online Bachelor’s Programs
1. SUNY Delhi
179. SUNY Canton
2014 Best Online Graduate Business Programs
14. SUNY Oswego
99. Stony Brook University
139. SUNYIT
2014 Best Online Graduate Education Programs
22. Stony Brook University
25. University at Buffalo
136. SUNY Oneonta
2014 Best Online Graduate Nursing Programs
16. Stony Brook University
These awesome results are an exciting way to begin 2014 and follow very strong 2013
rankings.

11. ARTICLE OF INTEREST II.
ABOUT ACADEMIC EARTH
Stephanie Snider, Editor-In-Chief
In addition to our comprehensive collection of free online college courses, Academic Earth
features an ongoing series of original videos.
In 2008, Richard Ludlow, Chris Bruner, and Liam Pisano, founded Academic Earth with the
mission of giving everyone on earth access to a world-class education. Backed by an angel
investor group, including four Yale professors, Honest Tea founder Barry Nalebuff, and
Pulitzer Prize winner Daniel Yergin, Academic Earth stood instrumental in the online learning
revolution.
Recognizing the critical role of the Internet in supporting their mission, the founders set out to
develop an interactive web-based platform for users to actively engage with free online
education resources from the world’s top universities. The site continues to evolve in
response to rapidly changing educational technology.
http://engineering.nyu.edu/academics/online/about/staff
Members of the media may direct inquiries to Academic Earth’s site manager, Stephanie
Snider, email us at contact@academicearth.org, or call us at (281) 846-3073

12. ARTICLE OF INTEREST III:
http://www.vdh.virginia.gov/ofhs/dcn/vdhbreastfeeding/consortium.htm/
The Virginia Department of Health partnered with the University of Virginia's Office of Continuing
Medical Education, Scitent, HIT Global, and Telligen to create a range of products to meet your learning
goals.
The Breastfeeding Training Course offers evidence-based content for physicians, nurses, dietitians, and
other healthcare professionals who want comprehensive training in breastfeeding and lactation
management. Topics range from breastfeeding initiation and maintenance to assistance in the
implementation of the 10 Steps to Successful Breastfeeding. There are up to 20 credits of online,
certified continuing education of physicians, nurses, dietitians, and other healthcare professionals.
Breastfeeding-Friendly Performance Improvement is an innovative Maintenance of Certification (MOC)
approved performance improvement activity constructed around evidence-based standards for the
promotion and support of successful breastfeeding. Physicians completing this activity reported that it
made a significant difference in their practice. This activity has been approved by the American Board
of Pediatrics for 10 Part 2 and 25 Part 4 Maintenance of Certification points and by the University of
Virginia's Office of Continuing Medical Education for a maximum of 20 PI CME AMA PRA Category 1
credits™.
The Patient Registry enables providers to identify gaps in evidence-based standards of care at the
individual patient or aggregate practice level. The registry provides clinical performance measurement
and performance improvement (population management). This was designed specifically with
healthcare organizations in mind.