Official: ‘Lifetime students’ increasing
By Eric Snyder
Staff Reporter
The University of Nebraska-Lin
coln is no exception to the national
trend of rising interest in continuing
studies programs, an official said, due
to the increasing need for “lifetime”
students.
Robert Simerly, dean of the Divi
sion of Continuing Studies, said he is
optimistic about the long-term suc
cess of UNL’s program because he
thinks advances in knowledge and
technology will translate into busi
ness for the division.
“The half-life of knowledge is now
five years,” he said. And to remain
successful, “people need to start to
think of themselves as lifetime stu
dents.”
At universities nationwide, inter
est in continuing studies is heighten
ing, causing some concern that the
programs are being used to make
money for strapped institutions, ac
cording to an article in The Chronicle
of Higher Education.
Although continuing studies pro
gramming at UNL hasn’t proved to
be as profitable as on other campuses,
-«
People need to start to think of themselves as
lifetime students.
Simerly,
Continuing Studies dean
the division has managed lo become
largely self-supporting, Simcrly said.
He described enrollment as
“steady,” with the division serving
roughly 75,000 people annually.
UNL’s Division of Continuing Stud
ies serves people in all 93 counties of
Nebraska, all 50 states and more than
125 countries.
Simcrly said the Division of Con
tinuing Studies helps businesses within
the state. UNL’s ability to develop
professionals through workshops and
courses has made the Division of
Continuing Studies “a very important
part of the economic development of
the state,” he said.
Corporations in the United States
spend roughly $60 billion on the train
ing and development of their employ
ees, Simcrly said. Knowledge and
technology arc changing so rapidly in
the business world, he said, that
employees need “constant updating.”
The Division of Continuing Stud
ies operates employee training pro
grams to update businesspeople within
the stale. These courses arc largely
non-credit workshops that teach
managerial skills. Many of the offer
ings arc transmitted via satellite to
the work sites so employees do not
have to leave their place of work to
take part.
Examples of corporations that util
ize UNL’s offerings arc the Omaha
Public Power District, American
Telephone and Telegraph in Omaha,
and 3M in Valley, Neb.
Marvin Van Kckcrix, director of
academic telecommunications and
professional development for the
division, said courses offered via sat
ellite currently arc only available within
the state of Nebraska. Out-of-state
satellite transmission may be a possi
bility in the future, he said.
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