Campus-to-Campus Collaborations (CTCC): A Study in using Web-Based Computer Mediated Communications for Administration and Research Collaborations

Larry Tague

Abstract: In the fields of biomedical research, peer collaboration, information generation, and information management are of primary importance.  How we work together and generate and manage information can often spell the difference between success and failure.  Learning to use computer mediated communication (CMC) tools that are available on your campus or other campuses can be a real challenge, but the rewards for our research can be great.  With the development of non-linear information delivery systems ~1991-1993, MECCA (Memphis Educational Computer Connectivity Alliance) recognized the potential of this venue for designing virtual learning environments.  MECCA, with NSF funding for "Networking Infrastructure for Education" (1994-2001), used UNIX gopher and web servers to deliver educational facilitation to the UTHSC K-12 summer enrichment program Young Memphis Scholars (YMS 1994-1998), undergraduate Physiology taught to LeMoyne-Owen College students by UTHSC Physiology faculty, and MECCA Young Scholars (MYS 2000-2001).  These e-learning implementations were partly facilitations to traditional classroom environments.  Currently at UTHSC, we are using integrated e-learning CMC/WCT (web course tools) tools from BlackBoard.com to achieve online educational delivery. MECCA has now utilized available CMC/WCT tools and its UNIX servers to create campus-to-campus collaborations to export "best practices" of the YMS programs via the MYS Program (2000-2001) to Wake Forest University (WFU) and Wake Forest University Health Science Center (WFHSC).  Program administration was conducted primarily using CourseInfo (BlackBoard.com), and online academic offerings for MYS students were created using CourseInfo.  The success of this program clearly demonstrated the efficacy of using CMC/WCT for campus-to-campus collaborations as well as for creating cooperative e-learning environments.  We have recently been funded by SET  (Sharing Educational Technology) to provide an e-learning module for teaching the use of CMC/WCT to create virtual environments for campus-to-campus collaborations.  SET is a part of the statewide ETC (Educational Technology Collaborative).  This e-learning module will provide instruction for using CMC/WCT for campus-to-campus collaborations, and provide basic directions for establishing your own CMC/WCT server if you have the necessary hardware and software.  We will also provide collaborative portals for those who would like to establish a site for campus-to-campus collaboration but do not have their own hardware and software for this purpose.  These portals are created using CourseInfo and Apache WebDAV (DAV stands for Document Authoring and Versioning).  This collaborative portal configuration is being tested for the multi-campus development of an NIH SEPA (Science Education Partnership Awards) proposal.  From a laboratory research prospective, common equipment sharing and data management for a Packard Fusion Universal Microplate Reader at UTHSC is being managed via a web server database system and WebDAV.  Locking and versioning via WebDAV help protect experimental data and create an easy to use ftp/web-like interface for data access and management.  These studies demonstrate that the creative implementation of networked computer resources can add new dimensions to sharing and collaborating in biomedical research.