CarmenConnect!

What do the following events have in common?

• lectures for Animal Sciences 2376,
• class sessions for Statistics 1450 and Statistics 2450
• online tutoring for Math 1114
• office hours for a Math professor
• a seminar with people from across the US about getting a beehive ready for the winter
• a presentation and discussion of menu ideas for people with diabetes
• a Human Resources Benefits Open Enrollment info session,
• computer skills training sessions for faculty and staff

Yes, they all do have something to do with learning.  In addition, though, they are recent events that took place within Ohio State’s Adobe Connect system, under a pilot project that has been running since 2010.

By the start of Spring semester 2013, Learning Technology will offer Adobe Connect as the supported webinar service for Ohio State faculty,  staff, and students. For more information, see the Connect information site at http://ocio.osu.edu/elearning/services/connect/.

The new service, to be called CarmenConnect, can be used for:

• academic courses (regular lectures & discussions, group work, guest presentations, etc.);
• academic support services like advising and tutorials;
• community presentations and other outreach activities; and
• meetings, staff training, and other university business.

In fact, faculty and staff have been using Connect for all of these purposes over the past 2 years, as we have developed a strong base of user-experience and explored different licensing and support models.

Over the pilot period,

• over 400 faculty and staff members have requested Connect accounts and hosted their own online class sessions or meetings
• faculty and staff have created 934  distinct meeting rooms
• at one time, there were 196 people interacting in various meeting rooms in Connect
• as I typed up this report on a Friday afternoon in October, there were 27 people logged in to Connect.

Have you used Connect?  What did you do?  If you haven’t yet, what can you imagine?