Academic Leadership Perceptions of Online Program Quality and Course Design

Abstract

The purpose of this study was to examine college and university leaders’ background in, perceptions of, and experiences with the administration of high-quality online programs and design of online courses. The population of this study included academic leaders at higher education institutions within the state of Texas from 2-and 4-year undergraduate and graduate, public and private, for-profit and non-profit institutions that had at least one 100% online program. A quantitative research design was used through the distribution of a survey that contained two parts: part one asked questions related to the background demographics of the leader and their respective institution replicated from Fredericksen’s 2017 survey of higher education leaders with additional supplemental questions while part two was a replication of two sections of the Online Learning Consortium’s Scorecard for the Administration of Online Programs. Data were analyzed through multiple methods including descriptive, correlation, and causal comparative statistics. Findings include describing current academic leaders’ and institutions’ background demographics and the perception of online program quality held by academic leaders. Recommendations are provided to institutions looking to improve online program quality or hire an administrator for online programs. Online program quality may be improved by institutions establishing a process for the development/redesign of online courses, establishing course development standards, and requiring faculty to collaborate with instructional designers.