WCE and University of the People Partner to Provide Worldwide Digital Schooling
World Computer Exchange has partnered with University of the People (UoPeople), the world's first tuition-free online university, to expand UoPeople's reach in developing nations and strengthening their shared missions of democratized access to education. WCE is now beginning outreach to our Partners and contacts in the following six countries: Bangladesh, Dominican Republic, Haiti, Liberia, Palestine and Zimbabwe.
Tapping WCE’s global network of partner organizations with their more than 2,675 computer labs, the collaboration will offer more prospective and current UoPeople students increased access to computers with Internet connections for their studies. This will enable qualified individuals without computers to reap the educational benefits of UoPeople. Additionally, WCE will help promote UoPeople through its marketing channels, enabling the institution to target prospective students in new regions.
“Our goal is simple: provide higher education to anyone with the drive to learn by creating access to computers with Internet connections,” said Shai Reshef, Founder and President, UoPeople. “While demand for UoPeople has been great, we have discovered that many qualified applicants are unable to join us because they don’t have access to a computer. By partnering with the World Computer Exchange, we will continue to grow our student body, reaching both individuals who have the technological resources to study with us and those who lack them.”
Focused on connecting more youth to the skills, understanding and opportunities of the Internet, WCE works closely with partners in over 71 developing nations, deploying refurbished computer, providing on-line capacity building, and dispatching teams of tech and educational training professionals.
With a closely aligned mission, UoPeople is committed to maximizing the accessibility to a high-quality, university level education through tuition-free online learning. Leveraging the free exchange of information via the Internet and social networking, UoPeople applies these concepts to academia, creating a global platform for higher education. Since its launch in 2009, UoPeople has enrolled over 500 students from almost 100 countries around the world—a testament to the need for such a venture. The University aims to enroll 15,000 students in its first five years of operation.
“We strive to make the best use of the Internet and what better use is there than giving people access to education,” said Timothy Anderson, President, WCE. “University of the People is a model for change, truly utilizing the power of the Internet for all of our core values. We are pleased to be partnering with them to provide the necessary digital tools for studying which are in such short supply in many developing nations.
” For more about University of the People go to www.UoPeople.org
You can read the Memorandum of Understanding here.
Read more about WCE's role in this alliance in the following press clips from July and August 2010:
http://chronicle.com/blogPost/Online-University-Aims-to/25728
http://www.tmcnet.com/usubmit/2010/07/21/4912954.htm
http://www.ecampusnews.com/top-news/free-online-university-boosting-students-computer-access/
