MTSU President Sidney A. McPhee is one of five recipients of the “Catalyst Award,” an honor from the Regents Online Campus Collaborative for efforts to make postsecondary education accessible online for all Tennesseans.

MTSU President Sidney A. McPhee, right, accepts the "Catalyst Award" from John Morgan, Tennessee Board of Regents chancellor, for his contributions to the launch of the Regents Online Campus Collaborative. (photo submitted)

In the span of a single year, McPhee and his fellow honorees set into motion major decisions on:

• a degree framework;
• course-development plan and articulation;
• a revenue-sharing model;
• a new Learning Management System;
• substantive change notification for the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools;
• credit transferability between institutions;
• financial-aid eligibility;
• a common calendar;
• critical student-support services;
• faculty development; and
• a marketing plan.

As a result, the Regents Online Degree Program successfully launched in September 2001 and has grown from 1,048 students to more than 14,500 students in 2011.

The program celebrated its 10-year anniversary at the Tennessee Board of Regents headquarters in Nashville Oct. 28.

McPhee’s fellow Catalyst Award winners included R. Jack Fishman, a former TBR member; Dr. Dan Lattimore, vice provost of the University of Memphis; Dr. Ellen Weed, retired vice president of Nashville State Community College; and Dr. Robbie Melton, associate vice chancellor for the TBR.

The ROCC also recognized other campus educators and administrators for their contributions to the collaborative during its 10-year history. The Award Winners of the Decade were:

• RODP Faculty Member of the Decade—Skip Sparkman, director of distance learning and associate professor of communication at Volunteer State Community College;
• Tennessee Technology Center Faculty Member of the Decade—Richard Woodward;
• Continuing Education Faculty Member of the Decade—Debbie Green;
• Course Developer of the Decade—Dr. George Meghabghab, professor of computer science at Roane State Community College;
• Faculty Mentor of the Decade—Dr. Andrea Sanders, professor of English and humanities at Chattanooga State Community College; and
• Campus Contact of the Decade—Doug Jameson, coordinator of online learning at NSCC.

Each winner’s institution also receives a monetary award that can be applied to educational technology, course development or professional development.

The Regents Online Campus Collaborative is an award-winning program that brings together postsecondary educational resources from the six state universities, 13 community colleges, and 27 technology centers located across the state of Tennessee. Through Regents Online, students can earn associate’s, bachelor’s and master’s degrees or diplomas and certificates from institutions in the collaborative.

A video documenting the Catalyst Award winners’ roles in the startup and launch of the Regents Online Degree Program is available below.