Florida Tech University Online Answers the Demand for an Associate's Degree in Criminal Justice

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Enrollment has begun for first eight week term; online Criminal Justice degree classes start on May 4th

TAMPA, Fla., April 30, 2009 -- Despite today's uncertain economic climate, the Bureau of Labor Statistics predicts that jobs in criminal justice will grow between 11% and 16% by 2016. Many job seekers are flocking to this career field, but research shows employers are increasingly seeking candidates with a formal education beyond high school. To fulfill the market demand, Florida Tech University Online (Florida Institute of Technology) is pleased to announce the launch of the new Associate's degree in Criminal Justice program.

"This online Associate's degree in Criminal Justice will provide students with the opportunity to attain a credential in the criminal justice discipline in a shorter period of time while on their way to earning an online bachelor's degree," said Adrian Marrullier, executive vice president and chief marketing officer of University Alliance Online, which provides enrollment services to Florida Tech University Online. "It will also allow entry-level job-seekers to explore various positions in this growing career field as well as enhance the knowledge and skills of others already working in the criminal justice field."

Based on a national curriculum model, Florida Tech's 100% online, in-depth Associate's degree in Criminal Justice program can be completed in less than 20 months. It includes a broad-based liberal arts education along with career-specific criminal justice courses, such as Introduction to Criminal Justice, Introduction to Law and the Legal System, Research Methods in Criminal Justice and much more.

Florida Tech University Online has developed this AA in Criminal Justice degree program for adult learners who are looking to attain a world-class degree -- 100% online. This program also takes into account students with little to no criminal justice work experience who are looking to gain a competitive edge in a variety of industry related positions. The areas of employment that an Associate's degree in Criminal Justice can lead to are:

• Social Services (Corrections, Counseling, Juvenile Justice, Casework, and Victim Advocacy)
• Judiciary and Law (Court Reporting, Legal Assistance, Legal Research, and Administration)
• Law Enforcement (Patrolling, Investigating, Probation and Parole, and Security
• Business (Private Security, Consulting, Private Investigation, Loss and Prevention)

For more information or to enroll at Florida Tech University online, go to

http://www.floridatechonline.com/. About Florida Tech
Part of a unique family of the nation's top forward-thinking universities like MIT, Georgia Tech, Caltech and others -- Florida Tech is world renowned for its distinguished faculty, comprehensive curriculum and unyielding innovation. Florida Tech continues to be ranked a best national university by U.S. News & World Report. It's rated by the Fiske Guide to Colleges and named a best buy in Barron's Best Buys in College Education. Among its more than 50,000 alumni include several astronauts, many CEOs of major corporations, Senior Executive Service (SES) members and nearly two dozen generals including three four-star generals, four three-star generals, nine two-star major generals and three one-star brigadier generals. Florida Tech's main campus is located in Melbourne, Florida.

About University Alliance Online
The University Alliance (UA) facilitates the promotion and online delivery of associate's, bachelor's and master's degrees as well as professional certificate programs from the nation's leading traditional universities and institutions. Powered by UA's technology and support services, our university partners have surpassed 300,000 online enrollments -- making UA the largest facilitator of e-learning in the country.

Contact Information:
Sandy Levine, VP of Marketing Services
Bisk Education/University Alliance Online
9417 Princess Palm Avenue, Tampa, FL 33619
813.621.6200

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Education Next: State Legislators Consider Bill to Restrict Florida Virtual School Despite Growing Enrollment

Florida Virtual School Reports 10-fold Increase in Enrollments over Past Ten Years; Nearly 50 Percent Growth among African-Americans Since 2007

STANFORD, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Legislation to limit course offerings and funding for the state-run Florida Virtual School (FLVS) is making its way through the state Senate despite the fact that the online education program continues to see dramatic increases in enrollment, especially among minority students, according to a new article published in the summer issue of Education Next and available online at www.EducationNext.org.

In the 2008–09 school year, approximately 84,000 students will complete 168,000 half-credit courses, more than a tenfold increase since 2002-03, points out Bill Tucker, managing director at Education Sector and author of the Education Next article. Between June 2007 and July 2008, African-American enrollments grew by 49 percent, Hispanic enrollments by 42 percent, and Native American enrollments by 41 percent.

The legislation under consideration would eliminate enrollment in any elective courses through FLVS as well as funding for any courses beyond a standard six periods. FLVS officials have warned that the provision could cut enrollment by as much as 24 percent.
“If this bill passes, students would no longer have an option to take electives, including some AP courses, beyond those offered at their traditional schools nor could they enroll in extra courses to catch up on graduation requirements,” Tucker said.

FLVS is a supplemental education program that allows students to customize their learning. Students attend brick-and-mortar schools and take FLVS courses in addition to their traditional classes. The school employs more than 715 full-time and 29 adjunct teachers -- all Florida-certified and “highly qualified” under the federal No Child Left Behind law. Given the school’s flexible pacing, there isn’t a set class size, but full-time teachers are limited to 150 students each.
While the vast majority of FLVS students come from district schools (82 percent in 2007-08), the school is open to charter, private, and home-schooled students. Students choose an accelerated, traditional, or extended pace for a particular course, taking extra time if needed to review and receive additional guidance on lessons. Additionally, FLVS students don’t have to wait for the semester to begin to start their learning; they can choose the month in which they would like to start.

With its focus on customized learning, online education in the United States is growing at a fast pace: According to the North American Council for Online Learning, enrollment in online courses in 2000 totaled 45,000. In 2007, enrollments reached 1 million, about 70 percent of which were for high school courses.

Popularity of online education courses is also growing. According to a 2008 national survey conducted by Education Next and the Harvard Kennedy School Program on Education Policy and Governance, more than two thirds of American parents say they would be willing to have their children take some of their high school courses over the Internet. And in most instances, the American public supports public funding for online courses that high school students take for credit. The breadth of their support, however, depends on the purpose of the online education. A majority favor funding for high schools offering advanced courses for students online and for high schools that offer rural students a broader range of courses online. A plurality of 40 percent support funding online classes that help dropouts gain credits.

Read “Florida’s Online Option” now available online at www.EducationNext.org.

Bill Tucker is managing director at Education Sector.

Education Next is a scholarly journal published by the Hoover Institution that is committed to looking at hard facts about school reform. Other sponsoring institutions are the Harvard Program on Education Policy and Governance and the Thomas B. Fordham Foundation.

Contacts:
Education Sector
Bill Tucker, 202-552-2848
or Hoover Institution, Stanford University
Caleb Offley, 585-319-4541www.hoover.org