Charles Seaton Davis
Whoever thinks distance learning is always anonymous and lacks community should take Charles's case in point.
He found Regent University by word of mouth and knows many people who attend school there as well, even though he rarely steps on campus except to purchase his textbooks.
"I go to a church here locally and got really good feedback from a lot of people I know," says Charles, 38, who lives two miles away from Regent University in Virginia Beach, VA.
"A lot of people at my church work at Regent or are students there."
Even so, Charles took his decision to go back to school seriously and did his research, considering also Old Dominion University, Hampton University, Troy State, and St. Leo University before ultimately selecting the school that he thought was right for him.
For Charles, getting his B.S. is about fulfilling a personal goal as well as allowing more mobility within his current career as a firefighter with the Navy Region Mid-Atlantic Fire & Emergency Services.
Though he started taking college courses as a young man in the Air Force in order to increase his career opportunities, the going was slow, as his education had to be put on hold each time he was deployed.
"Back when I was in the Air Force, when I was deployed in Hungary or places like that, computers weren't so easy to find," he explains.
Charles still managed to finish his associate's degree and was out of school for a few years when he started hearing about the benefits of distance learning through friends and colleagues.
"They were saying you can do courses as you want, it's all available to fit your own time schedule… I was kind of skeptical because I thought, 'Without the assistance of an instructor? I couldn't do that!' … but everyone kept telling me that it was pretty conducive to discussion, that instructors will talk to you and make arrangement to have discussions online."
So Charles checked it out.
Now working as a Training Officer and Battalion Chief in his department, Charles knew that the next level in his department would be a managerial position, so he initially looked at public administration programs.
"But when I was looking at Regent and the courses they offered, I came across their Organizational Leadership & Management program," which, unlike Public Administration, was offered at the Bachelor's level.
By sheer coincidence, the video clip featured a firefighter, a real student who had been through the OLM program and eagerly conveyed what he had gotten out of it.
"I started thinking as I looked at the clip that my job has a lot to do with leadership, personnel issues, and how organizations are run," says Charles.
"It played out perfectly in what I wanted to do in the field I'm in."
But before he made the final decision to continue his studies from home, Charles discussed it with his wife and two daughters to make sure he had their support. As a firefighter, Charles works Monday through Friday, between 7 A.M. - 4 P.M. and then an additional one night a week.
He breaks down his time schedule: "When I get home I spend time with family, but I ensure that I place emphasis on school for about two hours. Plus when I work that one night, I can usually spend a solid 4 - 5 hours doing school work unless an emergency comes up. Saturday mornings I reserve about 2 - 3 hours."
Charles says that a good rule of thumb is that each class should take up about 10 - 15 hours a week.
"Family and work comes first, education comes next. That is how I view it and it seems to work… It's all about managing time and not allowing time to manage you. Mornings, evenings, or that time when you are just sitting around watching TV are opportunities for you to be taking a course."
The biggest drawback to this type of learning, he says, is not being in the physical classroom where you can visualize what the teacher is saying.
On the other hand, however, "You can discuss issues without the embarrassment of actually having people around you." Though Charles does not describe himself as shy, he does believe that the classroom setting can be intimidating to some people.
"If I'm online in a discussion forum, I don't worry about making a comment or whatever that's not along the subject line, because it's just me and the computer."
At Regent, Charles communicates with instructors and fellow students through a variety of media: Blackboard, discussion boards, live classrooms, e-mails, streaming videos, audio, PPT, Web-based programs.
"Regent University incorporates some of the most advanced and up-to-date technologies to enhance the learning experience," he says.
Another thing he enjoys about his school is a shared perspective: "At Regent there's an emphasis on Christian principles, so your assignments can be influenced that way and reflect what you believe."
And in that way too, Charles's online education has become incorporated into his life in more ways than a few hours logged with a computer would indicate.
