BYU Division of Continuing Education
Encyclopedia
The BYU Division of Continuing Education (DCE) is a quasi-college at Brigham Young University
that oversees continuing education
programs.
's offering night classes to workers at the Provo Woolen Mills in 1876. However night classes and other attempts to reach out to non-matriculated students were haphazard through the next few decades.
On a slightly different front the Polysophical Society was organized in 1877 to give lectures open to the general public. At first most of the lectures were given by students. By 1903 the program was organized as the lyceum program with John C. Swensen
as its director and most of the lectures were either by BYU faculty or professors and other prominent figures invited from elsewhere.
The true beganing of the Division of Continuing Education as an organization can be traced to 1921 when Franklin S. Harris
, BYU's president, organized the Extension Division. Lowry Nelson served as the first director. Nelson was a firm believer that educational opportunity should not be limited to those who could formally attend colleges and universities in the standard campus format. In 1946 Harold Glen Clark was made director of the extension division. Clark oversaw a major expansion of the role of BYU and the expansion or creation of many of the programs that BYU still offers, staying at the head of the program until he became the first president of the Provo Utah Temple
.
The programs origins go back to 1922 when it began as leadership week. It was originally held during the winter to allow for attendance by farmers. In 1950 it moved to the summer. In 1963 the name was changed to education week.
In recent years attendance has been around 20,000.
Some education week lectures are broadcast over the LDS Church satellite network. while others are shown on BYU-TV.
These include summer workshops aimed at providing continuing education credits to teachers, but which are also open to interested parents of elementary and secondary students, which are co-sponsed with the David O. McKay School of Education
.
Another program is the summer InterMuse program that offers work in the methods pioneers by Zoltán Kodály
. This program has been held annually at BYU since 1996.
BYU's Native American Educational Outreach Program is also co-ordinated under the Conferences and Workshops section of the Division of Continuing Education.
BYU's high school level independent study courses are accredited by both the Northwest Accreditation Commission and the Distance Education and Training Council
. The program has been praised as an option for home schooling parents.
In May 2010 the NCAA
banned the use of BYU Indepdentent Study high school courses as course credit for students bound for Division I schools. This apparently was done because Michael Oher
had several years earlier used BYU Indepdent Study courses to boost his grades. However it was done without consulting BYU on the matter. After the announcement of disallowance the NCAA said that they wanted courses to have mandated student/teacher interaction and to have a minimum course completion time. BYU's courses generally have maximum completion times but not minimum ones.
Beganing in 1952 lectures and classes were periodically offered by BYU faculty in Salt Lake City. In January 1959 the BYU Salt Lake Center was formally organized with Lynn M. Hilton as chairman. It was originally located in the Alfred McCune House, but this proved to be too small for the program. Other couses were offered at the Craft House, Barrett Hall, the Salt Lake Asembly Hall, the Institute of Religion adjacent to the University of Utah, and many other locations. In 1972 the Salt Lake Center was relocated to 401 Twelfth Avenue in the former Veteran's Hospital.
Today the BYU Salt Lake Center is located in the former Triad Center
.
.
) campus in 1957. In establishing the center, Ernest L. Wilkinson
, president of BYU, and Joseph Fielding Smith
, chairman of the executive committee of the BYU Board of Trustees, sent a letter in which they emphasized that the institution was geared toward adult continuing education programs and not meant at all to compete with Weber Junior College. Mark A. Benson, a son of Ezra Taft Benson
, was appointed as the first director of the Ogden Center when it opened in August 1957.
Brigham Young University
Brigham Young University is a private university located in Provo, Utah. It is owned and operated by The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints , and is the United States' largest religious university and third-largest private university.Approximately 98% of the university's 34,000 students...
that oversees continuing education
Continuing education
Continuing education is an all-encompassing term within a broad spectrum of post-secondary learning activities and programs. The term is used mainly in the United States and Canada...
programs.
History
Attempts at BYU to offer continuing education programs date back to Karl G. MaeserKarl G. Maeser
-Brigham Young Academy:When Maeser arrived at Brigham Young Academy in 1876 it was dying. Enrollment had declined since Warren N. Dusenberry had started the school a few months before. There were only 29 students at the time of Maeser's arrival....
's offering night classes to workers at the Provo Woolen Mills in 1876. However night classes and other attempts to reach out to non-matriculated students were haphazard through the next few decades.
On a slightly different front the Polysophical Society was organized in 1877 to give lectures open to the general public. At first most of the lectures were given by students. By 1903 the program was organized as the lyceum program with John C. Swensen
John C. Swensen
John C. Swensen was a professor of sociology at Brigham Young University for 54 years and the first athletic director at BYU....
as its director and most of the lectures were either by BYU faculty or professors and other prominent figures invited from elsewhere.
The true beganing of the Division of Continuing Education as an organization can be traced to 1921 when Franklin S. Harris
Franklin S. Harris
Franklin Stewart Harris was president of Brigham Young University from 1921 until 1945, and president of Utah State University from 1945 to 1950....
, BYU's president, organized the Extension Division. Lowry Nelson served as the first director. Nelson was a firm believer that educational opportunity should not be limited to those who could formally attend colleges and universities in the standard campus format. In 1946 Harold Glen Clark was made director of the extension division. Clark oversaw a major expansion of the role of BYU and the expansion or creation of many of the programs that BYU still offers, staying at the head of the program until he became the first president of the Provo Utah Temple
Provo Utah Temple
The Provo Utah Temple is the 17th constructed and 15th operating temple of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints...
.
Campus Education Week
Campus Education Week is an intense one-week time of lectures in August. Most of the participants are adults, significantly more females than males, who want to augment their education. However there are also teenaged youth participants with some lectures aimed specifically at teenagers and even dances for the youth. The minimum age for participation is 14. Over 1000 classes are offered.The programs origins go back to 1922 when it began as leadership week. It was originally held during the winter to allow for attendance by farmers. In 1950 it moved to the summer. In 1963 the name was changed to education week.
In recent years attendance has been around 20,000.
Some education week lectures are broadcast over the LDS Church satellite network. while others are shown on BYU-TV.
Conferences and Workshops
BYU's Division of continuing education oversees a large range of conferences and workshops. Many of these are short summer programs aimed at improving the skills of specific professional groups.These include summer workshops aimed at providing continuing education credits to teachers, but which are also open to interested parents of elementary and secondary students, which are co-sponsed with the David O. McKay School of Education
David O. McKay School of Education
The David O. McKay School of Education operates one of the largest teacher preparation programs in the nation. The school specializes in improving learning and teaching in the school as well as in the home, church and community worldwide. The McKay School is located on the southwest end of Brigham...
.
Another program is the summer InterMuse program that offers work in the methods pioneers by Zoltán Kodály
Zoltán Kodály
Zoltán Kodály was a Hungarian composer, ethnomusicologist, pedagogue, linguist, and philosopher. He is best known internationally as the creator of the Kodály Method.-Life:Born in Kecskemét, Kodály learned to play the violin as a child....
. This program has been held annually at BYU since 1996.
BYU's Native American Educational Outreach Program is also co-ordinated under the Conferences and Workshops section of the Division of Continuing Education.
Especially for Youth
Especially for Youth is a program run through BYU's division of Continuing Education for youth ages 14–18 with the goal of helping the central mission statement to "help them come unto Christ". It seeks to emphasize physical, spiritual, intellectual and social growth. Although run through BYU and with large numbers of participants at BYU it also occurs at various locations throughout the United States and in some foreign countries. Primarily the program is run on university campuses.Independent Study
The BYU Independent study program offers over 500 courses. They are grouped under four general headings, University Courses, High School Course, Middle School Courses and Free Courses. The program is headquartered in the George Q. Morris Center. BYU Independent Study began in 1921.BYU's high school level independent study courses are accredited by both the Northwest Accreditation Commission and the Distance Education and Training Council
Distance Education and Training Council
The Distance Education and Training Council is a non-profit national educational accreditation agency in the United States specializing in the accreditation of distance education institutions.- History :...
. The program has been praised as an option for home schooling parents.
In May 2010 the NCAA
National Collegiate Athletic Association
The National Collegiate Athletic Association is a semi-voluntary association of 1,281 institutions, conferences, organizations and individuals that organizes the athletic programs of many colleges and universities in the United States...
banned the use of BYU Indepdentent Study high school courses as course credit for students bound for Division I schools. This apparently was done because Michael Oher
Michael Oher
Michael Jerome Oher is an American football offensive tackle for the Baltimore Ravens of the National Football League. He was drafted by the Ravens in the first round of the 2009 NFL Draft. He played college football at the University of Mississippi for the Ole Miss Rebels...
had several years earlier used BYU Indepdent Study courses to boost his grades. However it was done without consulting BYU on the matter. After the announcement of disallowance the NCAA said that they wanted courses to have mandated student/teacher interaction and to have a minimum course completion time. BYU's courses generally have maximum completion times but not minimum ones.
Off-Campus centers
BYU currently operates only one off-campus center, the Salt Lake Center, but it has in the past operated other off-campus centers.Salt Lake Center
The Salt Lake Center is one of two satellite campuses operated by BYU.Beganing in 1952 lectures and classes were periodically offered by BYU faculty in Salt Lake City. In January 1959 the BYU Salt Lake Center was formally organized with Lynn M. Hilton as chairman. It was originally located in the Alfred McCune House, but this proved to be too small for the program. Other couses were offered at the Craft House, Barrett Hall, the Salt Lake Asembly Hall, the Institute of Religion adjacent to the University of Utah, and many other locations. In 1972 the Salt Lake Center was relocated to 401 Twelfth Avenue in the former Veteran's Hospital.
Today the BYU Salt Lake Center is located in the former Triad Center
Triad Center
The Triad Center is a complex of office buildings in downtown Salt Lake City, Utah. Originally planned to be a large development, containing several offices and residential buildings , the project was canceled after only two phases were completed...
.
BYU-Ricks Center
The Ricks center was authorized in July 1956. It was created after Ricks College (now BYU-Idaho) went from being a 4-year college back to being a two-year college. It was formed largely to provide continuing education classes to teachers. J. Kenneth Thatcher, who was the superintendent of the Sugar-Salem School District in Idaho, was highered to organize the center. Besdies classes on the Ricks College campus the center alos offered classes through its sub-office in Idaho Falls, IdahoIdaho Falls, Idaho
Idaho Falls is a city in and the county seat of Bonneville County, Idaho, United States, and the largest city in Eastern Idaho. As of the 2010 census, the population of Idaho Falls was 56,813, with a metro population of 130,374....
.
BYU-Ogden Center
The BYU-Ogden Center was located in the old LDS Institute of Religion building in Ogden, which was vacted when a new building was set up near the new Weber Junior College (now Weber State UniversityWeber State University
Weber State University is a public university located in the city of Ogden in Weber County, Utah, USA. It was founded in 1889 and is a coeducational, publicly supported university offering professional, liberal arts and technical certificates, as well as associate, bachelor's and master's degrees...
) campus in 1957. In establishing the center, Ernest L. Wilkinson
Ernest L. Wilkinson
Ernest Leroy Wilkinson was an American academic administrator and prominent figure in The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints . He was president of Brigham Young University from 1951 to 1971 and also oversaw the entire LDS Church Educational System. Prior to this, Wilkinson was a lawyer...
, president of BYU, and Joseph Fielding Smith
Joseph Fielding Smith
Joseph Fielding Smith, Jr. was the tenth president of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints from 1970 until his death. He was the son of Joseph F. Smith, who was the sixth president of the LDS Church...
, chairman of the executive committee of the BYU Board of Trustees, sent a letter in which they emphasized that the institution was geared toward adult continuing education programs and not meant at all to compete with Weber Junior College. Mark A. Benson, a son of Ezra Taft Benson
Ezra Taft Benson
Ezra Taft Benson was the thirteenth president of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints from 1985 until his death and was United States Secretary of Agriculture for both terms of the presidency of Dwight D. Eisenhower.-Biography:Born on a farm in Whitney, Idaho, Benson was the oldest of...
, was appointed as the first director of the Ogden Center when it opened in August 1957.
BYU-California Center
The BYU-California center was started in 1959, with central offices but most courses given in LDS Church buildings scattered throughout southern California. Until 1969 almost all the courses offered were non-credit classes. Starting in 1959 the center offered an Ed.D. program.Sources
- Ernest L. WilkinsonErnest L. WilkinsonErnest Leroy Wilkinson was an American academic administrator and prominent figure in The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints . He was president of Brigham Young University from 1951 to 1971 and also oversaw the entire LDS Church Educational System. Prior to this, Wilkinson was a lawyer...
, ed., Brigham Young University: The First 100 Years. Vol. 2, p. 782-794. These pages consist of charts that show the historical development of the various BYU colleges and their constituent departments through the end of 1975.