Q: Can you tell us a little about yourself and some of your career highlights?

A: Sure. I served nearly 18 years (active and reserve) in the United States Army as an Infantryman and Military Police Officer. I developed the first Department of Army police academy shortly after 9-11 that currently serves as the Department of Defense model. Also noteworthy was that I taught and established the first military police school on the west coast which received the highest possible accreditation, as well as taught and managed several leadership and instructor training courses at a leadership academy, all of which I led through full accreditation, unprecedented growth and innovation.

As for my academic experience, I edited two books on Criminology while a graduate student and was a Criminal Justice professor for several years. I begun developing online programs early in my career at American Public University System and Chapman University. Most recently I was the CEO of for-profit university which I sold to Piccolo International University which is ran by Dr. Laura Palmer Noone, President Emeritus of the University of Phoenix.

In sum, I have enjoyed rewarding careers in both academia and the military, spending a lot of time leading programs through unprecedented growth, innovation and accreditation. I am proud that two of the schools I have helped built are now publicly traded companies and the others are also very successful. I am fortunate to have worked with the best teams to build for-profit, online universities with a combined market cap greater than one billion dollars. I feel that I have been blessed to be a visionary who is also able to execute to get things done. While I don’t believe in fate per se, I must admit that I am very honored and humbled to have developed this model, yet very confident that Tech University of America has arrived at the right time.

Q: Can you tell us what personally motivated you to develop the Zero-Tuition Model Using Social Networking Sites?

A: I am indebted and grateful to my family and the Army for providing me the opportunity to go to college. However, I am saddened that not everyone can have access to a college degree. Since I feel that higher education is the key to solving our societal issues then I feel obligated to advance the cause of accessible education for people around the world. Since people around the world would do almost anything for an American education, and since I have that information, who am I to not make it available to everyone? It’s my moral obligation.

Q: Can you tell us the story of how you developed this new model?

A: Well, while building several online university programs I watched as they artificially raised tuition to the student loan cap. I was one of the few for-profit CEOs who doesn't have an MBA or was a banker so I look at things much differently. Last year when I took over as CEO of a for-profit university I decided to lower tuition in order to enroll more students. I found that if you have the same quality of faculty as other well established schools and run a transparent program then people will attend your school if you lower your tuition. At the same time I started to see the popularity of social networking sites explode, while the economy started to weaken. I then realized that three things were hot: social networking sites, online learning and lower or zero-tuition.

Early in 2008, I used to drive over to the University of Phoenix Online and sit in the parking lot in search for inspiration. I would sit there for hours watching the sunset hoping to soak up some of their creative energies, while asking myself, “What would Dr. John Sperling, the founder of University of Phoenix, do today if he were to do it all over again?”. I concluded that the first thing he would do is take education to the masses as he did years ago by bringing education from the ivory tower to the community in office buildings then eventually via distance learning. I think one of his greatest keys to success was leveraging existing resources rather that by trying to force people to change. For example, he didn't try to make the corporate offices where they held classes look “academic” nor did he develop some goofy learning management system to deliver their distance learning courses. Rather, they used the existing business offices and Outlook Express. People were familiar with regular office buildings (not intimidating like a college campus) and it was convenient. Also, most adults have used Outlook or Outlook Express so they lessoned the learning curve by using systems students would be familiar with, and if they weren’t, chances were that someone they knew could help them with it, as opposed to building some esoteric and irrelevant system that wasn't intuitive to adult learners.

So, I eventually thought that if Dr. Sperling were to start over that he would bring higher education to the masses. However, today the masses are in social networking sites. At this point I still had not seen a social networking site, but realized that if they were generating that much buzz that it had to be for a reason. So I logged into one, and instantly said to myself that this is the ideal online classroom! A week later I directed one of my staff members to teach a course in a social networking site -- PerfSpot.com – since I knew their leadership and found them to be passionate and consummate professionals, dedicated to a global reach -- and it was absolutely amazing! Social networking sites allow the faculty and students to control their online learning environment, and can do all the things that conventional learning management systems can’t or won’t allow such as video, audio, showing photos of the users, widgets, etc.

Moreover, using social networking sites to deliver college courses greatly reduces our cost of delivering education since we do not have to pay learning management fees which can be as high as $120 per student per course, nor do we need to have technical staff for support. In essence, it’s a win-win-win because the social networking sites benefit from having more users (our students), we as a college gain by not having any learning management fees, and our faculty and students win because they get to control their learning environment.

Q: Can you speak about the academic quality of your programs?

A: Yes. Some people are going to try to start similar programs, and I wish them all the very best because if we can lower tuition then that is a great thing. However, I think what sets us apart is that our board of directors, which include prominent university presidents, and I, have extensive experience with accreditation, so we will not be cutting corners when it comes to the quality of our programs. Our academic quality will be comparable to nationally and regionally accredited programs that are offered via distance learning. All faculty will possess a graduate degree from a regionally accredited university as well as practical experience in their field of study and evidence of college level teaching at an accredited university. Terms are eight weeks long and consist of things such as weekly discussion questions, quizzes, tests, group projects and term papers.

Q: Do your students have to pay for textbooks?

A: No. This model also leverages the increasing accessibility of free online libraries with scholarly journals and electronic textbooks (see: www.freeloadpress.com). The use of free and open source scholarly materials in this model makes an American education more affordable for students around the world who will not have to buy expensive textbooks. Moreover, eliminating the use of paper books is also better for the environment since printing and shipping burdens are eliminated. But most important, this model presents the faculty and students with the opportunity to engage in learning by using the materials readily available to them via the Internet. Students must now learn not only where to locate data, but more than ever, how to accurately assess the validity and reliability of the information they locate on the Internet. Consider that most students will never open a textbook after they graduate, ever. However, every graduate will use the Internet for research after they finish their studies.

Q: Did anything else inspire you to develop this new model?

A: Yes, I was also inspired by William’s story to develop this model – you can find more about him on Ted.com. William was able to build a windmill because he had access to a book about alternative energy sources. As a result, he was able to provide energy for his family in Africa. By making an open university, and pushing the content to where people hang out (social networking sites), even those who can’t afford our monthly fees can still learn everything Tech University of America students are learning. See: http://www.ted.com/index.php/talks/william_kamkwamba_on_building_a_windmill.html

Q: What is your ultimate goal?

A: All courses at Tech University of America will be open and free to everyone. Only people who want to earn academic credit will have to pay a $99 a month membership fee. We will place every college course on social networking sites with free e-textbooks and scholarly materials. That’s what I will do until the day I die. Thank you for listening to my story.

Q: Can you tell us the story of how you developed this new model?

Finally, I was inspired by my undergraduate mentor, Dr. Lynette Lee-Sammons to pursue a career in academia. Also, my graduate professor, Dr. Cecil Greek, an e-learning pioneer in the 90’s planted the seed for this model. Also, the team at Higher Ed Growth made invaluable contributions to the development of this model.