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Introduction
In 1907, East Carolina University (ECU) was founded to alleviate the desperate shortage of teachers in the eastern part of North Carolina. The College of Education continues to supply the nation with some of its best educators, and now it has been joined by programs of high distinction in health care and fine and performing arts.
From modest beginnings as a teacher training school, the university is now an engine of economic development and a hotbed of discovery. Today, ECU is emerging as a top national research university with an enrollment of more than 23,000. East Carolina is a constituent institution of the University of North Carolina and offers 106 bachelor's degree programs, 71 master's degree programs, 4 specialist degree programs, 1 MD program, and 16 doctoral programs in its professional colleges and schools, the Thomas Harriot College of Arts and Sciences, and the Brody School of Medicine.
CHALLENGE
ECU recognized the potential of online learning early on and was among the first schools in the nation to develop and offer a degree completely over the Internet. Since then, the university has created more than 50 degree and certificate programs in health, education, technology, and other areas, and a number of new degrees are under development for online delivery.
ECU was the first university in North Carolina to begin teaching distance...