Bringing Social Work Education to the Prairie

This article reports on an evaluation of a distance education program that offered all undergraduate social work courses over an interactive television network to four rural sites. Evaluations indicate few differences in satisfaction and student outcomes between the on-campus and distance cohorts. The on-campus and distance-site instructors also report a high level of satisfaction. Furthermore, results of an alumni survey conducted seven years following termination of the program found all graduates licensed to practice social work and 92% of these graduates currently employed as professional social workers. The article concludes with a description of lessons learned from the program.