THE WI DISTANCE LEARNING CONFERENCE CALL FOR PROPOSALS - has been issued for the 17th Annual Conference on Distance Teaching and Learning to be held August 8-10, 2001 in Madison, Wisconsin. Session proposals for presentations workshops and cracker-barrel discussion are due online by February 28, 2001.

The Conference Planning Committee invites you to contribute to the professional knowledge provided at this event by presenting a session that relates to the field of distance teaching and learning. We also invite exhibits of distance education resources, courseware, and technology. Join more than 1000 colleagues from around the world at this leading forum on distance education and training. Practitioners, managers and government agencies will come together to exchange information and explore new developments at the conference.

New This Year - All session proposals should be submitted online on the website CLICK: http://www.uwex.edu/disted/conference. Select the link "Call for Proposals" for directions and forms. To receive a printed brochure, please contact Kimary Peterson at: distel@education.wisc.edu (from Debbi Cardinal, Wisconsin Library Association)

NINTH ANNUAL GWETC CALL FOR PRESENTATIONS - The GWETC 2001 Steering Committee has issued a Call for Applications to Present for the Governor's Wisconsin Educational Technology Conference (GWETC). Applications will be received 'online only' this year beginning February 15 at CLICK: http://www.gwetc.org Deadline for submission is March 17, 2001.

This year's conference will be held at the newly remodeled KI Center and Regency Suites in Green Bay, Wisconsin, October 29-31. GWETC 2001 is expected to draw more than 150 presenters from education, business and government for pre-conference labs and workshops, breakout sessions and poster sessions. GWETC offers exemplary presenters from diverse educational institutions and private businesses, as well as the highest-quality statewide and national vendors and keynote speakers.

Submit an Application to Present beginning February 15 'online only' at CLICK: http://www.gwetc.org Submissions deadline is March 17, 2001. Join the more than 1,800 participants to share, network and learn about Wisconsin's "best practices."

GWETC is cosponsored by the University of Wisconsin Extension, the Wisconsin Association of Independent Colleges and Universities, the Department of Public Instruction, the Educational Communications Board, TEACH Wisconsin and the Technical College System. For more information CLICK: http://www.gwetc.org or call GWETC Conference Management at 608-266-2741.

THE ALLIANCE OF FOUR - The University of California at Berkeley's extension program, Pennsylvania State University's World Campus, the University of Washington and the University of Wisconsin's Learning Innovations program recently formed an alliance. Through the alliance the institutions will share information and make joint technology purchases. The alliance, according to the group's leaders, is an informal one and will not spawn for-profit spinoffs or ambitious joint course offerings. Officials from the four universities will meet two or three times a year and also participate in periodic conference calls. The talks will focus on four key areas - marketing, technical issues, student services and faculty relations. The alliance's first meeting was held in December at Berkeley. For the complete article CLICK: http://chronicle.com/free/2001/01/2001012301u.htm (Chronicle of Higher Education 23 Jan 01)

CHRIS OLGREN CITED IN TRAINING ISSUE - Dr. Chris Olgren, Program Director for the Distance Education Certificate Program, UW-Madison was cited in the January issue of Training. In a sidebar in the article "Professional Development To Go?" by George Lorenzo, Chris stated, "As trainers and designers look to develop and deliver training programs through e-learning, they need to find out how that learning is going to differ by using technology. They need to learn what key components have to be incorporated into the program in order to have an effective instructional design - good learner support and instructor services - and how to choose the appropriate technology for the application." (Rosemary Lehman, DESIEN)

TEACHING WITH TECHNOLOGY TODAY - the January issue is now online at CLICK: http://www.uwsa.edu/olit/ttt/ Articles include:

* "Master of Engineering in Professional Practice Reaches Working Engineers at a Distance" by Jennifer Smith, TTT Editor. A profile of UW-Madison's distance education program for engineers' professional development.

* "Support for Distance Learning Programs: "Is Technology Really Enough?" by Karen Al-Ashkar, Counselor, Master of Engineering in Professional Practice Program To learn more about the student-support aspect of the MEPP program profiled above, readers are directed to the American Society of Engineering Education's site to read Al-Ashkar's award-winning paper.

* BOOK REVIEW: Failure to Connect: How Computers Affect Our Children's Minds - for Better and Worse (by Jane M. Healy, Ph.D.; New York: Simon & Schuster, 1998), review by Patricia Ploetz, Instructional Technology and Multimedia Educator/Coordinator, UW-Stevens Point. Ploetz describes Healy's book as an insightful, highly readable critique of the "technology craze" mindset held by some educators. She finds Healy's "do it right when the time is right" attitude toward the integration of technology into children's education a measured and practical solution. (from Jennifer Smith, Editor, TTT UW System Administration)