In the development of a new university in Macedonia, the South East European University (SEEU), crucial accomplishments in the areas of information technology and distance education have been achieved in the first year and a half of the three-year U.S.-Macedonia Linkage Program.

The computer lab at SEEU, established through the Indiana University/SEEU ALO partnership, under construction and in use.

SEEU, a new trilingual, multi-ethnic international university, opened in 2001 in Tetovo, Macedonia. Sponsored and financed through an ALO award and the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe, it is the first official university in Macedonia to offer courses in Albanian. Two of the major objectives of the program are to promote economic development of the Tetovo region through the introduction of modern curricula in fields such as Business, Public Administration, Education, and Communications, and to establish academic and instructional skills upgrading for English language instruction and information technology. The grant activities are multi-faceted, including faculty exchange, degree fellowships, administrative training, distance education, and library and technology development.

IT and distance education development are second nature to Indiana University (IU): it has been named one of the top “most wired” universities in the U.S. The SEEU program includes developing computer skills training programs for students and the community, interactive videoconferencing capabilities, computer science instruction for the

communications faculty, and distance education for English Language instruction and information technology center staff.

IU’s full-time computer literacy consultant, Mr. Robert Downey, together with his Macedonian counterparts, recruited, hired and trained instructors for the IT Education staff. He redesigned and adapted the computer centers at the campus, leading to the creation of 6 classrooms dedicated to teaching the IT skills and other computer application courses. IU provided necessary support in terms of hardware and software. Downey developed the IT Skills program, a one-semester class that all students are required to attend and pass.

In addition, IU provided for increasing the bandwidth at SEEU, allowing interactive videoconferencing. This has proved an important tool for meetings and interviews between the two campuses, as well as for interactive video-based courses.

In preparation for SEEU’s IT Education Center’s plan to offer non-credit courses to the public, 10 staff members are taking the first of a series of professional development courses on computer science and distance education offered by Indiana University-Purdue University Indianapolis (IUPUI). The courses are taught using interactive video.

The Chair of IUPUI’s Computer Science Department, Dr. Mathew Palakal, spent two weeks at SEEU consulting on curriculum with the Communications Faculty. To support the development of SEEU’s Computer Science curriculum, IU is underwriting the salary of an internationally recruited faculty member.

Using distance education technology, IU is providing credit-bearing courses, which will lead to a certificate in Language Education from IU’s School of Education. Eight SEEU English Language Instruction faculty are enrolled. The program consists of five courses, four of which are delivered asynchronously via the World Wide Web and one (Computer Assisted Language Learning) delivered on-site. Two of the faculty will apply the credits they earn by distance to an MA program at IU. The program received public attention when it was featured on the evening news broadcast of a local television station in Macedonia.

These IT and distance education programs are a “first” in Macedonia, and open up a wealth of possibilities for continuing to build the university’s capabilities.

Dr. Kay Ikranagara is the Assistant Director of the Center for International Education and Development Assistance (CIEDA) at Indiana University.

For more information about the Indiana University/South East European University partnership, contact ALO Program Associate, Michelle Wright.

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