ADDENDUM #1 Online Learning Partnership for UNH (9944) (5 Pages) Due Date & Time: 02/24/2012 at 2:00 p.m.

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1 U N I V E R S I T Y S Y S T E M O F N E W H A M P S H I R E USNH Purchasing & Contract Services 11 Brook Way Durham, NH Phone: 603/ Fax: 603/ ADDENDUM #1 Online Learning Partnership for UNH (9944) (5 Pages) RFX Number: Due Date & Time: 02/24/2012 at 2:00 p.m. February 10, 2012 This addendum does hereby become a part of the solicitation (RFX), and in case of conflict, it supersedes original specifications and/or drawings. If a mandatory site inspection or meeting is required, bids/proposals from Firms that did not attend will not be considered. The Firm shall be responsible for issuing information contained herein to sub-contractors and suppliers to ensure that his/her bid/proposal covers all work required by the RFX including this addendum. It is the responsibility of the Bidder/Proposer to check the Notifications Forum in the RFX prior to the RFX due date to verify you have reviewed all addenda and other required documentation. Addendum Items: 1. The following questions have been presented by prospective proposers. The answer to each immediately follows the question. Q1. To what degree does the University envision outsourcing the following functions: a. Provision of academic content; b. Delivery of instruction; c. Recruitment and professional development of faculty; d. Academic advising; tutoring; student grievance management? A1. Response is as follows: a. No, UNH is not interested in outsourcing provision of academic content. b. UNH may be interested in outsourcing delivery of instruction. We expect to deliver instruction with UNH faculty and instructional staff, but are open to explore services a vendor may offer in this area. c. UNH is interested in outsourcing recruitment. There is a possibility of outsourcing professional development of faculty. d. Yes, UNH is interested in outsourcing academic advising; tutoring; student grievance management. Note: UNH may also be interested in outsourcing admission, registration, and bill pay. Q2. The RFP asks for a description of revenue-sharing models offered. Is the University open to other approaches to pricing? A2. Yes. 1

2 Q3. What are the approximate number of online programs and courses expected to be available at launch? What is the expected ramp up/growth of programs and courses thereafter and in what timeframe(s)? A3. We expect 4 graduate programs at launch (MBA, MPA, MSW, Master s of Education) with approximately 50 courses. We expect growth of approximately 100% per term in the next 3-5 years. However, we expect the chosen company to partner with UNH to identify programs that will be most successful online from a market perspective and to make recommendations regarding potential growth and timeframes. Please refer to questions 4 and 6 for enrollment growth rates and timeframes. Q4. What is the approximate number of enrollments expected at launch? What is the expected ramp up/growth of enrollments thereafter and in what timeframe(s)? A4. We expect approximately 500 enrollments at launch with a growth rate of 100% per term over 3 years (figure 2 terms per year, but we are flexible in offering alternative term structures). We expect the chosen company to assist with determining appropriate enrollment growth and timeframes. Q5. Section states: Describe the current categories of online learning your firm supports (e.g. bachelor degree programs, master degree programs, certificate programs, individual courses, other) and the markets in which those categories of online learning are delivered. Please give % market share of all categories of online learning. Please also describe any near-term (12-24 months) plans your firm has for expansion in online learning categories and/or markets? Specifically, what do you mean by the markets in which those categories are delivered (i.e. geography)? Also, are you looking for our percentage market share of the entire universe of all providers of online learning worldwide? A5. We seek to understand the market share of your company in specific U.S. geographic regions (i.e. Northeast, South, etc.) using numbers of students who reside in the geographic regions. We are also interested in your % market share related to other providers of online learning in the U.S. Q6. In 5,000 enrollment increments, tell us how large and how rapidly you would like to see your online programs grow over the next 5 years. Is 50,000 enrollments (not students) a number that can be realized by your institution? A6. We realized approximately 700+ enrollments in online courses during our most recent January term. We would like to increase overall enrollment in online programs and individual courses to 2000 by fall 2013, 8000 by fall 2014, 32,000 by fall 2015, 50,000 by fall As previously stated, these are projections. We expect the chosen company to assist with setting enrollment and growth targets based on analysis of UNH capability. We believe UNH can realize 50,000 enrollments. Q7. Would UNH consider an alternative LMS than Blackboard for its online programs that would be included in the final revenue-share partnership? A7. We are open to an alternative LMS than Blackboard with the caveat that our faculty may find it burdensome to use multiple LMS given that they may teach traditional course using Blackboard and online using another LMS. Q8. Does UNH intend to include the existing online undergraduate courses and/or programs within the scope of this partnership? A8. We would include current undergraduate courses and are also interested in potential for selected undergraduate programs, based on distinctiveness and potential for revenue, to be included in this partnership. Q9. Is UNH able to consider an agreement that extends beyond 3 years? A9. Yes RFX Addendum 1 2

3 Q10. Which institutions within New Hampshire and from a regional and national perspective does UNH currently consider competitors to both on-ground and online programs? A10. On-ground: New England land grants (UMass-Amherst, University of Vermont, UMaine-Orono, UConn, U of RI), Boston University, Northeastern, Rutgers, SUNY-Binghamton, University of Delaware, Keene State College, Plymouth State University, Quinnipiac for UNH College of Health and Human Services, Bentley College for UNH Whittemore School of Business and Economics, Stone Hill College for UNH College of Liberal Arts. Online: UNH is early in our development of online programs. With no programs online, we really have no direct competitors in this sphere as we re not competitive at this time. Southern NH University and UMass Lowell have thriving online programs. Granite State College in the University System of NH also has a presence in online in the state. Penn State is a potential competitor given the recognition and scope of their offerings. Q11. Please list the current fully online programs and please share the current planned rollout of future online programs as a part of any partnership. A11. Graduate certificate program in Industrial Statistics (Mathematics) is our one completely online program. We are currently working to launch an online MBA option in fall We are currently analyzing the following programs for transition to online: MBA, MPA, MSW, Master s of Education. We are also exploring undergraduate courses targeted at high school seniors, near completers, and non-degree students. As stated previously, we expect the chosen company to partner with UNH to identify programs that will be most successful online and to make recommendations regarding potential growth." Q12. List your unduplicated online enrollments by term for the last 12 months. What portion of your online enrollments is from on-campus students? A12. Response as follows: Overall, 90% of UNH online courses are taken by UNH students. Term Sections Enroll Degree JTERM Spring Summer Fall JTERM Q13. What has been your annual online growth rate for the past 5 years? A13. Response as follows: We began online offerings as a pilot during Summer 2009 (7 courses offered). %INC 2010 %INC 2011 % INC 2012 Summer 43% 28% Fall 439% -42% January 36% 127% 132% RFX Addendum 1 3

4 Q14. What is the cost breakdown by credit hour for online courses including tuition and fees? A14. The following table shows the cost breakdown by credit hour for undergraduate and graduate courses. Please note that UNH is reviewing online course costs and would expect the chosen company to work with us to determine pricing that would enable UNH competitiveness in the online market. Cost Breakdown by Credit Hour for Online Courses Per Credit Hour Cost Fees Total Charges NH Resident Non-Resident Registration Technology NH Resident Non-Resident UGRAD $ $ $ $ $6,135 $12,795 >12 Full tuition & fees GRAD $ $ $ $ >9 Full tuition & fees Q15. Appendix A Question 3 refers to career services. Please further clarify what UNH is specific goal is relative to this requirement. A15. Our goal is to insure that online students have access to effective academic, personal, and career counseling in line with the quality standards put forth by the SLOAN Consortium s Quality Scorecard for the Administration of Online Education Programs. Q16. Appendix A Question 6, refers to community building for students/alumni. Please further define the intent and scope of what UNH means when it references community building. A16. We are interested in any services and/or tools that your company would implement to facilitate eunh students building relationships, sharing experiences, asking questions, and staying informed about issues that affect them. For example, supporting messaging, virtual chat, discussion forums, electronic newsletters, or other tools that enable eunh students to interact with others students and not just those in their course or program. Q17. Will you assign weightings to the evaluation criteria listed in section 3.5.1? A17. Weighting of evaluation criteria may be used by the Evaluation Committee as part of the evaluation process. It is an internal decision and the responsibility of this committee. Q18. Will new programs be developed from scratch or with faculty input/materials? A18. New programs will be developed with faculty input/materials. RFX Addendum 1 4

5 Q19. What is the process of approving new programs for eunh? A19. Given that a program already exists (delivered face-to-face), no approval process is necessary. We will be developing a flexible approval process for eunh programs through the eunh Advisory Board with input from impacted academic departments. Q20. As part of the partnership, would UNH consider additional term starts and potential changes to the lengths of academic terms? A20. Yes. Maryann Puchlopek Maryann Puchlopek, Purchasing Manager /do RFX Addendum 1 5