Fond du Lac Tribal and Community College
Site Visit 8/9/02

Fond du Lac Tribal and Community College is located in Cloquet, Minnesota on the Fond du Lac Reservation. FDLTCC is very unique in that it is the only TCU of 34 that is partially funded by the state. One of the results of this combination is the incredible facilities of the college. At this time they are expanded to more than double the square footage of the existing campus. Students also have the option of staying in the residence hall. I met with Wade Gorden, Director of Institute for Objective Human Understanding and ADEC PCO; Mark Trebian, Director of Online Information Services; and Candi Broeffle, Director of Continuing Education & Customized Training.

FDLTCC has T1 access at their main campus, but they also run a number of outreach sites that only have dial-up capacity. Currently, the CPE is servicing one of these outreach sites housed in a Minnesota Power building. They are also toying with the idea of purchasing a second terminal for their downtown outreach office.

The CPE provides students internet access for research for classes in police training, first responder, and CPR, among others. They also offer web-based courses in corrections, nursing, sciences, and an all on-line degree in Information Technology. They are also looking at the potential of videoconferencing and multi-casting. I was impressed by the fact that Wade is working on his dissertation on the topic of the meaning and possibilities the 1994 Land Grant status offers TCU's. That should be a valuable document when completed.

============================================
Craig Campbell
Project Coordinator for
Tribal Colleges and Indian Affairs
American Distance Education Consortium (ADEC)
============================================