ACADEMICS


RELATIONAL COMMUNITY One of the most prevalent myths about online learning is that it is lacking the interactivity found within traditional classrooms. This myth is based upon the belief that online courses are a type of “independent study” program, where individual students simply complete assignments on their computers by themselves. Nothing could be further from the truth! The best online education flows out of an experience of learning within community. With this in mind, Jessup Online offers


small, intimate classes, where students can develop personal relationships with their professors and engage in meaningful dialogue with each other. Together, faculty and students form a learning community where ideas are freely shared, differences are politely debated, and deep learning


takes place through critical thinking about the course content. Proverbs 27:17 states: “As iron sharpens iron, so a friend sharpens a friend.” This principle is lived out in every Jessup Online course, where relationship and interaction form the core of the learning experience.


FAITH INTEGRATION A key distinction of Jessup Online is the intentional integration of faith into all levels of each course. From posting devotional Scriptures, to providing opportunities to pray for one another, to faculty serving as role models of faith within their specific disciplines, Jessup Online ref lects a commitment to demonstrating that faith permeates every aspect of life – even within academic settings.


With a focus on offering an excellent


educational experience, and through the MAL and other fully online programs currently being developed, Jessup Online provides an exciting opportunity for the university to reach even further in its mission to “educate transformational leaders for the glory of God.”


Aaron Klein @AaronKlein Jan 25


@drjohnjackson PS: This “exceptionally employable” thing appears to be working out… ;)


Aaron Klein is co-founder and CEO at Riskalyze where a number of Jessup grads have been hired.


SOCIAL MINISTRY


BY KEIRSTI TOROK JESSUP ALUMNA ’11


“


The Benefits of an Online Society.” I read the tagline of the new article request sitting in my inbox with a puzzling gaze. The idea seemed counter culture to what I had heard and seen in my everyday life. Surely I


couldn’t be the only one who saw the flashing headlines shedding light on the destructive thralls of an online community. “Social Media—the New Bully’s Playground,” “The Dying Art of Face-to-Face Conversation,” “Generation-Y, Where Meaningful Relation- ships Go To Die.” The irony wasn’t wasted on me, though.


There I sat, millimeters away from my cellphone, panning back and forth between my cyber-mailbox (email) and my cyber- friendships (Facebook), while listening to another installment of my favorite podcast. I was currently residing in my own online society, creating a cyber world inside of my real one. The thing was, I didn’t feel like I was being “destructive” at all. Oddly enough, I felt productive.


BATTLING NEGATIVE CONSTRUCTS OF SOCIAL MEDIA AND USING THE ‘NETWORK’ FOR GOOD


In a matter of minutes I was able to


correspond with three different freelance editors, schedule a skype appointment with my son’s pediatrician, download a recipe for that night’s dinner, and text my husband our weekend schedule—let’s see Suzie- homemaker of the pre-Google era do that! Still, my initial reaction to the topic of this


piece perplexed me; if a cyber community can be so beneficial, why have I been conditioned to feel guilty about its presence in my life? To explore the idea, I decided to contact one of my former Jessup


professors,


Dr. Erin Ambrose of the Psychology Department. I debated whether


simply too appealing to pass up. Over the next several days, we exchanged emails as she answered posed questions surrounding her opinion on the matter. Was an online society really all bad? Her words in response speak far better


God’s love travels well on the Internet. Iran Alive ’s web presence has generated millions of hits and tens of thousands of visitors.


From Feature Article “Iran Will Be A Christian Country,” pg 15


or not I should even send her an “email,” adding irony to an already satirical situation, but the ease and convenience of online correspondence was


than mine, “While the impact of social media certainly can be negative, and is of concern to psychologists and therapists, it is here to stay and should be embraced with caution. Rarely is anything all bad! There are many important uses and benefits to connecting with others


via social


networks. We need to focus on the benefits while being careful about the drawbacks.” Personally,


I ’ve never been a fan of


the in-between. But in this case it’s true, an online society can’t be all good or all bad. So, as a writer representing a Christian University


JESSUP MAGAZINE 13


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