About Us
The Virtual Learning Community Initiative (VLCI) is part of a program sponsored by The University of Texas System: Transforming Undergraduate Education Program (TUE).
The purpose of the TUE program is to stimulate creative approaches to instruction that increase student access and success while being cost-efficient or reducing instructional costs. The UT System Board of Regents has allocated $2 million from the Intermediate Term Fund (ITF) and $500,000 from the Available University Fund (AUF) to fund innovative proposals on a competitive basis. Grants ranging from $100,000 to $250,000 have been awarded, and the VLCI is a recipient of a $250,000 award.
This is a high-profile innovative project whose goals include to (1) initiate a UT System-wide virtual learning community of students, faculty, researchers and administrators, (2) transform the learning experiences and opportunities for individual undergraduate student at the course level, and (3) and provide new avenues for involving students in the Undergraduate Research Initiative throughout the state. Through the VLCI project, the UT System is funding and creating a virtual 49-island archipelago in Second Life, with three islands per campus and a 4-island central hub for System use and System-wide collaboration activities. While the System is not directing how individual campuses will use their virtual space, the project does provide virtual infrastructure and extensive information and training resources and guidance throughout the year to all campuses.