Pennsylvania State System of Higher Education Adopts ConnectYard to Complement Communication Capabilities Within Desire2Learn® Learning Suite

WAYNE, N.J., July 7, 2011 /PRNewswire/ -- ConnectYard, Inc. - the leading provider of social media-based communication solutions for higher education - is delighted to welcome the Pennsylvania State System of Higher Education (PASSHE) to a growing list of partners. ConnectYard provides a social media platform specifically designed for higher education that increases student engagement by leveraging the power of social media as a learning tool and facilitating mobile, two-way communication. These valuable, innovative resources ensure students will feel more connected to peers, instructors, and their institution.

ConnectYard and Desire2Learn are working together to assist PASSHE to realize their goal of improving student progress and success. PASSHE is currently leveraging ConnectYard to complement communications within their existing Desire2Learn Learning Management System (LMS).

"Social and mobile interactions are a dynamic and rapidly evolving aspect of learning," said Jeremy Auger, COO, Desire2Learn. "We're pleased to be partnering with ConnectYard to provide additional options for extending educational experiences beyond the classroom to aid the transformation of teaching and learning for PASSHE - and other Desire2Learn clients."

Institutions within the PASSHE system are particularly enthusiastic about leveraging ConnectYard's integrated module within the Desire2Learn platform. With the ever-expanding methods of communication options available to students, educators are recognizing both the opportunity and necessity of extending learning and communications with students outside of the classroom and traditional email. With ConnectYard, students are able to receive messages from their school in the format or environment of their choice, including Facebook, Twitter or mobile devices.  

According to Dr. Van Reidhead, Provost, Vice President for Academic Affairs and Chief Academic Officer at East Stroudsburg University, "This is a highly promising tool because it bridges social networks with mobile, desktop, and home technologies in ways previously unavailable in higher education." Reidhead added, "It is a flexible platform that can be used simultaneously to give emergency directions, updates on class assignments, or as a real-time problem-solving tool for teams of students and faculty working from different locations, whether across campus or on the other side of the world."

East Stroudsburg University, West Chester University of Pennsylvania, Lock Haven University, and California University of Pennsylvania are among the first institutions within the PASSHE system implementing ConnectYard to leverage social media and mobile technology to support course-level and campus-wide communications. "Our partnership with PASSHE presents a unique opportunity to broaden communication and collaboration across the state and we look forward to working with each university to help them better engage their students and expand overall institutional communication," said Donald Doane, CEO, ConnectYard Inc.

About ConnectYard

ConnectYard provides a centralized social media communications platform for higher education that simplifies and unifies communications across a variety of social technologies, including Facebook and Twitter. The platform can also be used by various departments for institutional messaging, notifications, and emergency alerts. In addition, the platform seamlessly integrates into existing portal and learning management technologies, providing increased communication capabilities for both administrative and academic purposes.

ConnectYard, Inc. was founded in 2007 and is headquartered in Wayne, New Jersey. For more information on how ConnectYard can help your institution maximize student recruitment, retention, and much more, please visit http://www.connectyard.com or contact us at 973-494-8063.

About Desire2Learn

Desire2Learn Incorporated is a world-leading provider of enterprise eLearning solutions that enable institutions and other organizations to create teaching and learning environments that reflect their vision, goals and branding. Desire2Learn and its subsidiaries support more than six million learners worldwide. Clients include higher education, K-12, and healthcare, as well as associations, government and other leading organizations. Founded in 1999, Desire2Learn has personnel in the United States, Canada, the United Kingdom, and Australia. For more information, visit http://www.Desire2Learn.com, call 1.519.772.0325 or toll-free 1.888.772.0325 (within North America), +44 808.234.4235 (U.K. and Europe), 0.800.452.069 (New Zealand) and 1.800.656.210 (Australia).

CONTACT:

Sophie Alstrom
ConnectYard, Inc.
508 Hamburg Turnpike, 105D
Wayne, NJ 07470
973.494.8063
[email protected]
http://www.connectyard.com

This press release was issued through eReleases(R).  For more information, visit eReleases Press Release Distribution at http://www.ereleases.com.

SOURCE ConnectYard, Inc.