TCS Education System to Become First Higher Education Institution in the Nation to Provide GoToMeeting for Every Student

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Feb 06, 2012, 12:13 ET

CHICAGO, Feb. 6, 2012 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- The more than 5,000 students who study at The Chicago School of Professional Psychology, The Santa Barbara & Ventura Colleges of Law, and Pacific Oaks College now have access to Citrix®GoToMeeting® with HDFaces™—the high-definition desktop video conferencing service—at no additional cost thanks to a partnership announced today by the nonprofit TCS Education System (TCS ES) and Citrix, the company transforming how people, businesses and IT work and collaborate in the cloud era.

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The arrangement means that all students enrolled in TCS ES affiliated colleges will be able to use GoToMeeting's simple, real-time desktop video conferencing to connect face-to-face with other students, faculty, and support staff, regardless of location.

Reflecting on the significance of the news, TCS Education System President & CEO Michael Horowitz said, "One of our organization's chief objectives is to always seek new technology to enhance the advancement of teaching and learning. We found that platform with GoToMeeting. It's collaborative; it builds and strengthens relationships; and it gives students within our system a new tool to connect with each other."

TCS ES originally began offering GoToMeeting with HDFaces last spring for faculty and staff. It was soon embraced by individuals seeing the benefits of an online environment where as many as six people can be seen and heard in high-definition with the ability for all users to easily start and join video conferencing sessions from their computers. For instance, TCS ES found significant adoption as part of a comprehensive internationalization plan to enhance opportunities for international education across its affiliated schools.

"We saw a swift adoption rate across the System and colleges on the faculty and staff side and are even more eager to see where the students take the platform," said Donald Tom, associate vice president of information technology services for TCS ES. "Technology is at its best when it enhances collaboration and brings people closer together. We think GoToMeeting delivers both to our learning community." Among the ideas being explored for new uses of GoToMeeting at TCS ES are virtual student project and study rooms, virtual dissertation defenses for online-blended students, holding student association meetings, and a new means for students to collaborate across multiple campuses.

Citrix VP and GM of Collaboration Bernardo de Albergaria agrees. "As one of the first adopters of GoToMeeting with HDFaces, TCS Education System has continued to demonstrate its progressive approach toward collaboration and learning in and outside the classroom," he said. "Now every student enrolled in colleges within TCS ES will have access to the benefits of elegantly simple, high definition real-time desktop video conferencing. In one click, students can use GoToMeeting with HDFaces to schedule and participate in face-to-face online meetings with other students and faculty, regardless of campus location. We're proud to support the organization's technology goals and ensure its collaborative learning mission is realized."

Citrix GoToMeeting with HDFaces delivers high-definition video, web and audio for a natural, real-time face-to-face collaboration experience. In one click, users can join meetings in high-definition video with the ability to see facial expressions, show physical objects like hardware or whiteboards, and build trust at any distance. GoToMeeting enables anyone with an Internet connection and either a Mac and PC, to host, attend, and participate in an online meeting within seconds. The service is now transforming virtual meetings through its HDFaces feature, supporting new ways of working and collaborating across distributed workgroups and organizations. GoToMeeting can be downloaded quickly and easily at www.gotomeeting.com.

About TCS Education System:
TCS Education System (TCS ES) was founded in 2009 as a nonprofit organization with a mission of preparing innovative, engaged, purposeful agents of change who serve our global community.

TCS ES features a network of specialized institutions, which are backed by a model of education that prepares socially responsible, culturally competent professionals in applied fields such as psychology, law, and education. TCS ES' affiliated colleges and graduate schools—The Chicago School of Professional Psychology, The Santa Barbara & Ventura Colleges of Law, and Pacific Oaks College—each offer scholarship, training, and service opportunities directed to a specific career path while providing a transformative educational experience. Other System affiliates include Garfield Park Preparatory Academy, a K-8 elementary school on Chicago's West Side devoted to delivering a progressive, evidence-based curriculum, and Pacific Oaks Children's School in Pasadena, Calif., which for more than 60 years, has been at the forefront of early childhood education—providing a range of progressive programs for children 6 months through 6 years of age. For more information, visit www.tcsedsystem.edu.

CONTACT: Matthew Nehmer
(312) 329-6672
[email protected]

SOURCE TCS Education System