rpalloff@mindspring.com
drkpratt@mindspring.com

Rena M. Palloff, Ph.D., LCSW
      Rena, along with Keith Pratt, is a managing partner of Crossroads Consulting Group, working with institutions, organizations, and corporations interested in the development of online distance learning and training programs. In addition, Rena has consulted extensively in health care, academic settings, and addiction treatment for well over 20 years and now writes online continuing education courses for human services professionals. Rena is faculty at the Fielding Graduate University, in the Educational Leadership and Change Program, acts as Program Director and faculty, along with Keith, for the academic certificate program, Teaching in the Virtual Classroom. She also teaches in Fielding’s online masters’ degree program in Organizational Behavior/Organization Development. In addition, she is adjunct faculty at Capella University in the School of Human Services. Previously, she taught classes on organizational behavior and management and leadership on an adjunct basis for the International Studies Program at Ottawa University in Ottawa, Kansas in various sites throughout the Pacific Rim. Rena received a Bachelors Degree in Sociology from the University of Wisconsin-Madison and a Masters Degree in Social Work from the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee. She holds a Masters Degree in Organizational Development and a Ph.D. in Human and Organizational Systems from The Fielding Graduate University.

Keith Pratt, Ph.D.
      Keith is currently Associate Dean of Distance Learning and Instructional Technology at Northwest Arkansas Community College in Bentonville. He began his government career as a Computer Systems Technician with the Air Force in 1967. After leaving the Air Force, Keith held positions as Registrar and Faculty (Charter College), Director Chapman College, and Trainer and Consultant (The Growth Company). Keith was an Assistant Professor in the International Studies Program and the Chair of the Management Information Systems Program, main campus and overseas, at Ottawa University in Ottawa, Kansas. Keith is currently adjunct faculty at The Fielding Graduate University in Educational Leadership and Change and the Teaching in the Virtual Classroom program, as well as at Baker University and Wayland Baptist University. He previously served as a Senior Project Manager for Datatel, working with community colleges throughout the United States and Canada on administrative software installations. Keith graduated from Wayland Baptist University with a dual degree in Business Administration and Computer Systems Technology. He has a Master of Science Degree in Human Resource Management (with honors) from Chapman University. He holds a Masters Degree in Organizational Development and a Ph.D. in Human and Organizational Systems from The Fielding Graduate University and an honorary Doctorate of Science in Economics from Moscow State University.

Rena and Keith are the authors of the 1999 Frandson Award winning book Building Learning Communities in Cyberspace: Effective Strategies for the Online Classroom (Jossey-Bass, 1999), Lessons from the Cyberspace Classroom (Jossey-Bass, 2001), The Virtual Student (Jossey-Bass, 2003) and Collaborating Online (2005). The books are comprehensive guides to the development of an online environment that helps promote successful learning outcomes while building and fostering a sense of community among the learners. Drs. Palloff and Pratt have been presenting this work across the United States and internationally since 1994 as well as consulting to academic institutions regarding the development of effective distance learning programs.

Copyright ©2006 Crossroads Consulting Group. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed in any form without prior permission.

Keith and Rena on Best Practices
Flash | Real
Text transcript

Our newest book

By Rena Palloff, Ph.D and Keith Pratt, Ph.D. 

Building Online Learning Communities further explores the development of virtual classroom environments that foster a sense of community and empower students to take charge of their learning to successfully achieve learning outcomes. This is the second edition of the groundbreaking book by Rena Palloff and Keith Pratt and has been completely updated and expanded to include the most current information on effective online course development and delivery. A practical, hands-on guide, this resource is filled with illustrative case studies, vignettes, and examples from a wide variety of successful online courses. The authors offer proven strategies for handling challenges that include engaging students in the formation of an online learning community, establishing a sense of presence online, maximizing participation, developing effective courses that include collaboration and reflection, and assessing student performance.
Written for faculty in any distance learning environment, this revised edition is based on the authors' many years of work in faculty development for online teaching as well as their extensive personal experience as faculty in online distance education. Rena M. Palloff and Keith Pratt share insights designed to guide readers through the steps of online course design and delivery.

Our fourth book

By Rena Palloff, Ph.D and Keith Pratt, Ph.D. 

Provides practical guidance for faculty seeking to help their students work together in creative ways, move out of the box of traditional papers and projects, and deepen the learning experience through their work with one another. Authors Rena Palloff and Keith Pratt draw on their extensive knowledge and experience to show how collaboration brings students together to support the learning of each member of the group while promoting creativity and critical thinking. Collaborating Online is the second title in the Jossey-Bass Guides to Online Teaching and Learning. This series helps higher education professionals improve the practice of online teaching and learning by providing concise, practical resources focused on particular areas or issues they might confront in this new learning environment.

Our third book

By Rena Palloff, Ph.D and Keith Pratt, Ph.D. 

The Virtual Student is an essential resource for online educators working with students in higher education and training settings. The authors offer an overview of the key issues of student online learning and provide a practical guide to working with online students. The book covers a broad range of topics including learning styles, multicultural issues, evaluation, retention, and the challenging problems of plagiarism and cheating.

Our second book

By Rena Palloff, Ph.D and Keith Pratt, Ph.D. 

A comprehensive reference for faculty to use to hone their skills as online instructors and for students to use to become more effective online learners. Filled with numerous examples from actual online courses and insights from teachers and students, Lessons from the Cyberspace Classroom covers the entire online teaching process. This essential guide offers helpful suggestions for dealing with such critical issues as evaluating effective courseware, working with online classroom dynamics, addressing the needs of the online student, making the transition to online teaching, and promoting the development of the learning community.

Our first book

By Rena Palloff, Ph.D and Keith Pratt, Ph.D. 

Read Customer Reviews / Order Book

We are proud to announce that our first book has won the University Continuing Education Association's 1999 Philip E. Frandson Award for Literature in Continuing Higher Education. The award is given to the book from 1999 which "best exemplifies originality and a superior quality of prose, concerns higher learning in American colleges and universities, and is important to the theory or practice of continuing education."

Written for faculty, instructors, and trainers in any distance learning environment, Building Learning communities in Cyberspace  shows how to create a virtual classroom environment that helps students excel academically, while fostering a sense of community. This practical, hands-on guide is filled with illustrative case studies, vignettes, and examples from a wide variety of successful online courses.