LITTLE ROCK - Arkansas Governor Mike
Huckabee, chairman of the Southern Regional
Education Board, today announced a new SREB
online initiative for adults who need help
to get more education to get a job, to keep
a job, to get a better job or to earn a
degree.The Ways In Mentor Web site, which
was launched by Governor Huckabee at the
University of Arkansas at Little Rock here,
is especially designed for adults and
electronic learners. It provides one-stop
help and resources - whether the person
needs a GED, a college course or an entire
degree program.
“Ways In Mentor will make access to
learning easier for anyone in Arkansas - or
anywhere else - and will fit with current
Arkansas efforts in online learning,”
Governor Huckabee said. “Ways In Mentor,
which builds on SREB's extensive experience
in sharing resources across the Southern
states, is unique in its focus on adult
learners. Just over a year ago, I announced
that SREB and Xap would create Ways In
Mentor. Today, I am proud to announce that
it is a reality.”
Ways In Mentor, an initiative of SREB,
involves a partnership with the Xap
Corporation, the California-based company
which has developed Mentor sites in 11 SREB
states and 35 sites nationally. Ways In
Mentor will tie in with SREB's Electronic
Campus, which in six years has grown to
more than 8,000 courses and 380 degree
programs delivered electronically from
colleges and universities in all 16 SREB
states.
Allen Firstenberg, the president and CEO
of the Xap Corporation, said “the
partnership with SREB is a unique and
exciting one for Xap. This initiative adds
an important dimension of serving adult and
e-learners to the many services already
available in our Mentor systems. We are
honored to be part of this innovative
effort.”
Mark Musick, the president of SREB, said
that Ways In Mentor is a 21st century
example of how states can work together and
use technology to multiply the benefits for
students while dramatically reducing costs.
SREB's efforts to use technology to meet the
needs of adults through an online teacher
center and online courses for nursing
faculty fit perfectly with Ways In Mentor.
“Ways In Mentor also ties in with SREB's
Challenge to Lead Goals for Education,
which assert that SREB states can lead the
nation in educational progress and provide
more college-level education for adults,” he
said.
The Ways In Mentor Web site provides a
number of specific services for adults
seeking further education, including help in
finding courses, applying to colleges and
obtaining financial aid. It can be reached
from any Internet computer at
www.waysinmentor.org.
The Southern Regional Education Board,
headquartered in Atlanta, was created in
1948 by Southern governors and legislatures
to help leaders in education and government
work cooperatively to advance education and
improve the social and economic life of the
region. The SREB has 16 member states:
Alabama, Arkansas, Delaware, Florida,
Georgia, Kentucky, Louisiana, Maryland,
Mississippi, North Carolina, Oklahoma, South
Carolina, Tennessee, Texas, Virginia and
West Virginia. Each state is represented by
its governor and four gubernatorial
appointees.
The Xap Corporation was established in
1990 and was the pioneer in electronic and
Internet-based information management
systems for college-bound students. Xap is
the first company to directly partner with
associations and institutions of higher
learning to develop regional,
university-approved Mentor Web sites. A
Mentor site utilizes the Internet to
efficiently guide students through the
comparison, selection, and application to
admission and financial aid stages of
preparing for college.
