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CHP TV bolsters teaching tools for faculty by Wally Pregnall College of Health Professions, Dean’s Office It’s not uncommon to overhear people talking about how there is nothing good on TV.  But for those not yet familiar with it, CHP (College of Health Professions) TV is the college’s own television network, allowing an easy way to access video available on demand for students and faculty via both the Internet and intranet.    Video content on CHP TV can be viewed by anyone with an MNA account, and video content can be added to CHP TV by any CHP faculty member or administrative staff with the help of Bud Cooper, CHP IT, and the IT staff.    So how can students and faculty use CHP TV? Currently, the primary uses include recorded classroom presentations, special events and demonstrations, but there are few limitations as to how this new capability can be used. With ample space on both internal and external servers, CHP TV can store almost any video a faculty or administrative staff member wants to make available. There are now approximately 200 hours of programming available on CHP TV servers, some of which is available via the internet by going to the CHP home page, clicking on CHP Net, then selecting CHP TV—Video on Demand. Presentations by the candidates for dean are available there, as well as demonstrations of CHP TV’s capabilities.    Perhaps CHP TV’s greatest potential is as a teaching tool. Faculty members who want to use CHP TV for Web CT courses are given a specific Internet address which they make available to students through a web link. Students can then view video material on or off campus; anywhere a high speed internet connection is available. Depending on the particular material and the target audience, videos are streamed over the internet, requiring an MNA account for access; or over the intranet, requiring an additional password for access. In the future, some content, such as the CHP promotional video, may be made available through CHP TV without the requirement of an MNA account for access. Any copyrighted material that is permissible for use in the classroom can also be made available via CHP TV as long as it is password protected, used as part of a course and accessible only to individuals taking the course. Because storage space is plentiful at this point, programming will remain on the servers indefinitely, and the IT staff will check with faculty or staff before removing any programming. As CHP TV becomes more utilized, a more formal policy will likely be developed to address time limitations for content.   Another feature of CHP TV is the ability to send and receive video and audio between the CHP A and B Buildings and the MUSC Educational Technology Services master control room in the Basic Sciences Building. This means that CHP can receive satellite teleconferences, the SCETV Satellite system and other feeds from the rest of the campus and distribute them to all CHP classrooms, labs and conference rooms in the complex—all in real time via the intranet. The reverse is also true, meaning that in addition to being able to broadcast from classroom to classroom within the CHP complex, CHP TV can also broadcast through the Educational Technology Services master control to ETV in Columbia. From there, the feed can be uplinked to the ETV satellite for a nominal fee and distributed to approximately 1,600 sites in South Carolina. For a more substantial fee the CHP feed can also be linked to commercial satellites for broadcast anywhere in the world.   The exciting potential of CHP TV is yet another example of CHP’s advances in technology, accomplishing today what could only be dreamed of in the not-too-distant past.   For those who wish to take advantage of CHP TV’s many capabilities, contact Bud Cooper at cooperbu@musc.edu. Cooper must receive one week’s notice prior to making content available on CHP TV.     Friday, Feb. 9, 2007 Catalyst Online is published weekly, updated as needed and improved from time to time by the MUSC Office of Public Relations for the faculty, employees and students of the Medical University of South Carolina. Catalyst Online editor, Kim Draughn, can be reached at 792-4107 or by email, catalyst@musc.edu. Editorial copy can be submitted to Catalyst Online and to The Catalyst in print by fax, 792-6723, or by email to catalyst@musc.edu. To place an ad in The Catalyst hardcopy, call Island Publications at 849-1778, ext. 201.