July 24, 2005

Institute About to Get New Website

On Tuesday, July 26--if all goes as planned--the Wilmette Institute will get a new website, Forum, and registration system. The new website will have a whole new look and will be easier to navigate about, with large sections of the main page devoted to news and to upcoming courses. The registration system will automatically add the students' usernames and passwords to the course's main page and the course's Forum, which means as soon as students register and pay by credit card, they will be able to open both.

This is a great improvement over the current system, where student usernames and passwords cannot be added to the course main page or Forums at all. As a result, in the current system students have to use a master username and password to access the course main page, and they have to register a second time to use the Forum, or the Institute has to register them itself and give them a different username and password. The old system generated constant confusion. Software that allows students to register for a course and be automatically added to a course's web pages and Forums--such as WebCT and Blackboard--are readily available and widely used by universities, but cost tens of thousands of dollars per year to lease. The Wilmette Institute's system, developed by the Information Technology Department of the National Spiritual Assembly, will accomplish almost the same tasks as the expensive systems, but at a fraction of the cost.

The switchover will result in some complications. Currently existing courses will continue to use the same Forum and web pages they have been using. This means current students will have to "click through" to the old main page of the Institute or save the course page as a "favorite" in their web browser. New students and persons wishing to learn about the Institute will have to "click through" to the new main page of the Institute.

Registration will also have a twist: anyone wishing to register for One Common Faith or Christianity for Deepening and Dialogue or any course that started in June will not be able to use the new registration system. They will have to email the Institute, whose staff will have to complete their registration for them.

Payment will also be done in a new way: students will have to pay by credit card if they want immediate access to the course website and Forum. The site is secure for credit card payment, so this is the recommended and preferred system. Otherwise they will have to email or call the Institute and set up their payment plan. The Institute personnel will then give them the name and password for a "usergroup" that the student will use to complete registration. The current system has been fiscally sloppy and the Institute has had trouble collecting tuition payments from some students afterward. The new system will be more efficient. It is hoped that almost everyone will pay by credit card, simplifying the Institute's financial accounting system, a good thing for its very small staff.

If anyone wants to sign up for One Common Faith or Christianity for Deepening and Dialogue, they are urged to do so before Tuesday, when the new registration system is launched. If anyone has any questions, contact the Wilmette Institute at info@wilmetteinstitute.org.
 

View our Informational Slide Show

July 11, 2005

Course on Christianity Back By Popular Demand

On Friday, July 15, the Wilmette Institute will repeat a course that has been very popular the four times it was offered previously: Christianity for Deepening and Dialogue. The purpose

of the course is not to review biblical prophecy or assist Bahá'ís to teach the Faith to their Christian neighbors as much as it is about deepening--deep study of Christianity, which will shed light on the Bahá'í Faith--and dialogue, the ability to listen to Christians and explain the Bahá'í perspective to them effectively. To that end, the course will cover the life of Jesus of Nazareth, the rise of Christianity, the formation of Christian scriptures, traditional Christian teachings, Christian prophecy, the development of Christianity during during the middle age and reformations, and the diversity of Christian groups today. The course should help Bahá'ís appreciate the wide variety of Christians and their differing views and help place Bahá'í perspectives right in the middle of the Christian spectrum. The course readings come from a variety of sources and include some standard world religions texts about Christianity as well writings from Bahá'ís and Bahá'í scriptures.

About the course Christianity for Deepening and Dialogue    Information    Register     Informational Flier

 
NOTE: In the next two weeks, the Wilmette Institute will be getting a new website! When the switchover occurs, we will also be getting a new registration system that will be easier to use and new course Forums. At that point, it will not be possible to register for One Common Faith, Christianity for Deepening and Dialogue, and other courses that are already running via the website (though we will still be able to handle the registration by hand via the telephone or email). If you are interested in either course, please be sure to register before July 20.
 

July 1, 2005

One Common Faith Course Postponed Ten Days

The course on One Common Faith will start on July 10, ten days later than originally planned. The delay has not been caused by the course registrations which are vigorous. Four local study groups have already registered for the course, a remarkably large number. The delay instead is caused by communications problems. The Institute's director is on vacation until July 5th

in Canada and is very limited in his access to the internet and worldwide web, making it impossible to obtain all the registration information and information sent by faculty. When he returns on July 5th he will need a few days to complete plans for the course. The extra time will probably be helpful to groups trying to form right before the national holidays in the United States and Canada anyway.