Ryan Johnson Columnist

Recruiters pressured to increase enrollment in order for an upcoming profit report. A "red room" for underperforming salesmen. Bonuses quadrupling one's salary, just based on number of students enrolled.

No wonder the University of Phoenix finds itself in trouble this week for shady practices. These type of sales tactics combined with misleading statements about financial aid and transfer credit have resulted in charges by the federal government and a nearly $10 million settlement.

Clearly, high pressure sales combined with education is a bad mix.

But don't dismiss what the University of Phoenix and its 129,000 online students have started.

No, this scandal doesn't signal the end of online education. Rather, it will be merely a blip in its never-ending growth.

So where's the UA at?

Actually, farther along than you might think. In fall 2000, the Arizona Board of Regents created what's called the Arizona Regents University. It's basically just a title for classes that are that are available to students of UA, ASU and NAU.

Of the 1,700 total classes, three quarters of them are strictly online. This year, students took 40,000 classes.

Imagine: no worries about classrooms. Being able to easily add more students. Taking small groups interested from three universities and creating one full class.

Imagine combining the best professors from each of the three universities. So UA students would have access to NAU biology professor Paul Keim, one of the world's leading experts on anthrax, and other universities would be able to share UA chemistry professor David Spurgeon.

Or think bigger. Think revenue. Think Andrew Weil, the famous integrative medicine professor, teaching an online class. If the University of Phoenix can get 129,000 students without any well-known professors, imagine the demad UA professors could generate.

This isn't to say the UA should grow to 129,000 students, but rather that online classes, or at least some elements of online classes, could improve the experience for those already here.

But alas the immediate objection is always teaching quality. Currently, online classes can't match a real class in terms of ease of presentation.

But don't use technology as an excuse. It will only get better. We should continue programs such as Arizona Regents University, and as technology improves, we'll be prepared to take full advantage of it.

And in fact, there are actually benefits right now.

Think Andrew Weil, the famous integrative medicine professor, teaching an online class. If the University of Phoenix can get 129,000 students without any wel -known professors, imagine the demand UA professors could generate.

Students love that rather than being at class at 8 a.m., they can log on to the class at home, without having to get dressed or find a parking spot.

Or they could be in Phoenix. Or New York. Or Australia.

And as hard as it is to believe, student-student and student-teacher interaction may actually go up.

For example, I'm currently taking PLN 468, urban transportation, online from NAU (which in itself shows some of the benefits of online classes. The UA planning department is being eliminated, so why not use other school's planning departments to fill the gap?).

The professor has students run a discussion board, and requires posts and debate as part of the class. The professor can then monitor discourse directly. He knows that I've made 14 posts, four original and 10 replies, and that I've sent eight e-mails. He can then go look at each individual e-mail and send comments.

What happens in a regular class when the professor says to 75 students, "Now discuss this topic with your neighbor?" I'd bet that more than half the conversations are about football and nail polish.

And for creative cost-cutting strategies, there are seemingly limitless possibilities for online classes.

For example, the University of Phoenix uses its clout to force textbook publishers to sell heavily discounted online versions of required textbooks.

Actually, we don't even have to look far to see the benefits of online classes. Many professors now use systems such as WebCT and Blackboard for things like online quizzes, which save time and allow professors to do more regular check-ups on students.

Some universities, like Harvard, film selected classes, which are then available for students. This service is particularly popular for early morning classes, as you can imagine.

Harvard? Clearly online learning is legit. Ignoring its growth will just cause some universities to fall behind unnecessarily.

Online classes are here to stay. It's up to the UA to decide which side of the trend it will be on.

Don't confuse the bad business practices of the University of Phoenix with the promise of online classes.

So give online learning some time, but don't let the UA wait for it. We need to chase after it.

Ryan Johnson is an international studies and economics junior. He can be reached at letters@wildcat.arizona.edu.