This study examines the research question of what institutional characteristics as well as demographics predict the level of commitment to distance education among colleges and universities in California. For the study 4-year, baccalaureate level and above colleges and universities as well as community colleges in California were observed. The dependent variable in this study was the commitment to distance education, as determined by the percent of distance education programs measured out of total academic programs the schools respectively offered, the percent of students enrolled exclusively in distance learning programs, the percent of undergraduate students enrolled exclusively in distance learning programs, and the percent of graduate students enrolled exclusively in distance learning programs. The independent variables were the percentage of students receiving any type of financial aid, the percentage of students receiving Pell grants, the percentage of undergraduate students aged 25-64 years, total enrollment, the percentage of Asian students, the percentage of Black students, the percentage of Hispanic (Latino) students, the percentage of White students, the percentage of students admitted, average salary equated to 9 months of full-time instructional staff, the percentage of students submitting an SAT score, SAT score, ratio of students to faculty, and the categories of institutions such as public vs. private, for-profit vs. non-profit, 4- year vs. community college, and religious vs. secular. These institutional factors are gathered by the IPEDS (Integrated Postsecondary Education Data System) in relation to the levels of distance learning commitment. All of the observed institutions were evaluated with these variables and data were collected accordingly from this database system. This research project conducted ordinary least squares (OLS) regression analyses, correlation tests, and difference of means tests, as well as calculated basic descriptive statistics such as means and standard deviations, to assess whether the independent variables displayed statistically significant relationships with the dependent variables of distance learning commitment. The key findings from the difference of means test are that private institutions are more likely to have higher levels of commitment than public institutions and for-profit colleges are found to have higher levels of commitment than non-profit colleges. This study discovers that the 4-year institutions offer a significantly higher percent of distance programs than the community colleges and that the religious institutions provide a higher percent of distance programs than the secular institutions. Also, those variables that are significant (the percentage of undergraduate students aged 25-64 years, the percentage of Asian students representing minority students, and the institutional category of public vs. private) in the regression models when examining all the institutions of higher education in California maintain their statistical significance when excluding institutions that are 0% and 100% online as well as smaller institutions. Meanwhile, there are mixed findings for the impact of financial aid. There was a positive relationship in the OLS regression analyses between total enrollment at an institution and the commitment to distance education. The results of this study can be informative for the future of higher education as online education becomes more prevalent.