As a lover of science fiction, I find myself picking movie genres that depict a future society fighting against the tyranny of unfair rulers protecting what they think is a utopian society. Ultimately, the masses win and freedom reigns. What our future society will look like depends on many things. Whether it will be dystopia…
Read MoreIn reflection of my reading or movie choices, I just now realized that my genre of movies centers around how society must survive in the future. There is a clear adversary and the inhabitants of the future city have an opportunity for freedom from tyranny. It’s a struggle for potential utopia or the choice of…
Read MoreArtificial intelligence is recognizing and responding to human emotions, oftentimes better than many humans. As a long-time professor of communication, I am fascinated with the cognitive characteristics of artificial intelligence as they relate to human communication. Image processing, computer vision, speech recognition, and pattern recognition are parts of the sophisticated processes in artificial intelligence communicating with…
Read MoreVisioning is an essential, active process, requiring daily attention. We have both the good fortune and bothersome misfortune to live in a time of rapid change in online higher education. Technologies, pedagogies, practices and competition are in flux. Choosing among the options is a critical task of the online learning administrator. The stakes are very…
Read MoreEmboldening Student Driven Learning in the Online Environment
By SmartBrief Editors This post is produced in partnership with UPCEA. The world of professional, continuing and online education is in constant flux. Former associate dean of academic affairs at Syracuse University and current University of North Carolina at Greensboro division of online learning dean, Dr. Karen Bull provides her perspective in this online…
Policy Matters | Sen. Alexander wants to pass scaled-back HEA (September 2019)
Welcome to the fourth installment in our monthly public policy primer, Policy Matters. Each issue has the latest updates and actionable items in public policy for adult and nontraditional education stakeholders. Major Updates Senator Alexander Announces Intent to Pass Scaled-Back Higher Education Act Reauthorization Senator Lamar Alexander (R-TN) stated he wants to attempt to update broad-based…
Deconstructing the Economic Factors Affecting Professional Learning
By SmartBrief Editors This post is produced in partnership with UPCEA. The desire to advance in a career field or life in general is not enough for individuals who are ready to learn more and better their circumstances. Disparity exists when it comes to post-secondary education, including traditional college, certification programs and other forms of…
Special announcement: UPCEA Membership Roster Changes
As chair of the UPCEA Membership committee, I am pleased to share some exciting news. If you are like my team at the University of Washington, you have more people who could benefit from your institution’s UPCEA membership than you have roster slots. For us, that has meant a constant rotation of staff through a…
Many moons ago I wrote about the UPCEA Hallmark of Excellence in Online Leadership – Professionalism and how online leaders could begin implementing aspects of that Hallmark in their performance appraisals and professional development plans of staff members (see Professionalism and Staff Evals). The other day I read this piece on the Gallup Talent Blog….
Read MoreFriends, it has been a while. Since my last post we’ve hosted several events, I have attended many events, and there has been much news to report. Recently, in my 115th attempt to change how I manage my inbox (as an inbox zero person I am always looking for new tactics to get my inbox…
Read MoreIt’s that time again. Courses are showing up in dashboard, and faculty are beginning to think about what changes they plan to make in their course design. As we near the start of the semester I’d offer these three tips for instructors who look to clean up and streamline their courses. Consider What’s Essential – Fewer Resources A…
Read MoreAfter successfully piloting virtual ThinkTanks in 2018 with Utah State University and Oregon State University, we’re happy to announce the 2019 eDC ThinkTank Roadshow schedule. We’ve tweaked things a bit and the 2019 eDC ThinkTanks will now be free and open to all members of UPCEA! Non-members will be charged a nominal registration fee. We…
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