When UPCEA released the original Hallmarks of Excellence in Online Leadership in 2016, online education was widely viewed as an emerging modality. A decade later, the landscape has shifted. The newly released 2026 Hallmarks of Excellence in Digital Learning Enterprises (2026 Hallmarks) reflects a higher education ecosystem where digital capability is no longer an add-on,…
Technology may be the most visible element of a digital learning enterprise. It is also one of the easiest to misunderstand. Institutions invest considerable resources in learning management systems, student information systems, customer relationship management platforms, analytics, communication tools, instructional technologies, cybersecurity, and an expanding array of emerging technologies. Each promises opportunities to improve some…
I am an advocate for AI and the vast possibilities for advancement it can bring across the world. Yet, these advancements must not be rushed lest we risk unintended consequences. In this high-tech, high-competition environment in the AI field, we are seeing new versions of models rolled out by the frontier companies (OpenAI, Google and…
After nearly four long years of evolving and often conflicting policies since ChatGPT officially emerged, high profile public school districts have decided they now need a moratorium on use of AI to provide even more time to consider policies and practices. Readers of this column know that I generally constrain topics to higher education, however,…
UPCEA Recognizes 2025 Award Recipients at the Summit for Online Leadership and Administration Conference (SOLAR)
Association Award Recipients Highlighted at Event WASHINGTON (July 17, 2025) – UPCEA, the online and professional education association, is pleased to recognize the recipients of this year’s online and distance education awards. Award recipients will be showcased at the Summit for Online Leadership and Administration (SOLAR) Conference, July 22-24 in Portland, Oregon. The annual SOLAR…
Unlocking Opportunity: How Tax Policies Like Section 127 Can Drive Employer Partnerships
By Chelsea Miller, UpSkill America, and Amy Heitzman, UPCEA Partnership is a key driver to unlocking opportunity in America, which is why UPCEA and UpSkill America are so excited to come together to help academic institutions understand one particular priority for employers: leveraging tax policies to drive engagement (really!). UpSkill America focuses on how employers…
Foreword by Bob Hansen Featured in The COLO Guidebook
We are pleased to share the foreword by UPCEA CEO Bob Hansen from the newly released Chief Online Learning Officers’ Guidebook: A Framework for Strategy and Practice in Higher Education. The guidebook, now available from Routledge in paperback, hardback, and eBook formats, provides a comprehensive framework for today’s online learning leaders. Learn more and purchase…
International Student Visa Review Resumes, Social Media Vetting Instituted | Policy Matters (June 2025)
Major Updates Trump Administration Resumes Embassy Review on Student Visas, Implements Social Media Vetting Requirements The Trump Administration has lifted its pause on F‑, M‑, and J‑visa processing but simultaneously unleashed sweeping new social-media vetting requirements: all international student applicants must now make their Facebook, X, Instagram and other accounts public for consular review, with…
In 1915, UPCEA’s founders built this association on a simple idea: carrying knowledge to the people. That founding purpose never had an expiration date, and it does not have one now. It is why, more than a century later, the question in front of us was never whether professional learning needs to change. It is…
The tagline for Convergence, Credential Innovation in Higher Education, raises two important questions: First, what kind of credentials are we talking about? Is the scope of credentials unlimited, blue sky, or confined to incremental changes on the margins of the status quo? And second, who is leading that innovation, and what do they need to…
Cut the Roles, or Support the People? When generative AI began fielding most of IKEA’s customer service questions, the company faced a choice familiar to any employer navigating fast-moving technology: cut the affected roles, or retrain the people in them. IKEA retrained them. The retailer built a program that moved 8,500 customer service employees into…
As a student affairs professional, I’ve spent much of my career helping students connect what they’re learning to where it might take them. Along the way, students have taught me something: they are more open to unexpected career possibilities than we sometimes give them credit for. When I introduced students to professions or credentials they had…