In late August, I had the opportunity to join the National Governors Association’s Intersectional Policy Lab on Non-Degree Credentials and Skills-Based Practices in Minneapolis. This first in-person gathering of NGA’s Data and Non-Degree Credential Learning Community and Skills in the States Community of Practice brought together state leaders, researchers, foundations, and employers for two days…
Read MoreWhen the New York Times ran a piece in August pointing out that companies are throwing billions into AI with little to show for it, I had déjà vu. It took me right back to the late 1990s, when everyone thought the web would change everything overnight. It did change everything—but not before years of…
Read MoreUniversity budgets across the country are broken. Overall revenue and accumulated financial support appear to be declining at most universities for a wide variety of reasons. New funding policies, administrative reorganizations such as those at the Department of Education, lean fiscal times for states, diminished regard for higher learning, fewer requirements for degrees among employers…
Read MoreFall semesters are just beginning and the companies offering three leading AI models: Gemini by Google, Claude by Anthropic and ChatGPT by OpenAI have rolled out tools to facilitate AI-enhanced learning. Here’s a comparison and how to get them. Each of the three leading AI providers has taken a somewhat different approach to providing an…
Read MoreNew Research: UPCEA Reveals Key Findings on Alternative Credentials
UPCEA shares business and program model insights in grant-funded study WASHINGTON (January 8, 2024) – UPCEA, the online and professional education association, is proud to share findings and takeaways from a new research study, Alternative Credentials: Business and Program Models. The research, supported by a grant from Walmart, is part of UPCEA’s “Building Capacity, Expanding…
Bipartisan Bills on Workforce Pell and WIOA Retooling Introduced in US House of Representatives | Policy Matters (December 2023)
Major Updates Bipartisan Bills on Workforce Pell and WIOA Retooling Introduced in US House of Representatives A bipartisan group of the U.S. House of Representatives has released the Bipartisan Workforce Pell Act, a bill to expand eligibility of Pell Grants for shorter-term programs; and separately, A Stronger Workforce for America Act, a bill making significant…
UPCEA Welcomes New Board and Committee Members
WASHINGTON, December 7, 2023 – UPCEA, the online and professional education association, is pleased to announce the election of new officers and new directors to serve on the UPCEA Board of Directors. Elected in November, these individuals will assume their roles at the conclusion of the 2024 UPCEA Annual Conference in Boston, Massachusetts on March…
UPCEA Releases 2024 Predictions for Online & Professional Education
The maturation of online learning, the explosion of AI, the continuing declines in enrollment, and the rise in the importance of ROI, for students and institutions – these are among the converging factors that are shaking up the status quo in higher education. In this environment, online and professional continuing education is poised to play…
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…
Read MoreOver the last three years, UPCEA engaged in an innovative partnership with the University of Wisconsin–Madison to enable the latter’s Distance Teaching and Learning (DT&L) conference to continue under UPCEA’s leadership. The partnership’s goals included making this valuable event for the distance learning community more sustainable and accessible to online practitioners focused on teaching and…
Read MoreSince the 1980s, higher education has steadily shifted from passive lectures to more active, student-centered learning. As Bonwell and Eison noted in Active Learning: Creating Excitement in the Classroom, this shift not only reinforces content mastery but also fosters critical thinking and problem-solving. Cynthia J. Brame, writing for Vanderbilt’s Center for Teaching, defines active learning…
Read MoreTurn learners into the cyber pros every employer is chasing with stackable, multi-credential pathways The Cyber Talent Gap Is a Moving Target Picture this: the bad guys keep upgrading their playbook, but the good guys are still running last season’s plays. That’s the cyber talent gap in a nutshell. It’s not just about more people…
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