The recently released UPCEA Hallmarks of Excellence in Digital Learning Enterprises reflect the continued evolution of digital learning from an emerging modality to a mission-critical component of institutional strategy. This series explores each Hallmark, why it matters for today’s institutions, and how institutional leaders can begin using the accompanying benchmarks to assess progress and guide…
When we reflected on the first three weeks of the UPCEA AI Study Groups in early June, one theme had already become clear: AI implementation is not simply a technology challenge. It is a leadership challenge. By the end of the six-week pilot, that theme had deepened. Across two cohorts of UPCEA members, participants moved…
In years gone by, we said that students went to college to gather knowledge. Now, college is appropriately expected to be much more about building wisdom. The expectations of prospective students and families, employers and society at large have shifted. Knowledge and information have become instantaneously available at speeds approximating personal recall. The next step…
OpenAI CEO Sam Altman has floated the idea that the United States Government should become a stockholder in Artificial Intelligence (AI) companies. Yes, actually own shares of the thriving major AI companies! Of course, it is not without precedent that the feds assume partial ownership of private companies. Benjamin D. Connard of Carnegie Investments reports…
UPCEA Congratulates Members Recognized in the 2024 U.S. News & World Report Ranking of Best Online Bachelor’s Programs
21 of Top 25 Ranked Institutions are UPCEA Members WASHINGTON, D.C. (February 20, 2024) — UPCEA, the online and professional education association, is pleased to congratulate the many UPCEA members recognized in the 2024 U.S. News & World Report Best Online Programs rankings. U.S. News rankings include more than 1,750 online programs, covering bachelor’s and…
UPCEA Announces 2024 Association Award Recipients
8 Individuals and 8 Programs Receive Association’s Highest Honors WASHINGTON, February 2, 2024 – UPCEA, the online and professional education association, has announced the recipients of the 2024 Association Awards. The UPCEA Association Awards program includes recognition of both individual and institutional achievement across the UPCEA membership. Since 1953, UPCEA has recognized its members’ outstanding…
The Edge: Missed opportunities in nondegree credentials (The Chronicle of Higher Education)
The untapped possibilities of nondegree credentials Employers have a strong interest in partnering with colleges to design and deliver nondegree programs. Yet more than 45 percent of employers in a recent survey said colleges had never approached them to do so. That’s one finding from a new report by UPCEA, the online and professional education association,…
Distance Education and State Authorization Negotiated Rulemaking Begins | Policy Matters (January 2024)
Major Updates Negotiated Rulemaking Session on Program Integrity and Institutional Quality Begins The U.S. Department of Education has started a Negotiated Rulemaking Session focused on Program Integrity and Institutional Quality. The first session took place January 8–11. The second session will occur from February 5–8, and the final session is scheduled for March 4–7. These…
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…
Adult learners have become an increasingly important focus for higher education institutions. Today, adult learners are not an emerging population. They are the reality shaping the future of higher education. According to the Risepoint 2026 Voice of the Online Learner report, 89% of online learners work while pursuing their education, including 77% who work full…
Your next prospective student has already formed an impression of your program. They just haven’t visited your website yet. Half of prospective students now use AI tools at least weekly. 79% read Google’s AI Overviews. Before a student fills out an RFI form, an AI tool has likely already answered their questions about your program,…