Shifting Student and Employer Priorities Create Opportunities for Higher Education Interest and innovation in workforce-related programming and credentials continue to surge, emerging as one of the fastest growing markets in higher education. Two-thirds of colleges and universities are making significant investments in this area, with more than one-third also embedding professional certifications into their online…
Read MoreInstitutions must begin preparing now for 2026 implementation. On July 4, 2025, Congress passed the One Big Beautiful Bill Act (OBBBA), a sweeping legislative package that reshapes federal student aid and accountability policy. Among many consequential provisions for higher education is the creation of Workforce Pell, which will extend Pell Grant eligibility to some short-term,…
Read MoreWe have begun a transformation in higher education that will make us more responsive, efficient, and effective at achieving our multiple missions. This will not be easy or without trauma, but it is necessary. I had the honor and good fortune to be invited by the generous and insightful Board Chair of the International Professors…
Read MoreAn artifact of the race to the top in Artificial Intelligence (AI) is that mistakes inevitably occur in refining the models that are under continuous development. One of those many mistakes apparently led to hallucinations in outputs. We all are witness to the incredibly frenetic race to develop AI tools that publicly kicked off on…
Read MoreUPCEA Announces Creation of Gregory Milton Memorial Scholarship
WASHINGTON, December 7, 2022 – UPCEA, the Washington, D.C.-based association for college and university leaders in professional, continuing, and online education, is honored to announce the establishment of the Gregory Milton Memorial Scholarship. The memorial scholarship, created through a generous donation from Linda Rose, honors the life of her son, Gregory Milton, Ph.D. A longtime…
UPCEA and AACRAO Announce 2023 Conference to Examine the Emergent Field of Alternative Credentials in Higher Education
‘Convergence: Credential Innovation in Higher Education’ will gather credential innovation stakeholders, Nov. 1-3, 2023, in Washington, DC WASHINGTON, D.C. (Nov. 17, 2022) – The University Professional and Continuing Education Association (UPCEA) and the American Association of Collegiate Registrars and Admissions Officers (AACRAO) announced today they will jointly present a new conference in 2023 focused on…
Survey: 3 in 10 Students Lose Significant Academic Credits Transferring Between Colleges
A new study from UPCEA and StraighterLine examines barriers and motivations for transfer students with implications for institutions, finds 30% of students lose at least a quarter of existing academic credit WASHINGTON, D.C. (November 17, 2022) – UPCEA (University Professional and Continuing Education Association), the largest association of adult and continuing education units at colleges…
Department of Education Releases Final Rules on 90/10 Rule, Incarcerated Individuals, Borrower Defense, Debt Relief Programs, Among Others | Policy Matters (October 2022)
Major Updates Submission Form for Federal Student Loan Forgiveness Opens; Accepting Applications Through End of 2023 The application for federal student loan forgiveness for up to $20,000 for eligible individuals opened earlier this month. Though the deadline to submit for forgiveness is December 31, 2023, student loan borrowers are encouraged to submit prior to November…
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 MoreThere are few conferences that truly bring together such an inspiring mix of vision, innovation, and authenticity as UPCEA’s Convergence. This year, the event in Washington D.C. proved why it’s one of my favorite gatherings in the field of continuing education. The energy, the openness, and the collective drive to redefine learning for a changing…
Read MoreInnovation attracts attention, and not all of it good. Protecting data, students, and credibility now means securing every AI experiment before it secures you. The Bright Side, and the Blind Spots, of AI in Higher Ed AI is higher ed’s new favorite partner and, like any power couple, it comes with complications. It’s rewriting…
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