There’s a moment from my college days I remember more clearly than any midterm I ever took. I had stepped away from my bachelor’s degree at Penn State because I wanted to live a little. I’d grown up in the same town that I went to college and I just needed an extended reprieve, something…
Read MoreIs your online and professional continuing education unit looking for ways to improve job-market outcomes for graduates and alumni? Are you exploring strategies that better align your program portfolio with the skills business and industry leaders say they need both for new hires and for upskilling current employees? Recent employer data provides a clear signal that high-demand employees are ones with verified AI skills and practical experience. A 2025…
Read MoreAgentic AI is no longer merely an interactive tool we talk to; it is a colleague that acts for us. In a very active and highly competitive environment, AI has grown at breakneck speed. As with so many technologies, business and industry have moved far faster than academe to embrace the cost savings, capability expanding…
Read MoreAI in Higher Ed Will Come Slowly, Until All of a Sudden! Higher education is, by nature, very slow to change. So it is with embracing Artificial Intelligence (AI). Yet, when it finally comes, the changes will come in an avalanche. In discussions with faculty and staff, I have encountered some reluctance to take AI…
Read More[Webinar Recording] Beyond Self-Care – Mental Health in Times of COVID
The COVID-19 pandemic placed enormous stress on all aspects of the educational system. Technological and human resources were required to adopt at lighting speed in order to maintain continuity of delivery. One aspect that was especially stressed and often overlooked was the mental health and well-being of all participants, administrators, faculty, and students alike. This…
Policy Matters | New COVID Relief Bill Passes with Higher Education Support; Biden Picks Secretary of Education Nominee (December 2020)
Major Updates New COVID Relief Bill Passes with $23B Emergency Support for Higher Education; Includes Broadband Support, FAFSA Simplification and Federal Aid Eligibility for Incarcerated Students Following months of inaction, Congress has passed a massive COVID relief package, attached to the spending bill which averted a government shutdown. While UPCEA and others have argued that the…
2020 UPCEA Marketing and Enrollment Award Recipients Announced
20 Recipients Chosen For Special 2020 Awards WASHINGTON, D.C., December 7, 2020 — UPCEA, the leader in professional, continuing, and online education, has announced the recipients of the 2020 Excellence in Enrollment Management Award and the 2020 UPCEA Crisis Management Marketing Award. In light of the challenges facing UPCEA members, who are leading their institutions…
In Memoriam: Keith Bailey
Long-time UPCEA member and colleague Keith Bailey (1970-2020) passed away in early December 2020. Dr. Bailey served as Assistant Provost for Teaching and Learning and Dean of WVU Online at West Virginia University. In this role, he oversaw the day-to-day operations of both WVU Online and the University’s Teaching and Learning Commons. Dr. Bailey previously…
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…
Read MoreWe 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 MoreIntroduction Higher education is at a crossroads, marked by declining public trust, diminishing enrollments, substantial budget cuts, and increased scrutiny on post-college outcomes. Recent research from UPCEA underscores growing skepticism about the value of traditional degrees, driving institutions and learners alike to explore innovative educational pathways and revenue models (UPCEA, 2025). To address these challenges…
Read MoreOnline programs are no longer a nice-to-have. They are essential, with many schools looking to online as their primary growth lever amid market headwinds. A strong portfolio of online programs can allow institutions to grow enrollment, reach new student populations, and future-proof their offerings. But building, launching, and sustaining a successful online program operation requires…
Read More