Incubator grant supports critical work to align data practices and learning mobility frameworks to benefit today’s learners

WASHINGTON July 31, 2025 – UPCEA, the online and professional education association, has launched a national initiative to advance credential transparency and learner mobility through improved data quality and institutional capacity-building. The project titled, “Synchronizing Pathways: Expanding Institutional Capacity for Improving Credential Data Quality and Learning Mobility” supports the growing need for clear, transferable, and career-relevant non-degree credentials, particularly for adult learners navigating dynamic educational and workforce landscapes.

This project addresses two deeply intertwined areas—data quality and learning mobility—that are vital to ensuring that non-degree credentials deliver real value for learners and employers. By unifying national conversations and building institutional capacity in these areas, UPCEA aims to help institutions clearly articulate and support the outcomes of noncredit credentials while facilitating improved pathways for credential transferability and career relevance. This work is made possible through an incubator grant from Strada Education Foundation.

“We are thrilled to partner with Strada to elevate and synchronize the national dialogue around data quality and learning mobility,” said Amy Heitzman, Deputy CEO and Chief Learning Officer at UPCEA, serving as grant co-Lead. “By helping institutions track, communicate, and optimize the value of non-degree credentials, we’re working to transform fragmented data into pathways of opportunity for today’s learners.”

The one-year grant will support a wide range of activities including:

• Plenary sessions at UPCEA’s Convergence 2025 conference, co-hosted with AACRAO, focused on credential data and learning mobility.
• Virtual and in-person strategic conversations to spotlight promising practices and frameworks.
• A publication on the state of credential data quality and implementation of learning mobility frameworks from the perspective of professional & online education.

This initiative is aligned with UPCEA’s existing vision of empowering institutional leaders to meet the needs of working adult learners through scalable, sustainable innovation. The project builds on UPCEA’s 110 years of effort, including, most recently, the Council for Credential Innovation (CCI), the Credential Innovation Network, and recent grant-funded initiatives expanding employer engagement.The project brings needed clarity and coordination to the credentialing space, helping institutions align data systems and practices that ultimately benefit learners, institutions, and employers alike.

The grant comes at a pivotal moment: more than 41.9 million adults in the U.S. have some college but no credential—a growing population in need of stackable, short-term, industry-aligned educational options. This project will directly benefit UPCEA’s more than 400 institutional members—representing more than 15,000 faculty and staff—and will have a far-reaching impact through partnerships with key organizations.

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About UPCEA
UPCEA is the online and professional education association. Our members continuously reinvent higher education, positively impacting millions of lives. We proudly lead and support them through cutting edge research, professional development, networking and mentorship, conferences and seminars, and stakeholder advocacy. Our collaborative, entrepreneurial community brings together decision makers and influencers in education, industry, research, and policy interested in improving educational access and outcomes. Learn more about us at UPCEA.edu and follow us on social media @UPCEA.

Contact:
Jean Simmons, UPCEA Director of Marketing
[email protected]