UPCEA Updates

Your one-stop shop for the latest Association happenings, plus thoughts from the desk of CEO Bob Hansen.

Report: Who Stops Out of College and Why? (Inside Higher Ed)

By UPCEA | December 3, 2021

[…] Jim Fong, chief research officer and director of the Center for Research and Strategy at UPCEA, said students will be greatly disadvantaged if colleges fail to anticipate the hurdles that cause them to leave. “Given the pandemic and the evolution of a new economy, one that relies on automation and information, students will be…

What I Wish I Knew at the Time: Negotiating Agreements

What I Wish I Knew at the Time: Negotiating Agreements

By UPCEA | December 3, 2021

In the summer of 2021, UPCEA surveyed Institutional Representatives (IRs) and Chief Online Learning Officers (COLOs) in order to understand the issues senior leaders were wrestling with at their institutions. One of the topics found in survey responses had to do with working with service providers and vendors. The Council for Chief Online Learning Officers…

Why Do Students Leave College Before Finishing? New Study Looks at Common Scenarios. (EdSurge)

By UPCEA | December 3, 2021

When a student stops out of college before getting a degree, the college should act fast if it wants to get them back. That’s because there’s a correlation between how long a student has been disengaged and the likelihood that they’ll return. “As soon as a student drops out or stops out or disengages, the…

42% of stopped-out young adults cited financial reasons for leaving college, survey finds (Higher Ed Dive)

By UPCEA | December 2, 2021

[…] For college administrators, reenrolling students starts with acknowledging that students are stopping out in the first place, said Jim Fong, founding director of UPCEA’s Center for Research and Strategy. “Colleges often don’t want to admit how many students leave school before graduating,” Fong said. “Institutions don’t want to tell the community, ‘Oh, we lost…

2021 UPCEA MEMS Award Recipients Announced

2021 UPCEA MEMS Award Recipients Announced

By UPCEA | December 2, 2021

11 Recipients Chosen For Three Award Categories WASHINGTON, D.C., December 2, 2021 — UPCEA, the leader in professional, continuing, and online education, has announced the recipients of the 2021 Crisis Management Marketing Award, 2021 Excellence in Enrollment Management Award, and the new Excellence in Diversity, Equity, and Inclusiveness in Marketing, Enrollment, and Student Success Award. …

New Research Answers Question Every College Wants to Know: Why Do Students Leave and How Do We Get Them Back?

By UPCEA | December 1, 2021

BALTIMORE, MD and WASHINGTON, D.C. (December 1, 2021) – UPCEA (University Professional and Continuing Education Association) and StraighterLine conducted a critical empirical research study profiling the disengaged learner to better understand their situations and motivations in relation to higher education. The study focused on individuals who have college credits but are no longer attending college…

UPCEA Welcomes 13 New Board Members

UPCEA Welcomes 13 New Board Members

By UPCEA | November 18, 2021

WASHINGTON, November 18, 2021 – UPCEA, the Washington, D.C.-based association for college and university leaders in professional, continuing, and online education, is pleased to announce the election of four new officers and nine new directors to serve on the UPCEA Board of Directors. Elected earlier in November, these individuals will assume their roles at the…

Our commitment to your safety

By UPCEA | November 17, 2021

Dear Colleagues, We are looking forward to gathering with you in-person this spring for UPCEA’s Annual Conference and the Summit for Online Leadership and Administration + Roundtable (SOLA+R), April 11-14, 2022 in Orlando, FL, at Disney’s Coronado Springs.  For many of us, the Annual Conference and SOLA+R will be the first in-person events since before…

Other Blogs and News:

UPCEA Recognizes 2025 Award Recipients at the Summit for Online Leadership and Administration Conference (SOLAR)

Association Award Recipients Highlighted at Event WASHINGTON (July 17, 2025) – UPCEA, the online and professional education association, is pleased to recognize the recipients of this year’s online and distance education awards. Award recipients will be showcased at the Summit for Online Leadership and Administration (SOLAR) Conference, July 22-24 in Portland, Oregon. The annual SOLAR…

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Unlocking Opportunity: How Tax Policies Like Section 127 Can Drive Employer Partnerships

By Chelsea Miller, UpSkill America, and Amy Heitzman, UPCEA Partnership is a key driver to unlocking opportunity in America, which is why UPCEA and UpSkill America are so excited to come together to help academic institutions understand one particular priority for employers: leveraging tax policies to drive engagement (really!).  UpSkill America focuses on how employers…

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Foreword by Bob Hansen Featured in The COLO Guidebook

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…

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The Compensation Compass: Navigating Professional Value with the 2024 UPCEA Salary Survey

If you’ve ever set out on a hike without a map and compass, you know the feeling: creeping uncertainty about whether you’re still on the trail, how far you’ve come, and how far you have to go. In 2017, when I was walking from Mexico to Canada, the snow level in the Sierra Mountains was…

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International Student Visa Review Resumes, Social Media Vetting Instituted | Policy Matters (June 2025)

Major Updates Trump Administration Resumes Embassy Review on Student Visas, Implements Social Media Vetting Requirements The Trump Administration has lifted its pause on F‑, M‑, and J‑visa processing but simultaneously unleashed sweeping new social-media vetting requirements: all international student applicants must now make their Facebook, X, Instagram and other accounts public for consular review, with…

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UPCEA Announces Updates to Board of Directors

June 25, 2025 – WASHINGTON — UPCEA, the online and professional education association, announces recent updates to its Board of Directors, effective immediately. Susan Seal, Ph.D., Dean of the College of Professional and Continuing Studies at Mississippi State University, has been appointed to serve as a Director At-Large, filling the remainder of the 2025–2026 term…

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