UPCEA Updates

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

Results of Global Lifelong Learning Study Released

By UPCEA | June 18, 2025

UPCEA supported the Universities Association for Lifelong Learning (UALL)’s comprehensive global study. WASHINGTON (June 18, 2025) – UPCEA, the online and professional education association, today announced the release of an international study, “Making lifelong learning central to university strategy,” conducted by the Universities Association for Lifelong Learning (UALL) and CarringtonCrisp.  UPCEA (alongside EUCEN) is proud…

New Book Offers Strategic Blueprint for the Decade of the Chief Online Learning Officer

By UPCEA | June 17, 2025

UPCEA and Routledge Publish Landmark Guide to Elevating Online Education Leadership WASHINGTON (June 17, 2025) – UPCEA, the online and professional education association, proudly announces the release of The Chief Online Learning Officers’ Guidebook: A Framework for Strategy and Practice in Higher Education (co-published with Routledge). This essential new volume, co-edited by two of the…

Celebrating the life of Dr. Pamela Wimbush

By UPCEA | June 13, 2025

It is with a heavy heart that we must inform you of the passing of one of our own. Dr. Pamela Wimbush, a friend, mentor, colleague, and member of the UPCEA’s Board of Directors passed away Tuesday. She will be missed, most acutely by her family and the dear friends she has all over the…

Microcredentials, Modularity, and Mission: Insights from UPCEA’s Coffee Chat on Innovation in Healthcare Education

By UPCEA | May 7, 2025

In partnership with the HELIX Summit on Continuing Medical Education  How are institutions navigating the dynamic intersection of workforce demands, digital learning, and credentialing innovation—especially in healthcare? That’s exactly what we explored in a recent Coffee Chat, where UPCEA leaders from across the higher education landscape gathered for an unrecorded but powerfully candid conversation on…

Online education booms in an era of lifelong learning (WorkingNation)

By UPCEA | April 28, 2025

‘Strictly online institutions tend to serve working-age or older adults requiring flexible schedules constructed around family obligations and work. “Folks arrive at higher ed for a multitude of reasons,” says Julie Uranis, senior vice president of online and strategic initiatives for UPCEA (the Online and Professional Education Association), a resource for online university programs. “Online learning gives them…

UPCEA Announces Retirement of Chief Research Officer Jim Fong, Reinforces Strength of Research and Consulting Division

By UPCEA | April 7, 2025

Washington, D.C. – April 7, 2025 – UPCEA, the leading association for online and professional education, today announced the upcoming retirement of Jim Fong, its founding Chief Research Officer, after years of transformative leadership in the field of higher education research and consulting.  Fong first became involved with UPCEA as a volunteer leader while at…

Annual Conference Follow Up: Translating PCOE Innovation into the Future of Higher Education

By UPCEA | April 2, 2025

In an era of heightened urgency, higher education institutions find themselves at a pivotal crossroads—confronting enrollment cliffs, shifting demographics, and growing skepticism about the value of a degree. Further, shifting federal policy and changes at the Department of Education will challenge postsecondary leaders like never before. Amid this turbulence, one area consistently demonstrates adaptability, innovation,…

Which OPM Contract Terms Should Concern Campus Leaders and Why?

By UPCEA | March 10, 2025

UPCEA is pleased to announce the release of a new brief, “Which OPM Contract Terms Should Concern Campus Leaders and Why?,” authored by Jeffrey C. Sun, J.D., Ph.D. and Heather A. Turner, Ph.D., and published jointly by the University of Louisville SKILLS Collaborative, Education Law Association, and UPCEA. When deciding whether to partner with an…

Other Blogs and News:

Leading Change in a Time of Financial Pressure: Insights from UPCEA Senior Leaders

In March 2026, UPCEA convened senior leaders from across higher education for a timely conversation about how institutions are navigating one of the most challenging periods the sector has faced in decades. Hosted in partnership with the UPCEA Council for Chief Online Learning Officers and the UPCEA Council for Credential Innovation, the 2026 Senior Leader…

Microcredentials at an Inflection Point

Microcredentials remain firmly embedded in the higher education landscape, but institutional momentum appears to be leveling off. In the recently released 2026 Institutional Perspectives on Microcredentials Report, jointly produced by UPCEA, The EvoLLLution, and Modern Campus, institutional leaders describe a sector that is committed to workforce alignment but constrained by structural and strategic barriers. Based…

New Book Explores How Artificial Intelligence Is Transforming Online Higher Education Administration

Release offers practical strategies for ethical, student-centered AI integration WASHINGTON, DC — March 11, 2026 — Artificial intelligence is rapidly reshaping higher education, particularly in online and professional continuing education. A new book published by Routledge in association with UPCEA, the online and professional education association, examines how institutions can thoughtfully integrate AI into administrative…

UPCEA’s Corporate Member Blog Series #2 | Fixing the Machine: How Corporate Partners Can Address COLO Needs in 2026

The current environment for online higher education is defined by what the 2026 Landscape of Higher Education Report calls a decade of “structural change,” making the job of a Chief Online Learning Officer (COLO) complex and intensely stressful. COLOs are not operating in a vacuum; they must manage a landscape of operational complexity. The Benchmarking…

Honoring the Life and Legacy of Dr. Gary W. Matkin

UPCEA joins colleagues, friends, and the broader higher education community in mourning the passing of Dr. Gary W. Matkin, a distinguished leader in online and professional continuing education whose nearly five decades of service shaped institutions, expanded access, and advanced innovation across the globe. Dr. Matkin began his career with the University of California, Berkeley…

Leading Institutional Transformation in the Age of AI

Artificial intelligence is rapidly reshaping work across society, and higher education institutions are no exception. Traditionally, discussions around AI in the academy have focused on student-facing issues such as academic integrity and personalized learning. Today’s higher education leaders are called to lead institutional transformation shaped by AI.  A new research study from EDUCAUSE conducted in partnership with AIR, NACUBO,…