EdUp Insights: Recent Episodes
EdUp Insights
Drawing on 40 years of experience, Bill Pepicello will provide his perspective on higher education, providing historical context and commentary on current issues, including curriculum, learning modalities, business models, technology, the regulatory environment, and the evolution of higher education culture.
A recent study of the higher education business model landscape offers some interesting insights, and a few suggestions, about what works and doesn’t work as higher ed struggles to develop a simple, consistent, transparent funding structure. In particular, it looks at the traditional base-adjusted funding model as compared to the recent focus on performance-based funding. In this episode I’ll lay out some of the basic differences in the two approaches and look at the fiscal and political influences that are driving the search for a viable business model.
EdUp Insights with Bill Pepicello is part of the EdUp Experience Podcast Network.
With all of the craziness in higher education today, there is a glimpse of the past that gives hope for the future. As we see students and administrators on our campuses begin to push back against disruptive demonstrations, there are strong signals that the heart of higher education still beats, from the front lines to the C-Suite. Higher ed has played a major role in fostering the fundamental principles that make America a pretty cool place to live. There has always been discontent in higher education, and there has always been a response to discontent that moves things back toward normalcy. In this episode I’ll gauge the pulse of higher ed past and present and offer some words of advice.
EdUp Insights with Bill Pepicello is part of the EdUp Experience Podcast Network.
Higher education was once a comfortable cocoon where students were incubated until they emerged as fully-formed beings ready to participate in the real world. There were external social and political influences, to be sure, but they did not generally impact the education gestation process. Today, the metamorphosis from student to citizen has been supplanted by a chaotic barrage of external forces that often displace teaching and learning at the heart of the higher education ecosystem with a muddled mix of ideology and indoctrination. In this episode I’ll trace the history of this pejoration as I have witnessed it for fifty years.
EdUp Insights with Bill Pepicello is part of the EdUp Experience Podcast Network.
As higher education leaders look for solutions to remedy current woes besetting the sector, they scour the traditional paradigm for clues. So far, uneven progress has been made. This could be attributed to the fact that leaders are searching for solutions to problems inside the same system that caused them. Some commentators, notably Gordon Gee, have suggested that answers might be better sought outside the box if higher ed is remain relevant and viable. In this episode I’ll suggest that working from the inside and outside simultaneously and congruently is possible. I’ll look at what can be learned from external paradigms and applied to a new “supply chain” approach to higher education.
EdUp Insights with Bill Pepicello is part of the EdUp Experience Network.
Americans today are acutely aware of current social issues and trends, and there are plenty of them. But there is some disturbing evidence that we tend to watch events passively until they begin to impact us personally. In this episode I’ll look at how social and political problems have crept up on the public and bitten us when we weren’t paying enough attention. As I’ll opine, the same is true for higher education. Previously, higher ed stood largely above the fray as an impartial observer and referee amid the vicissitudes of society. As political and social influences have gained momentum, higher ed gravitated from passivity to deference to acceptance. Recent events on our campuses are laying bare the consequences. The lesson here is that what may not affect us immediately can get to us eventually.
EdUp Insights with Bill Pepicello is part of the EdUp Experience Network.
As a person of a certain age, many of my favorite films growing up have been remade at least once. In this episode I’ll get into what crafts a good remake of a classic film, and why some recent attempts have missed the mark. And why do we call them “classics,” anyway? Then I’ll look at how this applies to higher education. Having grown up in the classic higher education paradigm, I will examine how current efforts to remake the traditional higher ed ecosystem in the image of the latest trends in social and political influences are meeting with an uneven reception, both inside the ivy walls and in public opinion. And again, I’ll look at how classical paradigms are relevant to understanding where we have been and where we are.
EdUp Insights with Bill Pepicello is part of the EdUp Experience Podcast Network
There is an abundance of analyses on the value of a college degree and the expectations of graduates and employers as individuals enter the workforce. A look at some of these studies shows a puzzling misalignment that is frustrating for all involved. In this episode I’ll look at things from both sides. First, what are the expected returns from a college degree, both in terms of affluence and personal fulfillment? Is the college degree a necessary asset in securing a good job? Second, how do employers value a degree as opposed to skills-based ability in the hiring process? Or more to the point, what are employers saying about this as opposed to how they are acting? Finally, how can the expectations of graduates and employers be align to the benefit of all?
EdUp Insights with Bill Pepicello with is part of the EdUp Experience Podcast Network
Gordon Gee has drawn a lot of attention recently for his major overhaul of the University of West Virginia. But a closer look at his decades-long journey—some would say foray—through higher education reveals a dedication to evolving and improving the paradigm wherever he has served. Working from inside the traditional model, Gee has steadfastly done what he thinks is the right thing. On the other hand, John Sperling, founder of University of Phoenix, approached the traditional paradigm from the outside, introducing innovations that have altered the course of higher education in a number of ways. In this episode I’ll look at the similarities between these two controversial visionaries as they have altered the landscape of higher education with two distinct approaches to the traditional paradigm.
EdUp Insights with Bill Pepicello is part of the EdUp Experience Podcast Network
If you have traveled anywhere in the world, you have experienced the hassle of dealing with monetary exchange rates. A universal common currency, although a pipedream, would be a real godsend. But it’s not likely. On the other hand, there is—or should be--a common currency that influences and enhances the social order by providing a civil forum in which to pursue different perspectives and world views with the goal of expanding understanding and knowledge beyond the boundaries of individual experience. That would be education, and in particular higher education. This hifalutin vision once defined America’s higher ed community and gave it a venerated and valued position in society. But today higher education is just one of many arenas where political and social issues are played out in contentious conflicts marked by misinformation and effrontery rather than collegiality and cooperation. In this episode I’ll look at how and why this has happened and how to counteract the effects of the current situation.
EdUp Insights with Bill Pepicello is part of the EdUp Experience Podcast Network
What happens when state governments and higher ed operate in silos? In this episode I’ll look at the current situation in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania and what it portends for similar circumstances as states and higher education systems struggle to align their missions and budgets to serve their constituents in turbulent times. In particular, I’ll look at how a lack of coordination and fiscal precision in defining the relationship of financial resources to specific initiatives may undercut the ability of states and higher education to fulfill their missions.
EdUp Insights with Bill Pepicello is part of the EdUp Experience Podcast Network.
Academic freedom and tenure have long been hallmarks of higher education’s role as a dispassionate referee for society. These conventions intend to define and defend the rights of scholars to pursue knowledge and engage in open inquiry without undue external pressure. In this episode I’ll examine how these protections are faring in a society awash with discord around free speech, censorship and general civil unrest. In particular, I’ll look at how the accountability that has penetrated the walls of academia may soon relegate academic freedom and tenure to footnotes in the history of higher education.
EdUp Insights with Bill Pepicello is part of the EdUp Experience Podcast network
In the Dickens novella “A Christmas Carol” there is a message of hope for higher education. In this episode we’ll be visited by the Ghosts of Higher Ed Past, Present and Future. I’ll discuss how we got from the “good old days” of higher education to where we are today, and what the future may hold, depending on the choices we make. I’ll also look at some of the innovative initiatives both inside and outside the ivy-covered walls that may show us the way forward.
EdUp insights with Bill Pepicello is part of the EdUp Experience Podcast Network
Higher education is a significant investment, up there with purchasing a home or a car. And as with all major investments, there are expectations about the anticipated return and about how that expected return will measure up against reality. In this episode I’ll look at what influences student and graduate expectations and why the gap between expectations and reality exists. I’ll also have a suggestion about closing that gap.
EdUp Insights with Bill Pepicello is part of the EdUp Experience Podcast Network.
The current condition of higher education presents an interesting look at its role in American society and society in general. But it begs the question of how we got here. This kind of cultural inquiry has traditionally been the domain of archeology. In this episode I’ll examine the current topography of higher ed and excavate several strata down to discover how the ecosystem has evolved from earlier eras. I’ll then discuss what we might expect to see on the current trajectory of evolution, and what we might learn from the ruins of earlier epochs. Dig it!
EdUp Insights with Bill Pepicello is part of the EdUp Experience Podcast Network.
There is general agreement in higher education on where we are and where we want to go. The problem is how get from point A to point B, and more to the point, why institutions seem to get it wrong on a regular basis. In this episode I’ll examine some of the snags that plague the higher education planning process and offer some simple, modest suggestions on how to “re-think” the process. I’ll also suggest how creativity and innovation can be employed to look at the path from point A to point B from a different perspective.
EdUp Insights with Bill Pepicello is part of the EdUp Experience Podcast Network.
Well, at least nothing is impossible for the persons who don’t have to do it. And in higher education that includes entrepreneurs and visionaries who identify the shortcomings of the current higher education and offer up high-level solutions that provide straightforward solutions to things like time to degree, accessibility, return on investment, and workforce needs. When I read such proposals, I have one nagging question. If it’s so easy, why hasn’t someone already done it? And the answer is that if it were as simple as it seems, someone would have done it. In this episode I’ll explore what makes transformation in higher ed challenging and where would-be revolutionaries often go wrong in approaching the enterprise of higher education.
EdUp Insights with Bill Pepicello is part of the EdUp Experience Podcast Network
In 1929 G.K. Chesterton provided a concise admonition about making decisions in life. If you encounter a fence on the road, he advised, don’t take it down until you know why it was built in the first place. In short, we need to understand how the status quo came to be before we change it. There may be a good reason for the fence, and removing it could have unintended consequences. In this episode I’ll pursue this line of reasoning as it applies to America (and elsewhere) today, and in particular how it should be instructive for higher education.
EdUp Insights with Bill Pepicello is part of the EdUp Experience Podcast Network
In the last episode I looked at what is fueling the lack of confidence in higher education today and some of the basic decisions that will need to be made to restore the conviction that higher ed is vital to workforce success. But another decision will need to be made to ensure that that the engine of higher education can continue to operate, namely a viable business model. The current not-for-profit model of higher ed is funded by the three-legged stool of state, federal and private funding. In other words, higher ed is dependent largely on “the kindness of strangers,” to quote Blanche DuBois. The business model has been in large part related to the view of higher education as a common good that should be above societal and political influence. Well, that ship has sailed, and higher education is now seen as a public commodity from which the public demands accountability and return on investment. In this episode I’ll challenge the not-for-profit model and suggest that an alternative is all around us.
EdUp Insights with Bill Pepicello is part of the EdUp Experience Podcast Network
A number of recent studies reveal a lack of confidence in the role of higher education in preparing students for the workforce. Misgivings about the efficacy of higher education come in large part from the conflicting perspectives of employers, students, and even within the higher education community itself, on the value of education in society. In this episode I’ll look at several of these studies and examine the decisions that will need to be made to keep higher education a relevant and viable part of the education to workforce pipeline. In short, there will need to be coordinated decisions about who does what, where and when. As we’ll see, it’s easier said than done.
EdUp Insights with Bill Pepicello is part of the EdUp Experience Podcast Network
Hi, nice weather, eh? How about those Cubs? Oh, by the way, have you heard? The art of small talk is on the verge of extinction. Apparently, recent generations have replaced much of casual conversation with texts, Instagram and TikTok. But now they claim to be struggling with face to face interactions in personal and professional situations and are looking for help. But is small talk really the problem? I don’t think so. In this episode I’ll connect the dots from conversational ineptitude to widespread cultural clumsiness and look at some root causes.
EdUp Insights with Bill Pepicello is part of the EdUp Experience Podcast Network
Why does the whole issue of student loan forgiveness seem to be dragging on endlessly? What has been happening and where is the whole process now? In this episode I’ll review previous efforts and look at how we got to where we are now—in negotiated rulemaking. I’ll look at what negotiated rulemaking is, how it works, and where it is likely to end up.
EdUp Insights with Bill Pepicello is part of the EdUp Experience Podcast Network
In every election cycle we are subjected to discussions about whether we should abolish the Department of Education. Are there substantive issues here, or are we all attending a football game where education is the football and the playing field is politics? In this episode I’ll look at the major issues that are raised. Why would we want to abolish ED, how would that be done, and what would that mean? Join me at the stadium see how this game is played.
EdUp Insights with Bill Pepicello is part of the EdUp Experience Podcast Network
Have you ever wondered why change in higher education seems to be so different from change in other sectors of society? Recently there has been discussion concerning whether changes in higher education like community colleges offering four-year degrees, shorter time to degree completion, and yes, online delivery are eroding academic rigor. But why we would assume that innovation and creativity would affect academic rigor at all? I don’t think that advances in transportation like autos, trains or air travel impeded the progress of that industry. And the development of incandescent and LED lights don’t seem to have impacted our lives negatively. What makes higher education different? The short answer is, “Nothing.” At least it shouldn’t. In this episode I’ll explore the resistance to change in higher education and how the shackles of complexity can be cast off to move higher education forward. And (surprise!) I’ll give an example of how it was already done once!
EdUp Insights with Bill Pepicello is part of the EdUp Experience Podcast Network.
As 2023 winds down, I’ll take a look at some of the conspicuous issues that occupied higher education and what they portend for the future. I’ll start with some sage advice about how to better understand these concerns by filtering out the noise introduced by influences like social media, political posture, and the general proximity of lots of misinformation on the internet. It’s actually pretty simple. Then I’ll apply this counsel to current issues, including legislation affecting higher education, DEI, and political rhetoric. It’s action-packed and thrill-a-minute, so don’t miss it.
EdUp insights with Bill Pepicello is part of the EdUp Experience Podcast Network.
The value and place of the humanities have been questioned as higher education looks to adapt itself to the priorities of a dynamic society. In this episode I will argue that the value is in some measure dependent upon the place. Specifically, higher ed has allowed the humanities to become an amorphous amalgam of disciplines that are difficult to identify or define as a cohesive set of subjects that are of consequence to the academy or to the general public. I’ll take one specific example, literary studies, and put it into the context of why the humanities in general don’t get no respect. My contention is that there is no “house” where the humanities reside as a clearly defined, integrated set of subdisciplines, like, for instance, business. How can this happen? Drop in and find out.
EdUp insights with Bill Pepicello is part of the EdUp Experience Podcast Network.
Higher education has a unique ability to act for the benefit of the pubic good, if can stand above the fray. It should not, therefore, permit itself to be diverted into playing the role of a second-rate political force or influence. In this episode I’ll look at how higher education can be a platform that challenges social values and policies without encouraging, fostering, or worse—participating in—chaos. Higher education is not a club, a trade association, or a lobby. Can it can encourage and accommodate a diversity of opinions without taking a public stance on societal issue? Should it? We can learn a lot about this from a seminal report from the 1960’s, another turbulent time. You may be surprised how higher ed can remain relevant and constructive now, as it was then.
EdUp Insights with Bill Pepicello is part of the EdUp Experience Podcast network.
American culture is struggling with a variety of influences today that affect its ability to define a strategy to move the country forward in productive ways. The tensions produced by wokeism, political ideology, and cancel culture are magnified through the lens of social media. This, in turn, impedes our ability to develop a cohesive culture that can drive a rational and focused strategy for advancing the national interest. In this episode I’ll look at the alignment of culture and strategy generally, and how higher education can cut through societal dysfunction and its own cultural dissonance to develop a unified culture and strategy.
EdUp Insights with Bill Pepicello is part of the EdUp Experience Podcast network
In the last episode I looked at external factors influencing change in higher education. But there are also internal tensions that exacerbate the current turmoil and encumber higher ed’s ability to remain connected and relevant to society. In this episode I’ll look at one of the chief offenders: the management structure of higher education. I’ll explain how the current structure—which also the old structure—is out of step with the rest of the business model that is driving the American economy, and why this is a bad thing for higher education. In particular I’ll look at the tension between administration and faculty that frustrates both sides and hampers the constructive evolution of the higher ed community.
EdUp Insights with Bill Pepicello is part of the EdUp Experience Podcast Network
Higher education is undeniably going through a transformation. But what exactly is causing it? There is a diversity of opinions as to what has brought us to the current volatile condition of the education industry. In this episode I’ll look at some of the variety of perspectives on the root causes of change and the major external forces at play as higher ed struggles to remain viable and relevant. I’ll look at the situation from the micro and macro viewpoints as I try to sort out the trees from the forest, and vice versa.
EdUp Insights with Bill Pepicello is part of the EdUp Experience Podcast Network
The student loan/debt relief picture is as muddy as ever. In this episode I’ll outline three basic categories that are currently in play and the status of each. They include the borrower defense category, the 2020 campaign promise category, and the recent category announced by the Biden administration. Spoiler alert: There is no good news for borrowers in any of these categories. I’ll explain why and what we can expect going forward, assuming that we ever go forward.
EdUp Insights with Bill Pepicello is part of the EdUp Experience Podcast network
There are numerous examples of higher education not being able to get out of its own way in order to serve students. Some of my favorites (not) are barriers to transfer of credit among institutions and the craziness involved in accessing Title IV funding. Another repeat offender is the issue of duplicative programs. This issue comes in two basic flavors. One that is found in a number of states is the struggle of community colleges to offer bachelor’s degrees in select fields that four-year institutions claim duplicate existing programs. Another is infighting among four-year institutions as they compete for students within or across state borders. Situations in the State of Maryland highlighted this flavor recently. In this episode I’ll look at the some of the issues involved and what higher education might think about in order to address this and other concerns that require attention.
EdUp Insights with Bill Pepicello is part of the EdUp Experience Podcast network.
All across the higher ed landscape, institutions are faced with choices on how to move forward—or not—in the face of persistent headwinds. Some colleges and universities have simply chosen to close their doors in the face of financial hardship. Others have opted to downsize or pursue mergers. Still others have looked to significant restructuring, like West Virginia University. With the exception of outright closures, the goal of these changes should be to allow institutions to continue to do the most good for the most students. As we are seeing, this involves making difficult decisions on managing resources. There is often a focus on structural and physical resources—buildings and grounds, for instance. There is also considerable attention paid to human resources, including faculty and staff, and the impact on student services. In this episode I’ll discuss the basic resource that drives all of this: finances. The simple truth is that if higher education cannot ensure its own fiscal viability, it cannot continue to fulfill its essential mission to serve the public good.
EdUp Insights with Bill Pepicello is part of the EdUp Experience Podcast Network.
Higher education is increasingly earning low grades in the execution of mergers, acquisitions and partnerships. And that doesn’t even include school closures, which rate a solid “F.” Why are we struggling so much in an effort to find a new way forward for higher education? Maybe it’s because we lack a solid curriculum that provides a template for implementation and assessment of these various actions. Except for closures, of course. One fundamental flaw in these endeavors is poor performance in the area of due diligence. The goal of due diligence should be an investigation or audit of a potential investment. There is usually a focus on fiscal, economic and legal matters. In this episode I’ll discuss a key part of due diligence that is often overlooked, missed, or just ignored when higher education is involved—PEOPLE.
EdUp Insights with Bill Pepicello is part of the EdUp Experience Podcast Network.
Information is all around us, but it’s always important to know what the experts have to say on any topic. We all want information that is current and accurate. But what is current is not always accurate, and what is accurate is not always current. Higher education is no different. So the question of the day is how to sift through the sea of information out there to get at what it is that we want to know from reliable sources. What constitutes an “expert” is dependent on a number of factors, including the specific kind of information being searched, and profile characteristics of the searcher. It is also dependent on the sources of information that searchers choose access. In this episode I’ll explore how all this goes into determining where to look for “experts” and how to assess their “expertise.”
EdUp Insights with Bill Pepicello is part of the EdUp Experience Podcast Network.
Have you ever wondered how well colleges and universities are preparing students for the workforce? More to the point, have you ever wondered how the perspective of the higher education community compares with that of employers and students? Well, wonder no more. In this episode I’ll look at the results of several studies that will reveal how well higher education thinks it is doing at career preparation, and what students and employers think. And I’ll look beyond technical professional preparation to the soft skills that employers are seeking in today’s workforce. In particular, I’ll discuss the value of effective communication in ensuring workplace success.
EdUp Insights with Bill Pepicello is part of the EdUp Experience Podcast Network.
Higher education is all about data and information. But is this “knowledge”? More to the point, what’s the difference? The same traditional sources have churned out studies and reports for decades with almost no change in results. Facts and figures go in and are digested, but not much seems to come of it. So the studies are replicated, with the same results. The data and the “knowledge” build up with very few plans to do anything. Knowledge without a plan is just, well, knowledge. Some have called this “analysis paralysis.” I call it “information constipation.” Tune in and find out why.
EdUp Insights with Bill Pepicello is part of the EdUp Experience Podcast Network
A recent ACE study reports that college and university presidents are serving for increasingly shorter periods of time, and a majority of those currently in office don’t plan to be there—or in higher education at all—within five years. Presidents find themselves assailed by scandal, politics, business woes, and general scrutiny as never before. All of this sounds familiar. It sounds like the pressures that CEOs in corporate America have been subject to all along. So what’s the deal with higher education? What makes it different? Why are presidents struggling, failing, and abandoning the ivy walls? In this episode I’ll explore what makes the college presidency today so thorny and what higher education leaders can do about it.
EdUp Insights with Bill Pepicello is part of the EdUp Experience Podcast Network.
Innovation and transformation in higher education (and elsewhere) is not just about brilliant insights or unfettered creativity. That part is easy. The key is perseverance in the face of overwhelming obstacles and resistance. If failure is an option, it is inevitable. Excuses are the remnants of forsaken aspirations. Progress is the result of determination, grit and tenacity. Excuses and progress start from the same place, but they end very differently. The most successful innovations eventually become the status quo and are the foundation for the next transformation. I’ll discuss a significant example of all of this as I describe the phenomenon of the University of Phoenix from its beginning in 1976 to its rise as a leading innovator in higher education. You may be amazed at how little you really know about the university, or how much it affects how higher education conducts its business today. So tune in. What have you got to lose?
EdUp Insights with Bill Pepicello is part of the EdUp Experience Podcast Network.
A recent post by Joe Sallustio (@JoeSallustio) on LinkedIn raised several interesting points about how higher ed views and responds to the competitive education landscape. He points out that higher ed is attuned primarily to institutional competition within the higher ed community, and so marketing is largely focused against other institutions within the community. But he also points out that the competitive environment today extends far beyond the boundaries of traditional academe, and that the “interest funnel” for students looking for education opportunities is much wider at the top as new players now offer alternative pathways in the education arena. This changes the whole competitive perspective and marketing strategy for the higher education sector. Or at least it should. In this episode I’ll expand on Joe’s insights and discuss a key element in all of this: Differentiation. I’ll ask how higher education can differentiate its value vis a vis the plethora of education options available for prospective students. And I’ll tell you how we did it in the old days. You may be surprised.
EdUp Insights with Bill Pepicello is part of the EdUp Experience Podcast Network.
One of the biggest obstacles to success in higher education (and elsewhere) is operating in silos. The ability to see the big picture from multiple perspectives is key to providing a comprehensive education experience. Institutional units need to understand what is happening in other parts of the enterprise and how the units must work together to deliver a quality, value-added education. The ability to perspective switch is also essential to an institution’s ability to remain viable and sustainable. In this episode I’ll discuss an example from my time in higher education administration and delve into an innovative approach developed and implemented at National University in California.
EdUp Insights with Bill Pepicello is part of the EdUp Experience Podcast Network
In Episode 59 I took a look at the level of confidence that presidents and chief financial officers have in their institutions’ viability and higher education in general. I still don’t get how the relatively positive outlook of these groups aligns with the trends toward closures, downsizing, mergers and acquisitions that we are witnessing. But recent studies from Gallup and Insider Higher Ed offer other perspectives, provided by the American public and university business officers. In this episode I’ll look at the erosion in confidence expressed by the general population, and how the view of business officers varies from that of other higher education leadership concerning the health of the education sector. And more importantly, we’ll consider the road going forward. Or not.
EdUp Insights with Bill Pepicello is part of the EdUp Experience Podcast Network.
A new iteration of a Gainful Employment rule is now scheduled for implementation in 2024. Various versions of the rule, or something like it, have been around since 1965. (See episode 15 for some commentary). You will be pleased to know that I am NOT going to rehash the jumble of consumer protection arguments and scandals that have plagued this rule for decades. Instead, I’m going to suggest that the current conjugal relationship of federal bureaucracy and political hijinks doesn’t seem to promise connubial bliss. It looks pretty much like the same old stuff, recycled yet again in hopes that this time the bond will hold. Good luck with that.
So maybe it’s time to look elsewhere, through a less myopic lens, for a solution that holds the promise of a long-term undertaking that actually benefits students. I’ll let you focus through my lens in this episode. See how you like the view.
EdUp Insights with Bill Pepicello is part of the EdUp Experience Podcast network.
The recent federal spending bill that ends the repayment moratorium on student debt and the Supreme Court decision on student loan debt forgiveness mean that loan repayments will likely resume this fall for millions of borrowers. Without the one-time forgiveness plan that was denied, there could be a significant strain on the Office of Federal Student Aid as the load of loans to be serviced is more than anticipated. Meanwhile, the government is scrambling to get a Plan B in place to provide relief to affected borrowers. But all of this ignores the real problem, namely that the student loan system is broken. The process of applying for, receiving and repaying federal financial aid needs a complete overhaul. There are relatively simple loan models (at least compared to student financial aid) for things like real estate and cars, among other commodities. It may be time to take higher education for the commodity it is and provide access to a loan system that is transparent and user friendly. In this episode I take a look at all this. Tune in.
EdUp Insights with Bill Pepicello is part of the EdUp Experience Podcast Network
There is an ongoing debate as to whether a college degree is “worth it.” In this episode I’ll explore the notion of “worth it” and what experts, including major business and government authorities, have to say. I think you may be surprised at what they have to say and what it may mean for the future of higher education.
EdUp Insights with Bill Pepicello is part of the EdUp Experience Podcast Network.
Piecing together a picture of the future of higher education is like working on a jigsaw puzzle without knowing what the final puzzle will look like. Sometimes the pieces have strange shapes and sizes. And they may not provide clues as to how they fit together to produce the final picture. In this episode I’ll look at a couple of pieces of the puzzle that I think are parts of the big picture. But do they give us a clue as to what the big picture will look like? Tune in and find out!
EdUp Insights with Bill Pepicello is part of the EdUp Experience Podcast Network.
In the 1960’s, calculators completely changed how we teach and think about math as an essential part of the liberal arts. Higher education was skeptical, but has now embraced the technology. Now it appears that ChatGPT may have a similar effect on the teaching and practice of writing. In both cases, technology has developed tools that present a multitude of opportunities and challenges at all levels of education, not just specific to the respective disciplines of math and writing. Possibilities are now unlocked for a complete change of how we view the liberal arts and integrate them into the development of a curriculum that cultivates well-rounded citizens. In this episode I’ll discuss the shift away from the monolithic notions of math and writing and look at what might go into a new core of liberal arts education.
EdUp Insights with Bill Pepicello is part of the EdUp Experience Podcast Network.
In January I published a prescient episode entitled “The Myth of Student Loan Forgiveness.” I am going to republish it today, not just to beat my chest, but to remind us all of what happens when politics and ideology contaminate higher education. The Supreme Court decision should not have been a surprise to anyone. And not because of conservative vs. liberal judges. This issue was in large part an election campaign promise that had no legs from the start. It was like promising your kids that you are taking them on vacation to Disneyland when you know that you can’t afford it and that it is very unlikely to happen. That means you don’t have the authority to make the promise. Shame on you.
EdUp Insights with Bill Pepicello is part of the EdUp Experience Podcast Network.
Recently released 2023 figures on enrollment trends in the U.S. show an interesting picture of how higher ed looks coming out of the pandemic. There may be some stabilization of the losses that already existed and were exacerbated by the effects of COVID. But how that stabilization is being realized is a complex combination of trends and sub-trends that we can document but not really explain. In this episode I’ll explore what the latest data suggest. And I’ll look at how the data look through the lens of student engagement, leaning on the insights of Dr. Jenny Darroch from Miami University (OH). What can we blame on COVID, and what can we blame on ourselves? Check it out.
EdUp Insights with Bill Pepicello is part of the EdUp Experience Podcast Network.
I am unabashedly obsessed with the business model of higher education. My contention has been, in many episodes of this podcast, that higher ed needs to pattern itself after the business model that drives the American economy. A crucial element of this model is the supply chain that takes raw materials and transforms them into finished products that are distributed to end users. This model applies to everything from baby formula to computer chips. But how about higher education? You bet. In this episode I’ll lay out how raw materials (aka students) are procured and subjected to a variety of processes that are designed to produce finished products (graduates) that benefit the workplace and society. I’ll also lay out the weak links in education’s supply chain and what can be done about them.
EdUp Insights with Bill Pepicello is part of the EdUp Experience Podcast network
There’s a recent hot debate over what should or should not be taught in the classroom and who has input to curriculum at all levels, especially concerning gender-related topics. Much of the heated rhetoric surrounds Florida bills HB 1557 and SB 266. If you don’t know what these are, or you do know and haven’t read them, you could be part of the problem, not the solution. But what do you really know about the FACTS involved in the debate? You may be surprised to learn what the bills actually say versus what opponents want you to think they say. In this episode I’ll winnow out ideology from reality as I explore what these bills actually do and what some people say they do. And I’ll call out the risk of relying on second-hand information in forming opinions. This is not about politics or culture wars. It’s about having informed positions. The bottom line is, regardless of your position, it should be based on fact, not ideology.
EdUp Insights with Bill Pepicello is part of the EdUp Experience Podcast Network.
Confidence in Higher Education?
A recent study indicates that presidents and chief financial officers have confidence in the financial viability of their institutions and the future of higher education. These results come at a time when we are witnessing an unprecedented number of college closings, mergers, and acquisitions. How do we reconcile how scholastic leadership feels and what we are witnessing in the higher ed sector? Tune in to this episode for my take: NO COMPRENDO.
EdUp Insights with Bill Pepicello is part of the EdUp Experience podcast network.
GPT Update
So what’s the big deal here? I have lived through major technological and social developments like color television, computers (no, grasshopper, they haven’t always been around), mobile phones and space travel. I expect to live though ChatGPT, too. I already deal with AI on a daily basis; GPT is just the next thing (check out episodes 41 and 42 of Insights). Society is beginning to come to terms with it—oh, except for higher ed. In this episode we’ll look at GPT from the perspectives of instructors and students to see some of the latest “insights” (pun intended).
EdUp Insights with Bill Pepicello is part of the EdUp Experience podcast network.
We all have lists that help direct our lives. So does higher ed. The National Student Clearinghouse has a list of people who have attended college but never completed a degree or other formal course of study. It’s called the Some College No Credential list. Supposedly this list identifies individuals whom Institutions can help bring back into the higher education fold. This list triggered a lively conversation on LinkedIn recently, ignited by Joe Sallustio. In this episode I’ll highlight some of the key issues. For instance, what the heck is a “credential” anyway? And why does higher ed hold the conviction that education is not legitimate unless it is validated by a formal piece of paper, and that the current higher ed structure is the only avenue to getting that paper?
The bottom-line question is that while SCNC lists may be interesting for higher education and the NSC, do they mean anything to the people who get put on the list? Has it occurred to anyone that maybe people are OK with where they are with their education and don’t want/need more? What if we ASK people whether they have enough education and whether they want more, rather than TELL them that they need to do to get off an artificial list? Personally, I don’t want to be part of a list that would have me.
EdUp Insights with Bill Pepicello is part of the EdUp Experience podcast network.
In the last episode, I looked at pipelines to the university presidency and what the future of the presidency might look like. My observation is that if we don’t change what we put into the pipeline, that leads to the presidency, we shouldn’t expect something different to come out the other end. The same is true for institutions. We have to look at what goes into making a university, and what we can expect the result to be. It has been suggested that institutions like the Ivies and public mega-universities can be models for future institutions. I disagree. These are fine establishments, but they represent higher ed’s legacy, not the future. They are products of a set of previous socioeconomic conditions, politics and purpose that are all different today. So where do we look for indications of what the future will look like? I think we should study institutions that are changing the pipeline by changing the mix of what goes in—and what is coming out. These places do not aspire to be like traditional models. They are using measured, responsible strategies to forge a new model. They are not trying to go big. They are going small to get big. We'll look at one.
EdUp Insights with Bill Pepicello is part of the EdUp Experience Podcast Network.
A recent ACE study looks at the state of university presidents in the United States. It provides the latest data gathered in areas like diversity, experience, tenure, and the future plans of today’s crop of institutional leaders. Much of this data is not earthshaking, but it reveals some of the confusing mindset that plagues efforts to transform the office of the president. Specifically, it looks at some pipelines that lead to the presidency and what they portend. The simple truth is, whatever you put into a pipeline comes out the other end. In this episode I’ll discuss how to get what we want out of pipelines by looking at what we put in.
EdUp Insights with Bill Pepicello is part of the EdUp Experience Podcast Network.
54. Elvin Freytes Comes Clean Season 5.4 4/30
So where do all the EdUp podcasts come from? How did it all start? And what’s the story behind the best-selling book “Commencement: The Beginning of a New Era in Higher Education”? It all looks pretty slick and cool. But there are a lot of moving parts behind this multimedia network. In this episode, I take a look behind the scenes with Elvin Freytes, EdUp co-founder and producer, and contributing author of “Commencement.” Don’t wait for the movie--find out all about this ground-breaking higher education juggernaut as Elvin confesses all in this action-packed episode.
EdUp Insights with Bill Pepicello is part of the EdUp Experience podcast network.
I have often advised colleagues, collaborators, and anyone else against embracing complexity. Why? Well the not-complex answer is that complexity is the adversary of progress. Complexity, at its core, is predictable and comfortable. Uninspired approaches to repetitive routines often produce, unoriginal and easily anticipated results. Complexity is snug and secure, but it’s not a path to progress and innovation.
So, what is the alternative? Glad you asked. The alternative to complexity is chaos. Chaos is unpredictable and leads to a search for order and reason that may be simple, direct, and effective. Tune in to this episode for details.
One of the themes in the book Commencement: “The Beginning of a New Era in Higher Education” is leadership. The book contains in depth discussions, as well as illuminating examples, of what leaders in higher education are thinking and doing. In this episode I’ll share some of my recent thoughts on how leaders are made, and the realities of success and failure. No theory here, just lessons learned. As Yogi Berra once said, “You can’t think and hit at the same time.” Find out how that applies to leadership in higher ed.
EdUp Insights is part of the EdUP Experience Podcast Network
In case you haven’t been paying attention, last November this book appeared on Amazon, co-authored by Kate Colbert and Dr. Joe Sallustio, with contributions by Elvin Freytes. It is taken from more than 100 interviews with college and university presidents and presents a cogent and coherent picture of higher education today, along with a glimpse of the future. It’s not just for higher ed insiders. If you are a parent, a community leader, an employer, a government official, or a TAXPAYER, this book has information you need and can use. In this episode I’ll give you a preview of some highlights. Don’t miss it!
EdUp Insights is part of the EdUp Experience Podcast Network
Accreditation has been in the news again recently. But not for the reasons you might think. Usually we hear about institutions that have sanctions imposed on them by accrediting bodies for any of a variety of issues related to the standards of a given accreditor. But recently accreditors themselves have come under scrutiny by the Department of Education for possibly not complying with Department of Ed regulations. It’s also the case that some accreditors are struggling to find public members to serve on their governing boards, which is federal mandate. Find out how these two issues are related and how the current accreditation predicament might be addressed.
EdUp Insights is part of the EdUp Experience Podcast network
City University of New York has recently announced that it is discontinuing the last of its remedial math and English courses. Many other institutions and systems have done or are in the process of doing the same. The debate as to the value and effectiveness of remedial education has raged for decades. Despite years of studies with the consistent message that remedial education is ineffective and in fact harmful to students, higher education has struggled to find an alternative. In this episode I’ll look at co-requisite education as a viable alternative—not a new one, but one that shows promise for today’s students.
EdUp Insights is part of the EdUp Experience Podcast network.
It goes by many names—continuing education, lifelong learning, vocational education, and extension curriculum, to name a few. Why so many labels? Because continuing education by any other name serves many masters in postsecondary education. It is composed variously by truncated academic curricula, job training, and credentials including certificates, licenses, badges, and short community-based courses. Want a certificate in accounting? Check the continuing ed catalog. How about a cooking class? Yep, same catalog, different page. Continuing education units (not credits) get no love from accrediting bodies or the real “academic” community in colleges and universities. Why is this, and what can be done about it? Listen in.
EdUp Insights is part of the EdUp Experience Podcast Network
The signs are all around us. But what are they telling us? Colleges are closing or merging. Others are acquiring sister institutions in an effort to remain viable. Students (remember them?) are being negatively impacted and/or disenfranchised, and many are opting out of postsecondary education altogether. Meanwhile, declining birth rates will lead to fewer high school graduates to populate freshman classes. There are at least two takeaways. First, the higher education community needs to pay attention to what these trends mean. If these are signs of struggling to survive, is higher ed addressing the underlying problem or just applying band aids? Second, could that underlying problem be the unsustainable business model that is out of step with the rest of American society? Tune and hear about it.
EdUp Insights is part of the EdUp Experience Podcast Network
Online Update
Everyone beware! Forget about communism, fascism and socialism. We are in crisis, and the “tech utopians” are pushing online teaching as the new reality—at least for higher education. In this reimagination of higher ed human interaction will be replaced by computer domination. Students hate online and yearn for a return to the Platonic method in the agora. Just ask them.
If you think this call to arms is outdated and somewhat unenlightened, check out this week’s podcast for proof that resistance to change dies hard. And see the future through the eyes of the CEO of UMass Online.
EdUp Insights with Bill Pepicello is part of the EdUp Experience Podcast network.
The U.S. Department of Education recently announced its newest attempt to develop a list designed to call out higher ed institutions with poor outcomes and lower return on investment for graduates. Following in the steps of Gainful Employment (see Episode 15 of EdUp Insights) and the College Scorecard, the government seeks once again to provide a way to rank institutions according to the value they provide. Here’s the rub: Value based on what? The range of financial and, importantly, non-financial benefits of higher education is vast and hotly debated. But more to the point, why are these government interventions necessary? They clearly do not fix the problem, and don’t address the real issue: Accountability. There is no consensus on what outcomes need to be measured and why. That is, there is no consensus on the definition of the value of higher education. So, if there is to be accountability, we have to ask, “Accountability for what?” and “Accountability to whom?” Good luck with that.
EdUp Insights with Bill Pepicello is part of the EdUp Experience Podcast Network
Keeping College Relevant
Some recent findings from a Gates Foundation Study provide a wakeup call for higher education. They show that people want more information about and access to multiple education pathways after high school. Further, students want outcomes that support emotional and mental health, as well as financial stability. Higher education’s sluggish response to this cultural shift has led some to seek out alternate paths beyond the walls of higher ed, like YouTube. Yes, YouTube. It’s not that more traditional pathways don’t exist; it’s that higher ed masks them behind an unnecessarily complex wall of terminology that frustrates and ultimately disaffects potential students. Wake up, higher ed!
EdUp Insights with Bill Pepicello is part of the EdUp Experience Podcast Network
Question of the day: Why is it easier to do your federal income taxes than to access financial aid to help fund the cost of higher education? The simple answer is that both processes are run by the government. The difference is that we all have to pay taxes no matter what. But access to financial aid (which, by the way, is OUR tax money) is thwarted by a salad of numbers and terms that confuse even higher ed experts. So, we have to give, but getting anything back is another matter. What’s up with that?
EdUp Insights with Bill Pepicello is part of the EdUp Experience Podcast Network
In the last exciting episode, I laid out the basics of ChatGPT in simple terms. This week I’ll take a look at how it might impact higher education. Is it a tool or a menace? Is it going to be to writing instruction what the calculator was to math education? How do we adapt pedagogy to this evolving technology? Some food for thought here.
EdUp Insights with Bill Pepicello is part of the EdUp Experience Podcast network.
CHATGPT: What’s Up With That?
So, what is ChatGPT? Where did it come from? And why should we care? The latest hot development in Artificial Intelligence is suddenly everywhere. Is it a search engine? Is it a new version of Siri or Alexa? What are its capabilities? In this episode I give a basic (read: dumbed down) explanation of what ChatGPT is and is not. Then in next week’s episode I’ll take a look at the implications for higher education. Take a listen.
EdUp Insights with Bill Pepicello is part of the EdUp Experience Podcast Network
Who knew that the answer to this complex question in higher education is very simple? The Spice girls told us that all you have to do is “Tell me what you want, what you really, really want.” But this begs the question, if I tell you “What I want, what I really, really want,” is anyone listening? This episode examines some interesting results from a recent survey that asks students what they want and employers what they want. Think they want the same things? Think again.
EdUp Insights with Bill Pepicello is part of the EdUp Experience Podcast Network.
If we can believe in Bigfoot and the Easter Bunny, why not student loan debt forgiveness, too? In this episode I'll cut through the smoke and mirrors surrounding state and federal efforts to relieve student debt burden. And I'll suggest that the real problem is here is that the way that the U.S. pays for higher education just doesn't work. The solution? Put the consumer in charge of their own destiny and the higher education business model into the free market.
EdUp Insights with Bill Pepicello is part of the EdUp Experience Podcast Network.
In this first episode for 2023 I explore the confusing interactions of academic tenure, free speech and cancel culture. Higher education is full of complex contradictions, and here is where some of the most puzzling aspects of the American system collide. And I just don't understand.
EdUp Insights with Bill Pepicello is part of the EdUp Experience Podcast Network.
In this episode Bill discusses protectionism in higher education and the obstacles to a sea change that would transform the higher education ecosystem in America.
EdUp Insights with Bill Pepicello is part of the EdUp Experience podcast network.
In this episode, Bill elaborates on how a new credential-centered model of higher education would result in changes to the position of higher ed in American society. He explores the role of the university president, governing boards, as well as how government regulation would be affected, and the need for the higher ed ecosystem to integrate with other sectors.
EdUp Insights with Bill Pepicello is part of the EDUp Experience podcast network.
This is the fourth episode dealing with an alternate structure for American higher ed. In this think piece Bill deals in part with what the new structure would look like and how it would function. And more to the point, how a new ecosystem could bring higher education into step with American society.
EdUp Insights with Bill Pepicello is part of the EdUp Experience podcast network.
This is the third episode in a series that discusses what a new paradigm for American higher education might look like. In this episode Bill looks at how a system built around student success could eliminate cumbersome barriers to access and success and increase transparency for all users. The sea change entails a shift away from institutional control and duplicative processes to a centralized credential-based model.
EdUp Insights with Bill Pepicello is part of the EdUp Experience podcast network.
This second in the series of creating a new paradigm explores the key driver of any education paradigm--students. It begins by defining some essential "lego" building blocks and discusses how higher education needs to develop a deeper understanding of who today's learners are and what they need in order to assemble the building blocks into an accessible, meaningful, effective ecosystem.
EdUp Insights with Bill Pepicello is part of the EdUp Experience podcast network.
This is the first in a series of episodes that explores a possible new paradigm for American higher education. In this episode Bill looks at sources outside of the traditional structure that can offer innovative perspectives and approaches to a education ecosystem.
EdUp Insights with Bill Pepicello is part of the EdUp Experience podcast network.
This episode deals with the complexity of the higher education landscape that confronts today's leaders. What must leaders be prepared for, and where will they learn the skills necessary to adapt and survive? A list of some of the major issues that now affect higher education, as well as society generally, are discussed. Wokeness is high on the list.
EdUp Insights with Bill Pepicello is part of the EdUp Experience podcast network
This episode gives advice to new leaders, or any leader coming into a new position, on how to orient their talent and experience to adapt to a new situation. The basic message is that leaders need to understand how the function of their organization is related to the structure. The elements of vision and mission and key.
EdUp Insights with Bill Pepicello is part of the EdUp Experience podcast network.
This is the first in a short series of episodes dealing with leadership in higher education. This episode starts with some basics. Leadership is not something that is learned. It is something that happens. Leaders aren't made, they just ARE. Leadership emerges from natural ability and experience.
EdUp Insights with Bill Pepicello is part of the EdUp Experience podcast network.
A rose is a rose is a rose. Things are what they are, regardless of what we call them. Cancel culture doesn't get this. We can't change reality by simply renaming it to fit our own purposes.
EdUp Insights with Bill Pepicello is part of the EdUp Experience Podcast network.
Episode 3 is about the history of words and how some people just can't let the truth get in the way of a good story.
EdUp insights with Bill Pepicello is part of the EdUp Experience Podcast network.
Episode 2 of Season 3 has Bill expounding on his least favorite trends in grammar and vocabulary usage. Why, oh why, can't we teach linguistic exactitude?
EdUp Insights with Bill Pepicello is part of the EdUp Experience Podcast network.
The first episode in Season 3 discusses how your use of language contributes to how others see you. Think of it as a linguistic "dress for success."
EdUp Insights with Bill Pepicello is part of the EdUp Experience Podcast network
This episode examines the notion of "digital" leadership in the context of how higher education lags behind much of American society in acknowledging that leadership is a concept that transcends the artificial segmentation that higher ed is imposing on it.
EdUp Insights with BillPepicello is part of the EdUp Experience Podcast network.
In this episode Bill discusses liberal arts education and the role, as well as the challenges, of General Education in producing well-rounded graduates.
EdUp Insights with Bill Pepicello is part of the EdUp Experience Podcast network.
In this episode Bill suggests a reorganization of the division of labor in a learning community, based on a basic revamping of the traditional faculty model in higher education.
EdUp Insights with Bill Pepicello is part of the EdUp Experience Podcast network.
In this episode Bill discusses how the array of disjointed perspectives within the higher education community continues to impede our ability to move forward with an integrated, viable model.
EdUp Insights with Bill Pepicello is part of the EdUp Experience Podcast network.
This episode discusses the effect of cancel culture on the face of higher education. Bill points to the value of understanding the past in context and how current culture, both in higher education and in society in general, needs to be acknowledged for its progress, rather than punished for its roots.
EdUp Insights with Bill Pepicello is part of the EdUp Experience Podcast network.
In this episode Bill discusses the elements of for-profit education that many traditional educators see as threats rather than as opportunities to learn from and incorporate into a model that better serves students. He calls for a more collaborative and collegial approach to a student-centered ecosystem.
EdUp Insights with Bill Pepicello is part of the EdUp Experience Podcast network.
In this episode Bill discusses what the future higher education ecosystem might look like. Knowledge of student characteristics and how higher ed uses this information to create a true learning community are paramount.
EdUp Insights with Bill Pepicello is part of the EdUp Experience Podcast network.
Higher Education finds itself increasingly plagued by the ills of society in general. In this episode Bill discusses the current plight of higher ed as it struggles with the woes of American culture.
EdUp Insights with Bill Pepicello is part of the EdUp Experience Podcast Network!
In this episode Bill dispels the notion of "non-traditional"students and discusses how higher ed needs to adapt to the evolving profile of students.
EdUp Insights with Bill Pepicello is part of the EdUp Experience Podcast Network!
A grumpy Bill looks at the painful and flawed history of the Gainful Employment rule.
EdUp Insights with Bill Pepicello is part of the EdUp Experience Podcast Network!
This episode discusses how institutions might think about bringing what we know about online education into an integrated education experience.
EdUp Insights with Bill Pepicello is part of the EdUp Experience Podcast Network!
In this episode Bill talks with Jed Macosko, Wake Forest UniversityProfessor&Chief Public Liaison of AcademicInfluence.com, about a new data-driven approach to ranking institutions.
EdUp Insights with Bill Pepicello is part of the EdUp Experience Podcast Network!
Former remedial writing instructor Bill Pepicello gives his perspective on the pros and cons of remediation. Mostly cons.
EdUp Insights with Bill Pepicello is part of the EdUp Experience Podcast Network!
Defining quality is tricky in today’s world. Where is it? And what is it?
EdUp Insights with Bill Pepicello is part of the EdUp Experience Podcast Network!
New functions call for new models and a new type of leader.
EdUp Insights with Bill Pepicello is part of the EdUp Experience Podcast Network!
This episode examines the idea of “free college” in America and the issues involved in making a really good idea a reality.
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This episode is the exciting conclusion of Bill’s view for the University of the Future!
EdUp Insights with Bill Pepicello is part of the EdUp Experience Podcast Network!
In this episode Bill begins a glimpse of what the next iteration of higher ed might look like.
EdUp Insights with Bill Pepicello is part of the EdUp Experience Podcast Network!
Bill discusses the history and role of vocational, or career and technical, education, and champions the incorporation of career education into a more integrated higher education community.
EdUp Insights with Bill Pepicello is part of the EdUp Experience Podcast Network!
In this episode Bill looks at the value propositions of degree and non-degree programs and the rise of short-term certifications and “badges."
EdUp Insights with Bill Pepicello is part of the EdUp Experience Podcast Network!
In this episode Bill holds class to discuss and challenge the notion of Return on Investment in higher education.
EdUp Insights with Bill Pepicello is part of the EdUp Experience Podcast Network!
In this episode Bill looks at the history of the business models in higher education in America and contrasts the pros and cons of not-for-profit vs. for profit, as well as hybrids like OPMs.
EdUp Insights with Bill Pepicello is part of the EdUp Experience Podcast Network!
Bill begins looking at the landscape of higher education with an analysis of some current issues in accreditation, especially the impact of some proposals to revamp the current system.
EdUp Insights with Bill Pepicellois part of the EdUp Experience Podcast Network!
Bill Pepicello and Joe Sallustio discuss Bill’s new podcast series, “EdUp Insights.” Bill gives us a taste of what to expect as he draws on 40 years of experience to give us his take on higher education.
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Today I speak with Atif Ikram & Ali Rizvi, the founders of Simplitaught a learning experience platform, or ecosystem that aligns the way we teach content to the learning style of the individual.
Atif is also a Clinical Associate Professor at Arizona State University and has an impressive pedigree in Higher Education. He holds a PhD in Finance and a Masters Degree in economics both from ASU and he completed his undergraduate at Lahore University of Management Sciences. Ali is no slouch either having held senior roles in several technology companies, he's an entrepreneur and seasoned business professional, educated at Marshall University.
Together they're a formidable combination and their skills and expertise are perfectly suited to solving the challenge they've their eyes set on. We explore:
- The problem with a one size fits all approach to learning
- Complimenting learning and teaching styles
- Curation versus volume of content
- The use of ML and AI in personalising the learning experience
- The value of Simplitaught instead of somewhat similar alternatives like Youtube, Google search etc.
- Catering for the needs of mentally exhausted students, and
- What it means to have a central repository for curated and supplemental instruction.
Atif and Ali are awesome to chat with and I have great respect for the magnitude of their project. I watch developments with keen interest from the side-lines. Find out more about Simplitaught by visiting http://www.simplitaught.com and I'd encourage you to connect with both Atif and Ali on their social channels. With that, I bring you Atif Ikram and Ali Rizvi.
This episode is sponsored by the wonderful team at CONNECTed | Crowdsourced Education - check out their innovative short course in EdTech & Strategy for Higher Ed professionals seeking to level-up and lead reform.
Connect with the host Warren Kennard and the extended EdUp team Elvin Freytes, Elizabeth Leiba, and Dr. Joe Sallustio
● If you want to get involved, leave us a comment or rate us!
● Join the EdUp community at The EdUp Experience!
● Follow us on Facebook | Instagram | LinkedIn | Twitter | YouTube
Thanks for listening!
We make education your business!
Today I speak with Nicolò Bates, Founder & CEO at TEDU.
Nicolò has a background in finance and economics with a focus on corporate strategy. He first started the concept of TEDU in 2016 while attending the University of Miami where he completed his BBA in Economics. TEDU is an EdTech company company with an enterprise platform built to integrate and partner with universities and other educational institutions worldwide to provide them and their students a suite of out-of-classroom academic resource utilities.
Nicolò and I discuss how and why he pivoted from a potentially lucrative and interesting career in finance toward a purpose-driven career in EdTech, in particular the two situations that profoundly impacted his career ... we chat about
- the problems he and TEDU are solving for,
- rising student fees,
- the need for after hours tuition support,
- the virtuous circle that is supplemental instruction,
- the sheer importance of data and the enormity of TEDU's potential impact,
- Higher Education as a patient industry, and
- what lies ahead, an optimistic future for the sector.
Nicolò is delightful. He's smart, industrious and driven. He is just the sort of person we want tackling the mega challenges of our time, most specifically in education. Watch this space, there's a lot to learn from this young man. Now I bring you, Nicolò Bates.
This episode is sponsored by the wonderful team at CONNECTed | Crowdsourced Education - check out their innovative short course in EdTech & Strategy for Higher Ed professionals seeking to level-up and lead reform.
Connect with the host Warren Kennard and the extended EdUp team Elvin Freytes, Elizabeth Leiba, and Dr. Joe Sallustio
● If you want to get involved, leave us a comment or rate us!
● Join the EdUp community at The EdUp Experience!
● Follow us on Facebook | Instagram | LinkedIn | Twitter | YouTube
Thanks for listening!
We make education your business!
Today I'm joined by Michael Larsen, CEO at Studiosity. Michael holds a BComm from the University of Western Australia and an MBA from the University of New South Wales.
Mike's an executive leader with demonstrated expertise facilitating strategic growth initiatives within the digital and online education sectors. With international experience across North America, Europe and Asia Pacific and with a track record of rapid business expansion and deep client engagement, he has a wealth of knowledge to share - certainly something I took full advantage of.
Mike and I discuss:
- the importance of student support
- subject and specialisation specific peer assisted learning
- the importance of trend data
- the nature of just in time support
- the necessity for providing help, not answers
- data analytics and student progression, as well as
- academic integrity and empowering students
Under Mike's leadership Studiosity continues to go from strength-to-strength. I'm confident that we will hear more positive news coming from this progressive business in the months and years to come.
With that, I bring you, Mike Larsen.
This episode is sponsored by the wonderful team at CONNECTed | Crowdsourced Education - check out their innovative short course in EdTech & Strategy for Higher Ed professionals seeking to level-up and lead reform.
Connect with the host Warren Kennard and the extended EdUp team Elvin Freytes, Elizabeth Leiba, and Dr. Joe Sallustio
● If you want to get involved, leave us a comment or rate us!
● Join the EdUp community at The EdUp Experience!
● Follow us on Facebook | Instagram | LinkedIn | Twitter | YouTube
Thanks for listening!
We make education your business!
Today I'm joined by Pablo Langa, Founder & CEO of WeAreExams. Well educated, among several certifications, Pablo holds a Masters in Computer Science and most recent, executive leadership training from the London Business School.
Pablo has an impressive resume with a variety of experience in innovation, founding and leading businesses, he's now focused on EdTech and the business of education which strikes a chord with me. Pablo and I discuss:
- the impact of Higher Education
- open innovation as well as the polarisation of Higher Education
- online assessment
- catering for special needs students
- high stakes exams versus continuous assessment
- identity validation
- student data privacy
- voice authentication and recognition, and
- many other related topics
I enjoyed my time with Pablo and I hope you will too.
This episode is sponsored by the wonderful team at CONNECTed | Crowdsourced Education - check out their innovative short course in EdTech & Strategy for Higher Ed professionals seeking to level-up and lead reform.
Connect with the host Warren Kennard and the extended EdUp team Elvin Freytes, Elizabeth Leiba, and Dr. Joe Sallustio
● If you want to get involved, leave us a comment or rate us!
● Join the EdUp community at The EdUp Experience!
● Follow us on Facebook | Instagram | LinkedIn | Twitter | YouTube
Thanks for listening!
We make education your business!
In this episode I speak to Tara Rodoni. Tara has enjoyed an incredible career travelling the globe and working with several powerhouse ed-sector brands including Laureate, Academic Partnerships, Keypath and Futurelearn and now finds herself as a strategic consultant focusing on international marketing, student recruitment and marketing strategy.
Having deep and broad experience in the sector, Tara has a vast knowledge bank and she is generous in sharing her wisdom. Tara and I avoid getting into the weeds, but we do cover good ground with our conversation. We spend time learning about Tara's experience, most notably in the area of international lead generation, enrolment management and marketing strategy before discussing several topics including:
- the importance and life changing attributes of Higher Education
- blended learning
- imagining a 100 year career
- alumni strategy
- education as a lifelong investment
- Higher Education as an ecosystem
- international student mobility
- revenue diversification
- innovation
- the benefit of centralised sales and marketing
- the University technology stack, and
- the value of partnerships
Tara is fun to be around, she has truly wise things to say and is a valuable contributor to the new and ever evolving global Higher Education sector. Join me in welcoming Tara to the podcast.
This episode is sponsored by the wonderful team at CONNECTed | Crowdsourced Education - check out their innovative short course in EdTech & Strategy for Higher Ed professionals seeking to level-up and lead reform.
Connect with the host Warren Kennard and the extended EdUp team Elvin Freytes, Elizabeth Leiba, and Dr. Joe Sallustio
● If you want to get involved, leave us a comment or rate us!
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We make education your business!
Today I speak with Simon Kavanagh, Master Learning Archer at KaosPilots a novel Higher Education provider offering education within creative leadership and meaningful entrepreneurship. They are based in Denmark and accept a cohort of around forty students each year who go on to be enterprising leaders. Simon speaks about the KaosPilot three year program so I won't repeat it here but it's clear that Simon and the Kaos team think differently about the role of education and their learning, as well as their operating model are distinct.
Simon is highly creative, a visionary leader who is willing to experiment, fail and adapt. Highly motivated, introspective, dedicated and purpose-driven, he is someone I want to get to know better I'm sure you will too. He was generous with sharing ideas and there are several takeaways from our conversation that are well worth pondering. Simon and I discuss:
- the role of the arts in a changing world
- grassroots education
- practical experience in teaching and the incorporation of real life projects in curriculum
- Breaking rules and challenging learning paradigms
- the need for education regulation to catch up
- enterprising leadership
- high touch learning environments
- student diversity and within the teaching team
- true innovation in education
- unique ed-sector branding opportunities
- near-peer and flat learning structures, and
- the role of learning arches in compliment the teaching function
Simon is high energy, he's fun, uncomplicated and unconventional - there is so much one can learn by spending time in his company. Enjoy this opportunity to do just that. And now I bring you, Simon Kavanagh.
This episode is sponsored by the wonderful team at CONNECTed | Crowdsourced Education - check out their innovative short course in EdTech & Strategy for Higher Ed professionals seeking to level-up and lead reform.
Connect with the host Warren Kennard and the extended EdUp team Elvin Freytes, Elizabeth Leiba, and Dr. Joe Sallustio
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We make education your business!
Today I speak with Seema Mishra, Founder & Principal at Education Management Consultants (EdMC). I've met Seema on a number of occasions and I find her to be super articulate, delightfully smart and deeply grounded in what it means to be a good human. Well educated at LSE where she completed her MSc in culture and society, and with a firm grounding from the University of Chicago where she completed her undergrad. work in South Asian studies, Seema set out to address inequality and build a better society even from the tender age of 11 years old.
Seema has held senior roles at Laureate Education, at Northeastern University and at Entangled Solutions (now Guild Education) before setting off to start her own adventure with EdMC. I'll let our conversation fill in the blanks in my introduction, but I will say that Seema is a big picture thinker, she is extraordinarily thoughtful and reasoned, and she has many commendable characteristics that give her an authoritative voice - one well worth listening to.
Seema and I speak about:
- The importance of having a global vantage point
- The role of technology and lifelong learning Global work and learning What is means to be human Empathy, kindness and the power of conversation
- The business of education Knowing your market Education's expansion into global markets
- The great enabler that is technology
- The need for collaboration, and
- A necessary move toward competency based education
Covid related challenges saw us experiencing several audio hiccups, but I didn't feel that it distracts in any meaningful way from the importance of the topics we cover - that said, I apologise for the less than perfect audio quality. With that, I bring you, Seema Mishra.
This episode is sponsored by the wonderful team at CONNECTed | Crowdsourced Education - check out their innovative short course in EdTech & Strategy for Higher Ed professionals seeking to level-up and lead reform.
Connect with the host Warren Kennard and the extended EdUp team Elvin Freytes, Elizabeth Leiba, and Dr. Joe Sallustio
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We make education your business!
Today I speak with David Sutphen. David is the Chief Strategy & Engagement Officer at 2U. David and 2U need little introduction especially after the business' recent announcement that it has acquired edX for $800 million dollars in an effort to expand access to quality online education for learners, universities and employers worldwide.
2U's 'free to degree' model and visionary leadership see it fast become the dominant player in for profit Higher Education, this in a sector that is becoming increasingly consolidated and arguably more akin to a learning marketplace.
David holds a BA in Political Science from Amherst College and a Law Degree from the University of Michigan. He is a delightful human being with a healthy respect for those less fortunate and a keen desire to leave the world in a better state than he found it. David and I discuss
- the power and importance of education
- access and opportunity
- the outcomes from online versus face-to-face tuition
- learning science research and high quality learning experiences
- the future of the undergraduate degree
- alternative credentials, boot camps and short courses
- what employers really want
- the disconnect between higher education and the world of work
- the role of a lifelong learner and making informed decisions, as well as
- the metrics we use to measure academic success
David and the team at 2U are innovators and I highly recommend you take a listen our conversation. With that, I bring you David Sutphen.
This episode is sponsored by the wonderful team at CONNECTed | Crowdsourced Education - check out their innovative short course in EdTech & Strategy for Higher Ed professionals seeking to level-up and lead reform.
Connect with the host Warren Kennard and the extended EdUp team Elvin Freytes, Elizabeth Leiba, and Dr. Joe Sallustio
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We make education your business!
Today I speak with Melissa Loble. Melissa is the Chief Customer Experience Officer at Instructure, the makers of Canvas. We discuss how Melissa landed up working in Higher Education and what is currently occupying her mind as the sector level sets to a new normal.
She has enjoyed an impressive career, starting as an educator, in the late 90's Melissa assumed the role as the Director of Educational Technology at New York University - Stern, then held a couple of roles at Pepperdine University where she finished her tenure as an Adjunct Professor in Educational Technology. She then went on to hold senior roles with Blackboard and UC Irvine before heading over to Instructure.
Melissa holds a BA in Political Science & History from UCLA, an MA in Educational Policy from Columbia University and an MBA from Columbia Business School.
Keeping the conversation pointed and on topic, Michelle and I chatted about:
- Engagement and interaction in online learning
- A Learning Management System (LMS) versus a Learning Experience Platform (LXP)
- The sharing economy
- The learning ecosystem
- What is a networked learning experience
- Universal UI
- The challenge with misaligned incentives
- Good pedagogy for engagement and outcomes
- Data mining, interpretation and application, as well as
- The importance of collaboration
It's always fun spending time with Melissa and I hope that you'll enjoy her energy as much as I do. With that, I bring you, Melissa Loble.
This episode is sponsored by the wonderful team at CONNECTed | Crowdsourced Education - check out their innovative short course in EdTech & Strategy for Higher Ed professionals seeking to level-up and lead reform.
Connect with the host Warren Kennard and the extended EdUp team Elvin Freytes, Elizabeth Leiba, and Dr. Joe Sallustio
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We make education your business!
Today I speak with Geoffrey Roche. Geoffrey is the Executive Director at Harrisburg University of Science and Technology where he considers public health solutions, secures local, regional, and national partnerships, and builds long lasting relationships with business, healthcare, and government officials.
He holds a BA in Political Science from Moravian College and a MS in Public Administration from East Stroudsburg University of Pennsylvania.
Geoffrey puts me through my paces introducing me to the intersection of public health and higher education and does a great job of simplifying the many complexities of his role. We touch on many topics including:
- the shortage of healthcare workers and associated burnout
- the digital divide
- health equity in the workforce
- innovation in higher education
- the value and makeup of boards
- thoughtful pathways to employment
- the value of internships and partnerships
- career transition and upskilling
- the value of data driven decision making
- as well as educations moral imperative
Geoffrey is great to chat with and I enjoyed our time together.
And with that, I bring you, Geoffrey Roche.
This episode is sponsored by the wonderful team at CONNECTed | Crowdsourced Education - check out their innovative short course in EdTech & Strategy for Higher Ed professionals seeking to level-up and lead reform.
Connect with the host Warren Kennard and the extended EdUp team Elvin Freytes, Elizabeth Leiba, and Dr. Joe Sallustio
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We make education your business!
Today I speak with Bianca Raby. Bianca is the Founder & CEO at Oppida where her and her growing team are committed to raising the bar in online education. Bianca refers to herself as a 'purist educator', now edtrepreneur taking a stand for learning design which she believes has been sorely neglected in recent history. Starting her life as a K through 12 teacher, she's now also enjoyed an enviable career in Higher Education making a marked and meaningful impact at a raft of quality organisations along the way.
Bianca holds a B.Ed. Primary Education from the University of South Australia and an MBA from Melbourne Business School.
Bianca removes the gloves when speaking about the importance of deliberate and intentional learning design and we touch on many topics including:
- how we can feel institutionalised as educators
- the nuance of learner centred design
- entrepreneurship in education, and for educators
- teachers transitioning out of the teaching profession
- the importance of an MBA
- online learning as the poor cousin
- what is raising the bar in online education
- accessibility, user experience, engagement as well as
- cohort versus self-paced programs
For Bianca, active learning is tough, and needs to be in order to build capability and effective application of learning. She is a supremely knowledgeable expert in her field and a strong advocate for more effective learning design in Higher Education - please visit her website at www.oppida.co or navigate to her LinkedIn profile to follow her progress. I'm sure that you will learn a lot from the next 30 minutes - I certainly did, so with that, I bring you Bianca Raby.
This episode is sponsored by the wonderful team at CONNECTed | Crowdsourced Education - check out their innovative short course in EdTech & Strategy for Higher Ed professionals seeking to level-up and lead reform.
Connect with the host Warren Kennard and the extended EdUp team Elvin Freytes, Elizabeth Leiba, and Dr. Joe Sallustio
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We make education your business!
Today I speak with my friend Marybeth Gasman. Marybeth is the Samuel DeWitt Proctor Endowed Chair in Education & Distinguished Professor at Rutgers University. Prior to that she spent just shy of 18 years at UPenn where she concluded her service to the University as the Judy & Howard Berkowitz Professor of Education.
Marybeth holds a Bachelor's degree in Political Science and Government from St Norbert College and an MS and PHD in Higher Education from Indiana University Bloomington.
I met Marybeth for the first time in 2019 when she volunteered to support me with building CONNECTed's EdTech & Strategy for Higher Education micromasters and what immediately struck me me was how down to earth and fun she was for such an accomplished academic ... not that academics aren't generally fun. Deeply empathetic, sincere and forthright, Marybeth has an incredible ability to navigate through prickly and sensitive topics with wisdom, respect and love. She is a devoted mother, a tenacious researcher and a diligent worker who is committed to action to see that the plight of underserved and marginalised communities are substantively improved.
We cover a broad swath of topics in our energetic conversation including:
- the role of tenure, the road to a PHD and the role of a professor
- Higher Education as the great enabler
- the value of hard work, grit and drive
- the value of a liberal arts qualification
- transferable skills in the workplace
- the need for a college degree
- the privilege of STEM
- leading HEI's
- freedom of speech
- crisis management
- and the lens through which we need to see our leaders, Grace
I'm grateful to have Marybeth in my life and I'm sure this conversation will illuminate why.
I look forward to having her on the show again soon and for us to dive way deeper into several of the pressing movements and issues of our time.
With that somewhat extended introduction, I bring you Marybeth Gasman.
This episode is sponsored by the wonderful team at CONNECTed | Crowdsourced Education - check out their innovative short course in EdTech & Strategy for Higher Ed professionals seeking to level-up and lead reform.
Connect with the host Warren Kennard and the extended EdUp team Elvin Freytes, Elizabeth Leiba, and Dr. Joe Sallustio
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We make education your business!
Today I speak with Dr. Phil Ice, Chief Solutions Officer at Analytikus. Phil is ridiculously smart and he is obsessed with finding answers to big questions in Higher Education, most specifically relating to improved retention and what constitutes a "better" student experience.
Phil started his career as an Instructional Technologist at West Virginia University whereafter he assumed the role of Assistant Professor at UNC Charlotte. He joined the American Public University System where he left the institution as the Vice President, Research & Development before taking the position as Managing Partner at Axiom Learning Design & Technologies. Phil later assumed the role of Chief Learning Officer at Mirum before joining Analytikus in early 2018.
Phil holds a Doctorate in curriculum, instruction and instructional technologies from West Virginia University.
Phil and I discuss:
- His introduction (falling into) Higher Education and his obsession with learning
- Educational psychology
- Data mining
- Blockchain and data privacy
- Artificial intelligence
- "Big data" in Higher Education
- Our data dilemma
- Corporate partnerships
- IT infrastructure (legacy systems)
- Shared services
... and many other interesting topics. I hope that you will find the conversation interesting and useful.
This episode is sponsored by the wonderful team at CONNECTed | Crowdsourced Education - check out their innovative short course in EdTech & Strategy for Higher Ed professionals seeking to level-up and lead reform.
Connect with the host Warren Kennard and the extended EdUp team Elvin Freytes, Elizabeth Leiba, and Dr. Joe Sallustio
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Thanks for listening!
We make education your business!
Today I speak with Bill Heinrich. Bill is the Director for Mindset at Orbis Communications.
Bill holds a BA from Northern Illinois University, a MA in student affairs administration and a PhD in Higher Education Administration from Michigan State.
Paul loves being outdoors and spent some of his early career as a ski and mountain bike instructor before making his way into Higher Education. He honed his talents at UC Santa Cruz before moving onto Michigan State University where he applied his mind to assessment and experiential learning at the Universities hub for innovation in learning and technology.
Bill is particularly knowledgeable about high impact and experiential learning practices as well as adventure, field, place-based, and outdoor learning experiences most notably in Higher Education.
Bill and I discuss:
- Work Integrated Learning (WIL), co-ops and internships
- Assessment, interdisciplinary and experiential learning
- EdTech and contemporary learning design
- Tracking and evaluating where learning happens
- Student feedback and repeatable patterns in student data
- Data privacy
- High impact learning practices
- Online proctoring and authentic assessment
- 'Scale' in the learning equation
- The 60 year curriculum ... and much more
For a good read on some of these topics, pleaser read "Who Coaches the Coaches? The Development of a Coaching Model for Experiential Learning" where Bill is a Co-Author.
This episode is sponsored by the wonderful team at CONNECTed | Crowdsourced Education - check out their innovative short course in EdTech & Strategy for Higher Ed professionals seeking to level-up and lead reform.
Connect with the host Warren Kennard and the extended EdUp team Elvin Freytes, Elizabeth Leiba, and Dr. Joe Sallustio
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Thanks for listening!
We make education your business!
Today I speak with Dr. Jeff Borden, recently appointed as the Chief Academic and VP of Academic Affairs at D2L.
Jeff and I discuss:
- Technology for learning (at scale)
- Input, throughput and output of learning (value)
- Education 3.0
- The change we believe needs to happen in education
- Connected neural learning
- Professional development in education (the lack thereof)
- The issue of (misaligned) incentives
- The learning cocktail
- Associative thinking
- Bad actors in research, among many other interesting topics
This conversation was recorded for the benefit of students undertaking the EdTech & Strategy for Higher Education online certificate program as part of their Module 6 curriculum - teaching and learning meets digital, but Jeff is a voice that needs to be heard by as wide an audience as possible.
It's a short, but powerful conversation. Now I bring you, Dr. Jeff Borden.
This episode is sponsored by the wonderful team at CONNECTed | Crowdsourced Education - check out their innovative short course in EdTech & Strategy for Higher Ed professionals seeking to level-up and lead reform.
Connect with the host Warren Kennard and the extended EdUp team Elvin Freytes, Elizabeth Leiba, and Dr. Joe Sallustio
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We make education your business!
Today I'm joined by Professor Claire Macken. Claire is the Associate Deputy Vice-Chancellor Learning and Teaching at RMIT University College of Business and Law - her insights and experience are every bit as long as her professional title. Highlighting only a few, Claire was Director Education at KPMG and prior to that worked at Apple in their Industry Higher Ed solutions team. Claire was also the Pro Vice Chancellor of Future Learning at Latrobe University and held several previous roles at Deakin University. She holds an MBA from the University of Canberra and a PHD from Deakin following her undergrad studies in law from the same institution. Claire is an author of several books and a mother of 3 amazing kids - a prolific writer, a deep thinker, always candid and sometimes controversial, Claire is a friend, former colleague and someone I deeply respect in the world of Higher Education.
Dedicated to better learning and outcomes for students, Claire and I discuss:
- the obligations and purpose of higher education
- research versus teaching and learning
- the life of the young academic
- skills we need today for the jobs of tomorrow
- interdisciplinary learning
- learning agency
- the narrative of learning
- work life balance
- Parenting, among other things
I fumble around through this conversation struggling to find my words, but Claire somehow manages to pick up my conversational threads, and as always delivers remarkable insights - listen carefully because there is much more said than one can digest on first pass.
With nothing else to add, I bring you Professor Claire Macken.
This episode is sponsored by the wonderful team at CONNECTed | Crowdsourced Education - check out their innovative short course in EdTech & Strategy for Higher Ed professionals seeking to level-up and lead reform.
Connect with the host Warren Kennard and the extended EdUp team Elvin Freytes, Elizabeth Leiba, and Dr. Joe Sallustio
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We make education your business!
Today I'm joined by Kevin Bell, Kevin is the Founder and CEO at Digital Education Analytics. Some highlights in Kevin's career - he was the Pro Vice Chancellor for Digital Futures at Western Sydney University, he previously held the role of Executive Director and Senior Fellow for the Lowell Institute at Northeastern University and was a senior member of Paul LeBlanc's team at Southern New Hampshire University where he led SNHU's innovation lab. He has enjoyed an extensive career, so please visit his LinkedIn profile to see what else he's been up to - you'll be impressed.
Kevin holds a Bachelors from the University of Manchester, A masters in teaching and learning from Marlboro College and earned his Doctorate at the UPenn GSE where he graduated with distinction. His thesis on the intrinsic motivation of students is surfaced several times in our conversation.
Kevin and I chat about intrinsic motivation; positive reinforcement; the importance of decision making; the power of experimentation, gameful design and flow; formal and informal learning; the power of networks; online vs F2F; ubiquity of content; the importance of assessment and the ability to demonstrate competency; augmenting learning experiences through online; the intersection between academia and industry - the role of the intermediary; moving beyond qualifications as a requirement for a job; artificial intelligence and much more
Kevin is a friend, he's a terrific guy to spend time with and he understands Higher Education very well, plus he has interesting stories to share!
I hope that you will enjoy our time together.
This episode is sponsored by the wonderful team at CONNECTed | Crowdsourced Education - check out their innovative short course in EdTech & Strategy for Higher Ed professionals seeking to level-up and lead reform.
Connect with the host Warren Kennard and the extended EdUp team Elvin Freytes, Elizabeth Leiba, and Dr. Joe Sallustio
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Thanks for listening!
We make education your business!
Today I'm joined by Michelle Weise. Michelle has an impressive resume. Michelle started her career as a TA at Stanford University where she secured her PHD in English following her undergraduate which she received from Harvard University.
She was a fulbright scholar, an assistant professor at Skidmore College and then went on to be the VP of Academic Affairs at Fidelis Inc. helping war veterans transition to civilian life. She was fortunate to co-author a short book with the late Clayton Christensen while a Senior Research Fellow at the Clayton Christensesn Institute and then assumed the role of Chief Innovation Officer at the Sandbox Collaborative, a product of SNHU.
She held the role of SVP of workforce strategies and Chief Innovation Officer at Strada Education Network and rounds out her impressive career having held a Board position at Entangled solutions (now Guild Education) among several other present day appointments, most notably alongside Josh Jarrett at the Skillup Coalition.
Michelle is currently a Senior Advisor at Imaginable Futures, a global philanthropic investment firm that believes learning has the power to unleash human potential. The main focus of our discussion today however surrounds her recent book entitled Long Life Learning published by Wiley. It's a terrific read and I'd highly recommend it. our conversation is a mere drop in the ocean relative to the value you'll receive from reading it cover to cover - get it today.
We cover vast terrain in the 30mins we enjoyed together as we chat about the drivers behind her chosen occupation; we discuss good and bad career navigation; time pressure and our hustle to survive; the burden on the adult student; value for learners; the way we need to think about skills between students, learning providers, and industry; education as signalling; AI; the learning ecosystem and funding the skills gap.
Michelle is delightful, she is a bundle of energy and with two young children, she personifies the audience of her work, the adult learner. Focused on social issues of importance, committed to advancing the interests of minority groups and just generally committed to making the world a better place, Michelle is someone you need and want to listen to. With that long but very necessary introduction, I bring you Michelle Weise.
Today I speak with my good friend Jack Hylands. Jack is the co-Founder of FourthRev. where he and his team are actively bridging the digital skills gap by connecting leading companies and universities to deliver up-to-date, industry relevant programs. FourthRev. has been in the news a lot lately for all the right reasons having also just announced their seed funding round led by Reach Capital together with the continued support of Emerge Education and a number of highly accomplished investors.
Jack holds a BA from the University of Cambridge and a PGCE from the Canterbury Christ Church University. He is a former mathematics educator, Accenture consultant and CEO of an OPM based out of Australia - Jack went on to be the GM of strategy and new product for RMIT Online and has continued on a path of discovery at the intersection of Higher Ed, industry and workforce development.
Jack is a strategic big picture thinker, he can wax lyrical in his area of expertise and he enjoys a good debate. We cover good terrain in our conversation as we chat about; the start of the OPM; the intersection of industry and academia; our Search for meaning in work; strategy, scale and impact especially of online education; academic grades and economic mobility; the university's purpose and improving the parts that need reform; the growing disconnect between education and career outcomes; digital transformation and 4IR; moving beyond the transfer of knowledge; partnering in Higher Education; the role to be played by the big 4; the culture of Higher Ed; zero sum games versus shared value; the high priority of career outcomes; non-traditional students; project-based learning; enterprise skills and higher order capabilities; advice for edtech startups; VC in edtech; Higher Education post the pandemic; and lots more
Jack has a lot of wise things to say - he's a smart young man. I'm sure that you will enjoy the conversation.
This episode is sponsored by the wonderful team at CONNECTed | Crowdsourced Education - check out their innovative short course in EdTech & Strategy for Higher Ed professionals seeking to level-up and lead reform.
Connect with the host Warren Kennard and the extended EdUp team Elvin Freytes, Elizabeth Leiba, and Dr. Joe Sallustio
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Thanks for listening!
We make education your business!
Today I speak with Ryan O'Mahoney. Ryan is the Managing Director of 2U short courses that present themselves to the world through the brand of GetSmarter. 2U acquired GetSmarter in 2017 which coincides with my reluctant exiting of the business to begin new adventures here in Melbourne, Australia.
Ryan holds a MA in economics and management from Oxford, an honours in accounting from the University of Stellenbosch and has enrolled in several executive short courses offered through GetSmarter including a Fintech program from MIT, a digital transformation program from MIT Sloan and data analysis from LSE. Besides being incredibly smart, Ryan is a terrific storyteller and a thoughtful and inspiring leader.
Ryan and I chat about the GetSmarter magic, how to lead high-growth businesses and why GetSmarter now enjoys a portfolio of over 150 courses, servicing more than 150,000 students per annum from 150 countries ... did I mention that Ryan enjoys numbers?
Anyway, Ryan is a wonderful man, a terrific father to 2 young children and an inspiring leader to his team of 700 plus passionate and dedicated professionals stationed in Cape Town, South Africa.
Ryan's impact at GetSmarter cannot be underestimated - personally I attribute much of the businesses success to him, notwithstanding of course the incredible vision of its founding brothers, Rob and Sam Paddock.
This episode is sponsored by the wonderful team at CONNECTed | Crowdsourced Education - check out their innovative short course in EdTech & Strategy for Higher Ed professionals seeking to level-up and lead reform.
Connect with the host Warren Kennard and the extended EdUp team Elvin Freytes, Elizabeth Leiba, and Dr. Joe Sallustio
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We make education your business!
I really enjoyed chatting with my friend, Ryan O'Hare.
Ryan is the CEO of Keypath Education Australia. He is well known in Higher Education circles for being at the forefront of ideas.
A graduate from Ulster University, he’s spent all of his career in Higher Education working in various parts of the world with several well respected leaders in the sector. Ryan’s team in Australia are making an important and valuable contribution to the lives of students, and the companies growth is testament to the quality of their work. Ryan attributes much of Keypath's success to the companies ability to effectively mine data and to extract valuable insights that their University partners use to inform better strategy, especially as relates to identifying in-demand products and services in future of work disciplines.
You will enjoy Ryan's accent, he has a wonderful sense of humour and he’s an all round remarkable man contributing to the world in just the way it was intended for him to do so.
I apologise in advance for the pockets of bad audio on my side, I did my best to edit them out without compromising the integrity of our conversation.
This episode is sponsored by the wonderful team at CONNECTed | Crowdsourced Education - check out their innovative short course in EdTech & Strategy for Higher Ed professionals seeking to level-up and lead reform.
Connect with the host Warren Kennard and the extended EdUp team Elvin Freytes, Elizabeth Leiba, and Dr. Joe Sallustio
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Thanks for listening!
We make education your business!
A fantastic conversation with David Blake! David is the Co-Founder and Executive Chairman at Degreed, he is the Managing Partner at the Future of Work Studios where he has given life to Bookclub and LearnIn as well as investing in several other interesting projects. He is a graduate of Brigham Young University where he studied economics and in 2011 he attended the EdTech entrepreneurs lab at the Hasso Plattner Institute of design.
David is well read, a big picture thinker and speaks with authority on things that interest him. He and his team are intent on addressing the critical skills gaps in industry and on finding innovative ways to tip the scales away from the university degree being the defacto standard of success in favour of a skills based currency. Every utterance from David is captivating - please enjoy his articulate arguments for change and his effective strategies for supporting reform in Higher Education.
*Apologies for parts of the conversation where audio was impaired and required editing.
This episode is sponsored by the wonderful team at CONNECTed | Crowdsourced Education - check out their innovative short course in EdTech & Strategy for Higher Ed professionals seeking to level-up and lead reform.
Connect with the host Warren Kennard and the extended EdUp team Elvin Freytes, Elizabeth Leiba, and Dr. Joe Sallustio
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We make education your business!
In this episode of the EdUp Edge podcast I speak with Ben Nelson, the Chairman and CEO of Minerva. Ben holds a Bachelor of Science in Economics and Marketing from The Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania. He is an education reformer and a product of the dot.com boom where he held a couple of roles, most notably as the President of Snapfish an innovative platform founded in the late 90’s responsible for bringing photos to life.
Minerva, the focus of our conversation is building a global network of forward-looking high schools, universities, corporations, non-profit organizations, and governments to equip individuals at multiple levels with the cognitive skills needed to make decisions of consequence, formulate effective solutions, and manage rapid change.
Ben is dynamic, innovative and humble - we touch all kinds of interesting topics in our conversation including rote learning versus the contextual application of learning, far transfer and modalities enabling better learning. He explains what the word education means to Minerva University and his thoughts on the Minerva recipe as a scalable and replicable model.
We touch on the issue of student fees, Minerva’s extended product offering and plans for the future. As you will hear, I’m an unashamedly big fan of Ben’s and of Minerva. I hope that you enjoy the conversation as much as I did.
This episode is sponsored by the wonderful team at CONNECTed | Crowdsourced Education - check out their innovative short course in EdTech & Strategy for Higher Ed professionals seeking to level-up and lead reform.
Connect with the host Warren Kennard and the extended EdUp team Elvin Freytes, Elizabeth Leiba, and Dr. Joe Sallustio
● If you want to get involved, leave us a comment or rate us!
● Join the EdUp community at The EdUp Experience!
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Thanks for listening!
We make education your business!
EdUp Edge are conversations about Higher Education for professionals in the sector. Learn, get inspired and meet brilliant people doing extraordinary work in the Higher Ed ecosystem.