In an effort to boost awareness about certifications with labor-market value, Roy Swift, Ph.D., executive director of Workcredan affiliate of the American National Standards Institute (ANSI)will join Julie Uranis of the University Professional and Continuing Education Association (UPCEA), and Shalin Jyotishi and Andrea Rodriguez from the Association of Public and Land-grant Universities (APLU) and Coalition of Urban Serving Universities (USU) on February 5, 2020, at the Summit for Online Leadership and Administration Roundtable for a session on "Embedding Industry Certifications in Undergraduate Degree Programs." Hosted by UPCEA in New Orleans, the event (February 4-6, 2020) will include presentations from educational leaders and experts in charge of the strategic direction of the online learning enterprise at universities around the nation.
Today, students at four-year universities and colleges have few opportunities to earn certifications with labor-market value while they earn their baccalaureate degree. Workcred, APLU, USU, and UPCEA joined efforts in 2018 under a Lumina Foundation grant to explore how students can earn both degrees and certifications as part of their four-year degree program. Through the beginning of 2020, Workcred along with APLU, USU, and UPCEA have hosted four convenings bringing together certification bodies and universities with the goal of creating new opportunities to connect four-year degrees and certifications that result in credential pathways. The fifth and final convening of the project, focused on the hospitality industry, will be held March 26-27, 2020. Through the session, project partners will highlight preliminary findings, themes, and opportunities that emerged from these convenings.
Collectively, convening participants are helping to inform and identify opportunities to create credential pathways, that may lead to a future collaboration that will support students as they earn both degrees and certifications as part of their undergraduate degree program.
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About Workcred
Formed in 2014, Workcred is an affiliate of ANSI whose mission is to strengthen workforce quality by improving the credentialing system, ensuring its ongoing relevance, and preparing employers, workers, educators, and governments to use it effectively. Workcred's vision is a labor market that relies on the relevance, quality, and value of workforce credentials for opportunities, growth, and development. Learn more at www.workcred.org.
About Lumina Foundation
Lumina Foundation is an independent, private foundation in Indianapolis that is committed to making opportunities for learning beyond high school available to all. The foundation envisions a system that is easy to navigate, delivers fair results, and meets the nation's need for talent through a broad range of credentials. Lumina's goal is to prepare people for informed citizenship and for success in a global economy.