Building Institutional Capacity Through Digital Learning Professional Development

Practice

Published by: WCET | 2/26/2026

I’m currently testing out Copilot for WICHE as we work to refine our AI strategy and implementation. This morning, when I opened a new Word document to write this blog post, I was greeted with a helpful window prompting me to tell it what I wanted to write. Three minutes and one refinement to the […]

Policy

Published by: WCET | 2/12/2026

Professional licensure compliance often operates behind the scenes, but its influence on higher education has grown in recent years. It can shape which programs institutions offer, where students are able to enroll, and how institutions evaluate regulatory risk. The State Authorization Network’s (SAN) new report, Between the Lines, Behind the Work: Survey Findings on the […]

Policy

Published by: WCET | 2/5/2026

Every year, the SANsational Awards remind us of something we in the State Authorization Network (SAN) community already know- compliance work is not just about checking boxes. It is about problem-solving, collaboration, innovation, and, most importantly, protecting and empowering students. Since 2015, the State Authorization Network (SAN), a network of WCET, has awarded SANsational Awards […]

Practice

Published by: WCET | 2/3/2026

“Distance education isn’t as good as face-to-face.”“You have an online degree? That’s not really a degree.”“You went to an online school? Your degree must be a fake!”“Online schools aren’t as rigorous as ‘real’ colleges.” If you’ve been around digital learning since the late 1990s and early 2000s, you likely remember hearing disparaging comments like these. […]

Practice

Published by: WCET | 1/29/2026

Cutting through the noise to help institutions make smarter AI decisions As AI continues to reshape conversations across higher education, leaders are navigating an increasingly crowded landscape of competing claims, vendor promises, and institutional anxieties. In the midst of this information overload, misconceptions can cloud decision-making and slow meaningful progress. Through our national study of […]

Policy

Published by: WCET | 1/21/2026

The new year began with the second and final week of The U.S. Department of Education’s (The Department) negotiated rulemaking for the Accountability in Higher Education and Access through Demand-driven Workforce Pell (AHEAD) Committee. Week two focused on program accountability measures that will address consequences for failing programs. Processes were developed to address a program’s […]

Published by: WCET | 1/9/2026

This month marks my one-year anniversary as WCET’s executive director. I frequently get asked how my first year has gone. My reply is always that it’s been an interesting time to step into leadership at an organization that lives at the intersection of higher education policy and technology. Between my one-year anniversary and the predictable […]

Policy

Published by: WCET | 12/18/2025

Last week marked the close of the first week of the second negotiated rulemaking to implement the higher education provisions of the One Big Beautiful Bill Act, Public Law 119-21 (OB3). Convened by the Department of Education (the Department), the AHEAD negotiated rulemaking committee began its work by tackling one of the most closely watched […]

Practice

Published by: WCET | 12/11/2025

As postsecondary institutions continue to expand their digital learning footprints, understanding the regulatory and consumer-protection landscape has never been more important. SARA plays a central role in that landscape, especially as distance education stabilizes beyond the pandemic and institutions look for efficient, student-centered ways to operate across state lines. To explore the latest data, trends, […]