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, […]
Practice
Published by: WCET | 12/4/2025
The U.S. Department of Education (the Department) completed the first of two negotiated rulemaking committees established to implement the federal statute, One Big Beautiful Bill Act Public Law 119-21 (OB3), enacted July 4, 2025. As we shared in a previous Frontiers Post, the Department first convened the Re-imagining and Improving Student Education (RISE) Committee that recently […]
Practice
Published by: WCET | 12/2/2025
When I was younger, and sleeping on the ground didn’t hurt quite so much, I liked to usher in the new year by camping. It offered a great opportunity to get away and find solitude to reflect on the previous year and contemplate the new year. I remember one New Year’s Eve when a huge […]
Practice
Published by: WCET | 11/20/2025
Each year, I look forward to the WCET Outstanding Work (WOW) Awards because they give us the chance to shine a light on the incredible innovations happening across our community. These awards celebrate the projects that push digital learning forward—the ones that tackle real challenges, expand access, improve quality, and deliver meaningful results for today’s […]
Policy
Published by: WCET | 11/13/2025
Like the “Mighty Yopp” from Dr. Seuss’s Horton Hears a Who! the first federal regulation on state authorization of distance education in 2010 echoed a powerful message from the states: “We’re here!” That Federal regulation affirmed that states have enforceable legal requirements that institutions must follow when engaging in activities within their borders. In April […]