New on WCET Frontiers
Practice
From RISE to AHEAD: What We Learned and What Comes Next in Federal Rulemaking
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
Looking Back, Moving Forward: A Year with WCET
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
Meeting Students Where They Are: How Colorado Online is Transforming Digital Learning Through Collaboration
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
State Authorization Shifts Again: What’s Changing and Why It Matters
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 […]
Practice
Lessons from Tidepools: Connecting Learning and Work
Published by: WCET | 11/5/2025
I’m fascinated by tidepools. Perhaps it comes from growing up in a desert, where the idea of a self-contained aquatic world is both foreign and magical. Each pool is the perfect example of an interconnected system: seaweed, plankton, mussels, starfish, and even otters are all connected through these pools of water left behind by the […]
Policy
Negotiated Rulemaking Underway: Week One Review of the RISE Committee
Published by: WCET | 10/30/2025
The U.S. Department of Education will soon enter the second and final week of negotiated rulemaking for the Re-imagining and Improving Student Education (RISE) Committee, which is developing changes to the Federal student loan programs as directed by the One Big Beautiful Bill Act (OB3). As we prepare for the final week of discussions, we […]
Practice
Mitigating Program & Campus Closure with Course Sharing
Published by: WCET | 10/16/2025
Across higher education, we’re seeing tough headlines about campuses closing or programs being cut. It’s a challenging time for higher ed, and learners are often the ones most affected. In this post, our partners at Parchment by Instructure share how course sharing can help institutions work together to expand access, sustain programs, and keep campuses […]
Practice
Now Is Our Moment: Six Takeaways from the 2025 Badge Summit
Published by: WCET | 10/9/2025
At WCET, we’re always inspired by the spaces where innovation in higher education moves from idea to action. From what we understand, the 2025 Badge Summit at the University of Colorado, Boulder, was exactly that kind of moment. What once may have felt like a specialized discussion about badges and digital credentials has grown into […]
Policy
SAN Releases a New “How To” Handbook to Build an Institution’s State-to-State Authorization Plan
Published by: WCET | 9/18/2025
The State Authorization Network (SAN) is excited to share SAN’s newest comprehensive resource, the State-to-State Institutional Approval for Distance Education Handbook, developed in partnership with Shari Miller, Institutional Compliance MATTERS. This handbook is the third major SAN report designed to demystify complex compliance requirements when institutions offer interstate opportunities, whether through online courses or experiential […]
Practice
Cutting through the Framework Fog
Published by: WCET | 9/11/2025
It comes as no surprise that Artificial intelligence (AI) is reshaping higher education. Much of what is emerging from the field relates to AI, whether it is news about technological advancements or questions about how we should use it. Alongside these, a wave of AI literacy frameworks has emerged, each offering its own definitions, competencies, […]