Why Earnings Alone Cannot Define Higher Education Accountability
Why the accountability debate is more complicated than it looks Higher education accountability is increasingly centered on earnings outcomes. The assumption is straightforward: students earn a credential, enter the workforce, and their salaries reflect institutional...
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Recent Stories
May Update: Accountable Innovation in Practice
What does accountable innovation mean in higher education Accountable innovation is becoming the defining expectation for higher education leaders. Across the Presidents Forum network, this means designing new models that are not only innovative but also measurable....
From Liberal Arts to the Labor Market: How NOVA Is Connecting Humanities Students to Careers
By Anne M. Kress, President, Northern Virginia Community College Higher education leaders and policymakers could be forgiven for making AI the center of every conversation about preparing students for a world of work changing at record speed. The numbers are striking:...
Competition is an Illusion: How Higher Ed Partnerships Can Increase Access to Online Learning – Sooner than Later
By Kate Smith, president of Rio Salado College, and Trevor Kubatzke, president of Lake Michigan College The demand for online learning has surged in the last 5 years; however, many colleges are struggling to keep pace. According to a 2025 Changing Landscape of Online...
Accreditation, Innovation and Modernization (AIM) Week One Negotiation Update
The Department of Education’s proposed accreditation reforms represent a fundamental shift in federal oversight, moving from a compliance-driven model toward one focused on student outcomes, institutional value, and market competition. At a high level,...
Grad PLUS: What the Latest Change Means for Graduate Students
What changed with Grad PLUS loans The Department of Education recently updated its guidance on how Grad PLUS loans are treated under new lifetime borrowing limits. Previously, institutions were told that Grad PLUS loans would not count toward the $257,500 lifetime...
What Presidents Need to Know About Workforce Pell and AHEAD Rulemaking
What is changing with Workforce Pell Workforce Pell is not just a new funding stream. It represents a shift in how institutions design and deliver programs. The focus is on working adults, military-connected learners, and students who are re-skilling. These students...
Designing for the Learner-First Workforce
What is a learner-first workforce model A learner-first workforce model starts with how students actually live and work today. At Excelsior University, that means designing programs for working adults, military learners, and career changers who are balancing multiple...
A Student-First Model for Working Adults
What’s happening Eva Nodine, CEO of Purdue Global, says their designing higher education around working adults—not traditional students. Why it matters Most learners today are balancing jobs, families, and school. Traditional models weren’t built for that reality....
The Workforce Is the Classroom: How Colleges Must Redesign Learning for a Learner-First Economy
By Dr. Justin H. Lonon, Dallas College Chancellor The Traditional Model Is No Longer Enough The traditional classroom model is no longer enough to meet the demands of today’s workforce. At Dallas College, gone are the days of the classroom being confined to four...
What is Holding Back AI Innovation in Higher Education?
What is holding back AI innovation in higher education? Outdated regulations, especially those tied to seat time and “regular and substantive interaction”, are limiting innovation. These rules were designed to prevent low-quality correspondence programs, but today...
What Does a Learner-First Workforce Model Look Like in Practice?
What does a “learner-first workforce model” actually mean in practice? A learner-first workforce model starts with who today’s students are and designs education around their realities, not institutional convenience. At Purdue Global, this means recognizing that: Over...
April Update
Why it matters Today’s students are balancing work, family, and career change. Higher education and public policy need to reflect that reality. What we’ve been doing Over the past month, Presidents Forum members have continued advancing work across innovation,...
Rethinking Tuition Assistance
In contemporary debates on American defense manpower and national competitiveness, military voluntary education occupies an odd intellectual position. It is normatively celebrated as a mechanism for self-improvement and transition, and it is formally justified in...
When Tuition Assistance Stalled, SNHU Stepped In
When the federal government shut down in fall 2025, the disruption reached military students quickly. Tuition Assistance payments paused, leaving many service members unsure whether they could stay enrolled in their classes. Southern New Hampshire University chose not...
Rebuilding The Adult Learner Ecosystem
Why it matters 43 million Americans have some college but no credential. This gap threatens economic mobility and workforce growth. The challenge Most colleges were designed for a different student, but today’s typical learner is older, working, and balancing family...
A Comprehensive Approach to Serving Those Who Serve
By Gregory W. Fowler, PhD, President, University of Maryland Global Campus For nearly eight decades, University of Maryland Global Campus (UMGC) has maintained an unwavering commitment to the men and women who wear the uniform of our country. The program that grew...
Two programs, one principle: designing programs for service members
By Anne M. Kress, PhD, President, Northern Virginia Community College Northern Virginia Community College (NOVA) has six decades of experience serving a diverse student body, including military service members and veterans, and recently we challenged ourselves to be...
Expanding Opportunity for Those Who Serve
Why it matters Military learners balance service, family, and education under extraordinary conditions. Higher education policy must reflect that reality. The challenge Military learners face: Frequent relocations Unpredictable schedules Training that isn’t always...
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