Continuing a strong trend, more colleges and universities plan to implement online education programs that focus on serving nontraditional students who need a flexible and convenient alternative learning method. We are pleased to announce that some of the new online education entrants chose The Learning House, Inc. as their trusted partner in building, delivering and managing their online degree programs.

In the second quarter of 2010, Learning House welcomed the following partner schools: Beckfield College, Bethel College, Byzantine Catholic Seminary, Lambuth University, Mid-America Nazarene University, Salem College and Washington Adventist University.

Beckfield College (www.Beckfield.edu) is a career college located in Florence, KY. Although primarily focused on Allied Health diploma, certification and degree programs, Beckfield also provides business, criminal justice, hospitality, computer science and paralegal education. Beckfield College is accredited by the Accrediting Council for Independent Colleges and Schools to award bachelor’s degrees, associate degrees and non-degree programs. The online program will kick off with a Diploma in Medical Assisting that is approved to launch in the fall of 2010.

Bethel College (www.bethelks.edu), with a campus in North Newton, KS, was founded in 1887 and is the oldest Mennonite college in North America. Bethel takes great pride in the quality of its academic offerings; student and graduate success; and its mission to educate a diverse community of learners. Above all, Bethel seeks to build and inspire intellectual, cultural and spiritual leaders for church and society. The online program planned for the spring of 2011 includes a bachelor’s in nursing (RN-BSN) degree.

Byzantine Catholic Seminary of Saints Cyril and Methodius (www.byzcathsem.edu) is a school of theology located in Pittsburgh PA, whose primary mission is to prepare candidates for priestly ministry to the Byzantine Catholic Churches of North America. Founded in 1950, the seminary is a center of learning for the study of Eastern Christianity. The school will offer its first online program, a Certificate in Eastern Christian Studies, in October 2010.

Lambuth University (www.lambuth.edu), located in Jackson, TN, is an independent undergraduate, church-related institution affiliated with the Memphis Annual Conference of the United Methodist Church. Founded in 1843, the small liberal arts college recognizes the interdependence of education and religion and reaffirms the Wesleyan emphasis on the necessity for both academic excellence and authentic faith that build the highest standards of personal integrity. Online courses are in the planning stage and will be announced soon.

MidAmerica Nazarene University (www.mnu.edu) is a Christian learning community in the Wesleyan-Holiness tradition located in Olathe, KS. MidAmerica is sponsored by the North Central Region of the International Church of the Nazarene. The university has offered innovative, accelerated adult degree completion and graduate programs for more than 20 years and, in the fall of 2010, it plans to launch an online program that includes a Master of Arts in Pastoral Leadership and a Bachelor of Science in Nursing (RN-BSN).

Salem College (www.salem.edu) in Winston-Salem, NC is a four-year, private liberal arts college for women. Founded in 1772 by an early Protestant denomination from central Europe, Salem is the oldest educational institution for women in the United States. The online program is currently in its design stage. Salem will provide more details on its online courses and degree programs soon.

Washington Adventist University (www.wau.edu) is a Christ-centered institution of higher education located in Takoma Park, MD. Washington supports a culture of excellence, where all students, faculty and staff feel valued and have a mission to produce graduates who bring moral leadership and competence to their communities. The university will offer online degree programs, including a Master in Business Administration (MBA), Master of Education – Early Childhood Development, a Master of Health Care Administration and a Master of Nursing. Approval of online degrees is expected soon and launch dates are planned for the fall of 2010.

In today’s marketplace, job requirements, licensure regulations and career advancements command a superior level of skill, knowledge and credentials across all industries. Career changes and lateral moves can also entail a shift in qualifications, learning a new set of skills and obtaining a different certification or degree. 

Without the availability of online learning, millions of current or future professionals could not obtain a college degree or further their education to adapt swiftly and successfully to the current economic turbulence that also inherently affects the current job market.

Learning House works hard to ensure that new partner schools have all the resources, support and tools necessary to build and deliver successful online degree programs and help more adult learners earn a valuable and high-quality college education.

The United States Distance Learning Association (USDLA) honored California Lutheran University (CLU) with prestigious awards at the 2010 International Distance Learning Conference in St. Louis, Missouri. CLU was presented with two awards: Category III: Excellence in Distance Learning Teaching and Category IV: Outstanding Leadership by an Individual in the Field of Distance Learning for the MBA in Financial Planning program. 

The USDLA Awards were created to recognize major accomplishments in distance learning and to highlight those distance learning instructors, programs, and professionals who have achieved and demonstrated extraordinary results through the use of online, videoconferencing, satellite, and blended learning delivery technologies. 

Dr. Somnath Basu, Director of the Online MBA and Certificate Program in Financial Planning, said, “I want to thank everyone here at CLU and at the School of Business who worked so hard to support and help us develop California Institute of Finance and its MBA in Financial Planning program.”  He continued, “I also want to thank The Leaning House, Inc., our partner in distance learning, for their continuing effort in helping us create and maintain our online campus.”

Since October 2004, California Lutheran University has partnered with Learning House, a comprehensive online education solutions partner, to manage and deliver high-quality programs. Learning House offers publishing, marketing, training, consulting and infrastructure support services to CLU.
“We are proud to partner with California Lutheran University,” said David T. Richardson, President and CEO of Learning House. “CLU’s online MBA in Financial Planning sets the standard for high-quality distance education and truly deserves this national recognition.”

The California Institute of Finance at CLU offers an online MBA in Financial Planning degree and certificate program. The CFP Board-registered program is designed to prepare financial planning professionals to keep pace with growing market demand and stay ahead in an increasingly complex career field. In addition, the program prepares students to take the esteemed CFP® Certification Exam.

In 2007, CLU was presented with a silver award for Category II: Best Practices in Distance Learning Programming by USDLA.

About California Lutheran University – California Institute of Finance
California Lutheran University’s innovative and accredited program in Financial Planning is an online MBA and certificate program entirely geared toward financial planning and services professionals. It is designed to help mid-level professionals keep pace with growing market demand and stay ahead in this increasingly complex career field. In addition, this program prepares students to sit for the prestigious CFP Certification Exam. For more information, please visit: www.callutheran.edu/cif.

Over the last year, The Learning House, Inc. (TLH) has put forth considerable efforts in building custom software systems that can make managing partner course orders easier and more accurate. This has been, and continues to be, a quest to find new and better ways to assist our skilled staff so they can better serve our partner schools.

We have just completed the programming phase for the Learning House Partner Portal to give our partner schools direct access to data we use internally and much more. This system will provide real-time data on course development as well as additional information on recruiting and retention to help ensure the success of our partner schools and their students.

The benefits of the Learning House Partner Portal span over a variety of business processes.

Rotations information is always current. There is no need to send spreadsheets via email or use other sources that become outdated rather quickly.  A future version will enable your faculty to order some courses on their own.

Managing incoming leads is easier. This Partner Portal feature is based on a “tried and true” sales funnel concept. It will help schools use a simple but effective business process to follow up on leads generated by Learning House or leads that are gathered or purchased from other sources. This feature will be generally available to all partners in the summer of 2010.

Retaining enrolled students is now supported. The goal of this feature is to provide an early warning, or a list of “at-risk” students who may need extra attention. Learning House proprietary algorithms rank students among their peers in a specific class based on participation/activity that is recorded in the Learning Management System (LMS). Over the next few months, we will continue to evolve the functionality of this very important tool.

Keeping track of new and adjunct instructor training is not a challenge. The Partner Portal tracks instructors who are assigned to specific courses, and it helps training staff ensure that faculty members meet the minimum TLH and school agreed-upon training.

Your Dashboard. A customizable dashboard in the Partner Portal gives specific users their list of important information. Your dashboard can include overviews of Courses Starting Over the Next 7 Days, Untrained Instructor List, Recruiting Overdue Tasks, and more.

The goal of the TLH Partner Portal is to provide timely and essential information to make the process of delivering online education easier to manage. We are excited about this new tool, and we hope our partners will be too. Watch this project as it continues to evolve.

The Learning House, Inc. is pleased to provide its partner schools with a comprehensive course maintenance and improvement plan known as the Continual Improvement Process. The process allows Learning House to work with schools to continually improve courses.

First, Learning House uses a specially developed tool known as the Quality Review Form. The Quality Review Form aids Learning House in evaluating courses based on 45 standards, grouped into “quality levels.” The quality levels serve as a guide for collaborating on ways to improve new and previously developed courses.

Once courses have been assessed using the Quality Review Form, the Continual Improvement Process begins. The process starts by setting “quality goals.” Learning House collaborates with partner schools to set goals for each course individually. After the quality goal has been identified for a course, a Publishing Specialist provides the course writer with consultation and guidance on the development of course materials.

Upon receipt of completed course materials, the Publishing Specialist reviews the material, offers any final suggestions for improvement and sends the materials to a proofreading team if needed or requested by the course writer. Proofreading is a service designed to increase quality through the correction of grammar, typographical errors, misspellings and punctuation. The service is available to all course writers who have provided sufficient lead time in development and written copyright compliant content. Once the lessons have been proofread, the Publishing Specialist works with the course writer on modifying unclear content.

Finally, after course materials have been improved, Learning House works with partner schools to improve course design. Courses are published in custom designed eBooks, including multimedia where appropriate. Learning House suggests media improvements throughout the process, which often include the addition of items such as games, flashcards, photos, custom graphics, charts, tables, publisher resources, audio recordings and video.

By offering the Continual Improvement Process, Learning House aims to ensure that online courses are of the highest quality and that all courses meet the needs of each unique student. Learning House continues to strive to provide each partner school with the tools and resources needed to deliver high-quality online programs that attract, retain and educate students.

The Learning House, Inc. has had a busy first quarter with nine institutions signing as partner schools. From nearby to overseas, Learning House’s newest partners are diverse in location, background and online program offerings.

Arkansas Baptist College
www.arkansasbaptist.edu – Located in Little Rock, Arkansas Baptist College (ABC) is a private, historically black, four-year liberal arts college dedicated to the development of graduates who are exceptionally educated, spiritually and culturally aware, and able to meet the demands of society. ABC will launch its first online general education courses with Learning House over the summer.

Blue Cliff College
www.bluecliffcollege.com  – Operating under the Quad Partners family, Blue Cliff College (BCC) is based in Louisiana with branch locations in Alexandria, Houma, Lafayette, Metarie and Shreveport, Louisiana; as well as Gulfport, Mississippi and Fayetteville, Arkansas. BCC will launch its first online program, a Certificate in Medical Assisting, on July 1. BCC plans to offer the full medical assisting degree by Spring 2011.

Coker College
www.coker.edu – Founded in 1908, Coker College is an independent, comprehensive college with a liberal arts core. Originally, Coker was a women’s college, but today, it is co-ed institution with more than 1,100 full- and part-time students. Located in Hartsville, South Carolina, Coker plans to offer general education courses online in the near future.

International University: Vienna
www.iuvienna.edu – Located in Vienna, Austria, The International University (IU) is Learning House’s first overseas partner school. The 26-year-old university strives to foster an effective academic program and a supportive environment for the development of the student’s maximum potential. In keeping with its mission, IU will offer online general education courses this summer and an Early Childhood Development certificate program in the near future.

Jamestown College
www.jc.edu – Established in 1883, Jamestown College (JC) is a private, liberal arts, four-year college in Jamestown, North Dakota. Offering more than 40 areas of study on-campus, JC will begin its venture into online education by offering general education courses with Learning House.

Mount Vernon Nazarene University
www.mvnu.edu – Located just north of Columbus, Ohio, Mount Vernon Nazarene University (MVNU) will begin building its online program by first offering an online Bachelor of Business Administration. MVNU also hopes to become a heavy user of Learning House’s Web-assist product. With more than 2,500 students, MVNU seeks to shape lives through educating the whole person and cultivating Christ-likeness for lifelong learning and service.

Vanguard College
www.vanguard.edu – Vanguard College (VC), located in Costa Mesa, California, will continue to offer its online Early Childhood Education certificate and will migrate the program to Moodle with the help of Learning House. VC also plans to build out an online Bachelor of Arts program in the near future within the education discipline. Currently, VC is working to complete its online summer general education courses and is investigating other programs to place online.

Wesley College
www.wesley.edu – Founded in 1873 as a preparatory school, Wesley College (WC) seeks to provide a value-centered education to students of all races and faith. Located in Dover, Delaware, WC will offer online general education courses this summer and has plans to offer a master’s program at a later time.

Wisconsin Lutheran College
www.wlc.edu – Based in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, Wisconsin Lutheran College (WLC) is a four-year Lutheran liberal arts college committed to providing quality teaching, scholarship, and service that are rooted in Holy Scripture. WLC plans to offer a business degree completion program online with Learning House in mid to late summer.

Louisville, KY – April 1, 2010 – The Learning House, Inc., an online education solutions partner, was recently named to the High Impact Portfolio as one of the top fast-growth companies headquartered in the Louisville Metro area. The High Impact Program is a public/private partnership between Louisville Metro Government and Greater Louisville Inc.’s (GLI) ENTERPRISECORP. Learning House was introduced as one of the companies selected to the High Impact Portfolio during the State of Entrepreneurship Breakfast on March 31.

“The innovation and accomplishments of these companies during challenging economic times demonstrates the significant contributions these fast-growth businesses are making to our regional economy,” said Mark Crane, Senior Vice President of Greater Louisville Inc.

In order to be recognized as a fast-growth company in the High Impact Program, a company must be at least four-years-old, have an annual compounded growth rate of at least 20 percent over the last four years and generate at least $1 million in annual revenue for the last three years with a positive operating profit. In order to support the growth of companies recognized in the High Impact Portfolio, the program provides comprehensive and confidential company evaluation, programming to foster growth and education, networking and peer relationship building facilitation and public recognition opportunities.

“We are very proud to be named a member of the High Impact Portfolio. We have experienced unprecedented growth and feel fortunate to be included among this group of fast-growing Louisville-based companies,” said David T. Richardson, President and CEO of Leaning House.

About The Leaning House, Inc.
The Learning House, Inc. is a comprehensive online education solutions partner that helps colleges and universities develop effective and affordable ways to deliver online degree programs. With more than 70 colleges and universities in 24 states and Europe, Learning House has created a model that meets the needs of every school. Learning House provides a total online campus solution to each of its partners, including online course development and publishing, program marketing, infrastructure support, learning management system customization and hosting, faculty and staff training, 24/7 technology support, and consulting. For more information about Learning House, please visit www.learninghouse.com. To find online courses or programs, please visit www.elearnportal.com.

About the High Impact Program
The High Impact program strives to nurture the prosperity of Greater Louisville’s growth businesses. The High Impact Program is a public/private partnership, initiated by Mayor Jerry Abramson, funded by Louisville Metro Government and administered by GLI’s ENTERPRISECORP – that identifies and serves fast growth companies, companies with the potential for fast growth and those companies that enable growth in others. This program focuses on companies of these types headquartered in Louisville that have a disproportionately higher impact on the metro area economy. For more information on the High Impact Program, visit www.HighImpactLouisville.com.

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Coast Guard pilot Ryan Hawn flies a MH65C Dolphin short-range recovery and multi-mission helicopter over the Golden Gate Bridge four times a week. Five miles away, students at Golden Gate Baptist Theological Seminary attend classes. Ryan has something in common with them since he is also a seminary student, although he has never been in a classroom at the Northern California campus. Instead, he takes an online theology course from the seminary’s eCampus program, Master of Theological Studies.

Ryan, 27, has always been eager for education. He enrolled in a dual enrollment program at the local community college during high school. After graduation, he attended the Coast Guard Academy in Connecticut. In four years, he had earned his mechanical engineering degree and was commissioned as an officer. He then went to flight school, and in 18 months, he graduated with his pilot’s license. In June 2007, at 24 years old, Ryan earned his wings and was sent to the San Francisco Bay area for his first duty station.

Troy Jacobson, the associate pastor at Coastside Community Church – also an eCampus student – recommended Golden Gate Seminary’s eCampus program when he learned that Ryan wanted to “dive more intentionally into the Word.”

In the evenings, when the noise of his helicopter quiets down, this young man spends his spare time studying theology and sharing ideas and opinions with other members of the sociable online education community, which has developed since he began his first eCampus course in early February 2010.

Currently taking Christian Theology II, Ryan said he would choose the online format even if he had the time to attend class. “This gives me lots of opportunity for self-study and fits into my schedule, regardless.” He anticipates taking more classes. “It’s an excellent experience, and a very legitimate and convenient way to learn,” he said. “I can get a master’s degree and go to seminary!”

Golden Gate Seminary’s fully accredited eCampus program has been available since 2006 and “delivers accredited theological education and leadership skill development to those already established in their ministry setting,” said Dr. Durst, Director of eCampus. These fully accredited, master-level courses are 100% online and require no visits to a campus.

Golden Gate’s Master of Divinity and Master of Theological Studies online degrees are designed for adult learners who want to work on their seminary degree at their own pace from anywhere in the world. More than 40 credit hours in Old Testament, New Testament, Bible, Church and Baptist History, Worship, Principles and Practices of Bible Teaching, Greek, and Hebrew are offered annually. Taught by eight dedicated and passionate professors, the online courses span over a 10- to 15-week semester. All credit hours are transferable to any higher education institution.

Golden Gate Baptist Theological Seminary (www.ggbts.edu) is a Cooperative Program Ministry of the Southern Baptist Convention and operates five, fully accredited campuses in Northern California, Southern California, Pacific Northwest, Arizona and Colorado.

Keeping students interested in learning and focused on obtaining their degree is one of the most challenging objectives that institutions of higher learning face. Too often, students lose focus and motivation amidst the distractions of life. While the reasons that lead traditional and nontraditional students to drop out of school prior to successfully obtaining their degree can vary, it is critical that schools take measures to draw them back to a degree program. A degree delivered partially or fully online must accommodate their new set of needs and life challenges.

Some students attribute their withdrawal to poor learning outcomes and unfulfilled expectations. According to David Bowman in his article, “Back to school: College dropouts often return and find success,” as published on www.hardnewscafe.usu.edu, “Students drop out of college for a number of reasons. The most common of these is a bad semester.” Students who have had a bad semester can easily feel like a failure when it’s likely that their educators have instead failed them. Offering online courses that appeal and cater to all learning styles is often the first and most important tool in student retention and dropout prevention.

Other students are forced to end, interrupt or postpone their college careers for financial reasons. As David Leonhardt mentions in his article, “Colleges are Failing in Graduation Rates,” published on www.nytimes.com, a large majority of middle-class students are not attending the best-fitting colleges because of financial shortcomings.

All too often, this results in many lower-income students being forced into attending less-selective schools. According to Leonhardt, “Meanwhile, lower-income students – even when they are better qualified – often go to colleges that excel in producing dropouts.” While a tragic reality, this creates a unique opportunity on which online educators can capitalize. Students, whose educational options were narrowed due to finances, or lack thereof, can find a wealth of new and viable options when enrolling in an online program at institutions that offer financial aid support and guidance.

Colleges and universities that offer online education are in the unique position of being more appealing to those students who have dropped out or deferred their pursuit of education for any reason, including finances and loss of interest. The online learning model offers benefits for all types of learners and can span over the entire socio-economic gap, reaching every student equally and placing far less emphasis on monetary prestige and far more emphasis on education, and subsequently, graduation.

Although the dropout crisis is alarming, a silver lining does exist for those colleges and universities willing to step up to the plate and recapture former students. Student counselor Debra Reece is quoted in Bowman’s article as saying, “This school year, we have seen 80 percent of the re-enrolled students do better than they had when they left. They come back to school more prepared and ready for what will be coming at them and that could very well be the reason why we are seeing such a great returning student success rate.”

While it is imperative to the future of the American workforce to re-enroll dropouts and increase collegiate graduation rates, it is equally important to go about boosting these rates through motivation and innovation, not by compromising education. Above all, online learning has the undeniable advantage and ability to remain at the forefront of this revolution by playing an important role in the successful higher education of the new American workforce.

One of the most effective battle tactics in staying competitive and relevant in a crowded higher education market is to offer professional degrees in high demand at a competitive tuition rate. This route can seem like an overwhelming and unconquerable challenge at times, but it can prove to be a promising path to success.

Although no magic formula exists for identifying winning programs, there is still hope for those who are willing to do the work. Faculty and administration can often provide great input and suggestions throughout the program development stages. However, rigorous preliminary research and data analysis is necessary to more closely estimate whether an online degree program is indeed feasible, sustainable and marketable.

Here are the main socio-economic and resource-related elements of a Program Feasibility Analysis:

      1. School Profile: This overview includes all significant differentiators and attributes that could potentially make the school more appealing to certain market segments when competing with other similar institutions. Differentiators can include a low tuition rate, low student-to-teacher ratio, religious affiliation, accreditation, rankings and accolades, articulation agreements with other colleges, online program specializations, etc.

      2. Competitor Profile: The data collected about specific competitors in the area or nationwide provides an insight into other similar institutions’ differentiators and attributes. Competitors are selected on the basis of proximity and/or program type availability. These findings will help estimate threats and opportunities in the competitive environment.

      3. Industry Profile: This information pertains to employment statistics (e.g., largest employers in the area) and job projections (e.g., annual opening by occupation), types of industries and their prevalence in the local area, state or across the nation. The respective findings play an important role in program sustainability analysis.
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      4. Demographic Profile: Demographic data is directly related to the industry information and helps identify recruitment opportunities within certain market segments (e.g., adults with some college, adults with a bachelor’s degree, etc.)

      5. Resource Analysis: In this step, it is important to identify and evaluate all the resources necessary for the design, development and delivery of an online program. One resource that might not be readily available is specialized faculty or course design experts. In this case, planning ahead has its undeniable merits.

      6. Marketability Analysis: The survey is one of the safest and most effective data sources in evaluating marketability. Obtaining timely input and feedback from interest-specific groups (e.g., current students, alumni, area businesses, etc.) is invaluable in this process. This research can be conducted at any time and at any stage.

Ultimately, however, an online program’s success is also dictated by the accessibility of marketing opportunities and the breadth of marketing strategies combined with the availability of resources (e.g., marketing budget and staff).

Learning House recognizes the urgency and value of the Program Feasibility Analysis and has invested substantial resources in assisting all partner schools throughout this complex process. Learning House marketing specialists are prepared to work with each school on an individual basis by researching and analyzing pertinent data to identify new programs that have the potential to succeed.

Beyond the development and launch of high-demand degrees, constant review and refinement ensures that programs will remain progressive and schools will stay relevant to market demand. Each institution must continue its individual quest for improvement, advancement and great service, while taking into consideration the specifics of its socio-economic environment.

Enticing adults to continue their education can oftentimes be a tricky proposition for educators. Adult learners who have spent some time in the workforce or in the active military bring a wealth of knowledge, discipline and direction back to the classroom, which is often not seen in their younger, traditional counterparts. While online learning offers convenience, the pairing of that convenience with accurate assessment and reward of prior learning can yield the necessary motivation for adult learners to graduate.

Prior Learning Assessment (PLA) is a multifaceted tool, which can exist in different formats to benefit those with a wide variety of skill sets. According to the article, “What is Prior Learning Assessment?” published on www.cael.org/pla.htm, PLA is essentially a system implemented by an institute of higher learning “to award college credit for what people learn outside the classroom through corporate training, work experience, civic activity, and independent study.” When this learning is determined to be in line with the course content of a collegiate program, credit is awarded, allowing students to earn actual academic credits for their life learning.

Within PLA, students are typically required to show or demonstrate proficiency through a work portfolio, a written exam, an oral exam, an interview or a performance assessment. The portfolio and the written proficiency exam are two of the most common types of assessments.

Whichever assessment method is employed, it is imperative that the judging faculty is current in their field. In Daniel Fusch’s article, “Techniques for Assessing Prior Learning,” as published on www.academicimpressions.com, Denise Hart is quoted as saying, “Don’t have a History of Civil War expert evaluating a Vietnam War portfolio.” She advocates that schools should “have someone who is au courant, who knows the material, is current with the material, and understands adult learners” evaluate a student’s prior learning.

It is important to inform students that prior learning is not an easy out or a degree shortcut. Instead, it sufficiently demonstrates that students have already acquired specific skills and knowledge that they would have learned in a given course. Once that proficiency is proven through a prior learning assessment, students are granted credit for that course.

Oftentimes, institutes of higher learning can be resistant to fully embracing PLA. Fusch suggests that this is due to “fears about rigor or concerns over losing tuition revenue.” However, both Fusch and Hart are quick to point out the error of that mindset: “Revenue loss is likely offset by the fact that assigning credit for prior learning increases the odds of persistence and academic success.”

As Jamie Merisotis states in his article, “Fostering Economic Recovery through Postsecondary Education: Three Ideas for a National Strategy to Rapidly Train Workers for New Economy Jobs,” published on www.luminafoundation.org, “Recent research shows that students who receive credit for prior learning experience better academic achievement, including greater persistence and higher graduation rates.” These students are able to save time, money and the frustration of taking courses that teach skills they have already mastered.

Currently, many adults have found themselves displaced from their jobs due to the economic downturn. Online colleges and universities, which already offer flexibility and convenience, can gain a vital edge in popularity among thrifty adult learners who are considering a return to school to obtain a degree, an additional degree or a certificate, by awarding credit for prior learning. These students can then graduate and reenter the job market with heightened skills, benefiting not only themselves, but also the security of our nation’s educated workforce.