The practice of distance education in the United States is traced back to its early roots. In the 20th century, distance education remained at the periphery in corporate training, K-12 schools, and most universities, but it gradually developed its practice by using broadcast media, and later the Internet. Since the turn of the current century, distance education has seen an unprecedented growth in the US. Antecedent to this growth is the emergence of a post-industrial economy as well as expanded theory building and research in the discipline. The future of distance education depends on how successfully established institutions can adapt themselves to the post-industrial environment by adopting key theoretical concepts and implementing research findings, and how institutions are able to reduce the cost of education while increasing access.