This article presents an interview with David Schejbal, the chair of the 2012 UPCEA Annual Conference, about environmentalism and the role of continuing education. In this interview, Schejbal shares why he suggested the theme of sustainability for the annual conference. He says it is because all of them in the conference are continuing…

In this article, Gary Matkin, Dean of Continuing Education, Distance Learning, and Summer Session at the University of California, Irvine and long-time member of UPCEA, talks about his experience with higher and continuing education in California. The situation of public universities has changed considerably, and his 43 years as an undergraduate,…

Because the globalization of traditional research universities has so far been largely an elite phenomenon, for-profit higher education has become the kind of high-growth worldwide industry that would attract entrepreneurs. The for-profit sector, by contrast, has targeted a vast and vastly different student market: non-elite learners, often poorly…

The author has been a witness to the birth of the personal computer culture, with its intense one-on-one relationships with machines, and then to the development of the networked culture, with people using the computer to communicate with each other. In her most recent work on the revolutions in social networking and sociable robotics, she sees a…

This article looks at the phenomenon of mal-employment among college graduates in the United States, beginning with an overview of labor-market trends and the effects of the Great Recession on the job-market experiences of young people, including recent college graduates. It then defines "mal-employment" and examines its incidence over time. The…

Globalization presents a new social context for educational institutions from elementary schools to universities. In response to this new context, schools and universities are slowly changing their ways. These changes range from altering the curriculum so that students understand the process of globalization itself, or developing competencies…

Higher education--and continuing education as one arm of that enterprise--is not just an economic engine; it contributes directly and in a multifaceted fashion to the common good. It generates and makes accessible a great deal of the knowledge that drives the economy; it helps develop an understanding of the society and the world for millions of…

This article presents an interview with Mary Bitterman and James Narduzzi. Mary Bitterman, former President and CEO of The James Irvine Foundation, is President of The Bernard Osher Foundation and Immediate Past Chairman of the Public Broadcasting Service (PBS). James Narduzzi is Dean of the University of Richmond's School of Continuing Studies.…

This article presents the author's response to Gary Miller's essay entitled "Ethical Realism and Continuing Education." In his essay, Dr. Miller has provided a valuable opportunity to reflect on the practice of continuing education (CE) leadership. Dr. Miller reviews six principles that are encapsulated in the concept of ethical realism, but are…

Discusses competition and profit in higher education and the effect of the profit motive on educational quality. Describes the impact of the lucrative executive education field, extension education, the Internet, and the hidden curriculum of advertising and corporate dollars in universities. (SK)

The director of "The Futures Project: Policy for Higher Education in a Changing World" discusses the competitive environment of higher education, the emergence of new providers, and the effect of market forces on accountability and responsiveness. Addresses policies and institutional strategies for this new environment. (SK)

Technology is driving much of education, but learning is socially constructed. Learning, including electronic forms, should be designed to create a social learning environment. This can help bridge the divide between the "analog" professor and the "digital" student. (SK)

Factors altering the higher education industry include radical change in the type of students, necessity of lifetime education, and new technologies. These factors are increasing the entry of private-sector players. Strategic university responses may be strengthening of accreditation, cost-cutting and efficiency measures, horizontal…

Current models of university continuing education resemble traditional higher education and do not meet the needs of people in or near retirement. Constraints on change include a mindset focused on formal education as career development, the need for programs to be self-sufficient, and a reward structure that does not support programs for older…

Asserts that many faculty resist distance education, especially for undergraduates; they regard face-to-face as necessary but ignore its quality; they consider good teaching to be faculty centered; their property rights claims seek to preserve their professional role rather than the syllabus itself. (SK)