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,…

In the very near future, the huge and rapidly growing store of free, online learning opportunities will completely transform higher continuing education. The beginnings of this transformation are already evident and the factors compelling this change are so powerful that free learning is no longer a "trend." Rather, free learning is an imperative…

Continuing education is facing greater opportunities and challenges than at any other time in history. In this article, the author focuses on the unique and identifiable circumstances that are presenting distance educators with unprecedented opportunities to assume greater leadership roles in their parent institutions. These opportunities are…

Every aspect of higher education today is pressed to become more accountable and more transparent. The field of continuing education (CE) is no different. CE professionals, responsible for the operations of university-based CE units, are constantly challenged to use data and "evidence" to make and justify decisions. Indeed, one measure of the…

Continuing education has a variety of economic impacts on the institution, campus community, and the local economy. Administrators can document their impact by recording direct contributions, amending databases, making valid estimates, collecting data from other departments/units, and reporting the data formally and informally to strengthen their…