Shuttling between keynotes, the show floor, and a flurry of other events, EDUCAUSE boss John O’Brian stopped by the press room last week for a quick, yet insightful conversation on the state of play of higher education as it stands with his organization’s annual confab. With a focus on networking, human connection, and transformational leadership, John says the event has moved beyond traditional tech discussions, with the evolving importance of people-centered approaches in tech. With over 600 sessions, AI was integrated throughout, underscoring its vital, embedded role in addressing higher education’s challenges, including mental health and administrative tasks. Addressing a decline in public trust in higher ed, John details how EDUCAUSE’s research has shifted from analyzing the issue to actively exploring strategies to rebuild credibility. He also details the inaugural Partner Summit, which aims to foster collaborative dialogues between institutions and corporate partners, aiming for true partnership beyond transactional relationships. Have a listen:
Explore the speakers, topics, and technologies being showcased at EDUCAUSE 2024 — Oct. 21-24
Live at EDUCAUSE 2024—eCampus News Exclusive Coverage
UTSA’s experiential learning leaders take center stage at conference
The 2024 EDUCAUSE Annual Conference brought together thousands of professionals from academia and private industry to San Antonio to engage in relevant education topics. It was a chance to showcase the city, which hosted the event. EDUCAUSE also created an opportunity to highlight UTSA, according to Vanessa Hammler Kenon, program chair for the conference and UTSA associate vice president of technology compliance and community engagement for University Technology Solutions.
“It was an absolute honor to represent UTSA and the city of San Antonio as the 2024 EDUCAUSE Program Chair, welcoming so many higher-education professionals to our great city,” Kenon said. “Many attendees also visited various UTSA campus sites and had a chance to experience our world-class university.”
UTSA had 88 staff and faculty members representing the university at EDUCAUSE 2024, which saw nearly 8,000 participants from around the world. In addition, UTSA students participated thanks to Kenon, who has brought students to the conference as a longtime supporter of EDUCAUSE.
Read More »
LaptopsAnytime Brings Device Management to Campuses
eCampus News spoke with Matthew Buscher, CEO and co-founder of LaptopsAnytime, at booth #6076, about the variety of features and functions their solutions bring students in need of tech anytime, anywhere.
All LaptopsAnytime Kiosk Systems are ‘Made in the USA’, UL-Approved and designed for heavy usage. The systems can be used 24/7/365 and can be placed anywhere with standard 110V (or international equivalent) power and Ethernet. LaptopsAnytime Kiosk systems can be managed at the kiosk or remotely via our Central Management Server. In addition, all kiosk systems are smartly configured to authenticate to many different local databases from LDAP/Active Directory to Integrated Library System via SIP-2 (172 different ones so far).
LaptopsAnytime’s innovations include configurable Automated Checkout Dispensing Kiosks that dispense wide range of Laptops/Tablets/Portable 110V Power Chargers on demand, recharge devices, automatically return devices back to pre-set image, authentication to/with Library ILS and/or LDAP/Active Directory databases, and email notifications. https://www.laptopsanytime.com/
EDUCAUSE Takeaways: How To Enable Engagement and Flexibility in Hybrid Learning Spaces
I was able to pull Gaurav Bradoo, Director and Head of Product for Education at Logitech, from the show floor last week to discuss the rapid evolution of digital technologies on post-pandemic campuses. Hybrid learning is now a permanent component of education, with students increasingly demanding remote access to lectures, notes, and other learning materials. Many institutions struggle with adapting classrooms to be hybrid-ready due to cost, infrastructure, and the need for standardized yet flexible tech solutions. Gaurav emphasizes involving faculty, IT, AV teams, and students in tech adoption decisions, fostering human-centered design and ensuring solutions that meet real educational needs. Have a listen:
EDUCAUSE News: New Accessibility Features for Math
Foxit, a leading provider of innovative PDF and eSignature products and services, helping knowledge workers to increase their productivity and do more with documents, showcased its PDF accessibility features at EDUCAUSE 2024. One highlight—its newly enhanced Accessible Math capabilities, which leverage the latest PDF 2.0 standards to make complex mathematical formulas accessible to individuals with disabilities, including those who are blind, visually impaired, or have learning disabilities.
Read More »
Restoring Trust: Higher Ed Leaders’ Top Priorities for Technology and Data in 2025
One of the annual EDUCAUSE highlights is the release of the group’s Top 10 Report. The 2025 edition describes how higher education technology and data leaders can help restore trust in the sector by building competent and caring institutions through radical collaboration. I was able to speak with Susan Grajek, Vice President of Partnerships, Communities and Research for EDUCAUSE, for a sneak peek on how the sausage was made to put together this important research. Have a listen and click through to dive into the details.
Read More »
EDUCAUSE24 Takeaways—Ryan Lufkin, VP of Global Academic Strategy, Instructure
When you have a user base of more than 30 million students worldwide, it’s pretty safe to say your data indicating higher edtech trends is pretty strong. I was fortunate enough to steal a few minutes with Ryan to tap his brain, which included (what else?) the impact of AI on higher education and its potential to save educators time by automating tasks, integrating data, and supporting students—from theoretical concepts to practical applications, with a focus on using AI tools to streamline administrative processes, visualize data, and personalize learning experiences. Have a listen and click through for more Instructure news:
Read More »
Scenes from EDUCAUSE24
Kion Announces New CloudOps Features for Cloud Identity, Automation and FinOps at EDUCAUSE Annual Conference
Company showcases latest platform capabilities and highlights best practices to support cloud initiatives in higher education and research institutions
Kion, the leading automated CloudOps platform for multicloud, today announced the availability of Kion version 3.11, introducing new features for Identity and Access Management (IAM), compliance automation, and FinOps. These new capabilities are advantageous for organizations, including higher education institutions, looking to implement policy-based controls and enforcements to better manage and automate their multicloud infrastructure. Along with showcasing these new capabilities at EDUCAUSE, the company will also be presenting a session with Northwestern University and Texas A&M University on creating a culture of accountability using a “governance by default” approach to cloud operations.
Read More »
AI, Values, and the Future of Higher Education at EDUCAUSE 2024
The conference is in full swing with sessions touching on a wide array of topics. But there is still one unavoidable conversation point. Jenay Robert, Senior Researcher for EDUCAUSE broke it down for me early—the growing impact of AI. She emphasizes the need to integrate AI technologies thoughtfully, starting from human values. She reflects on the humanistic approach to AI, urging educators to examine how these tools affect teaching, student engagement, and institutional operations. She also highlights the importance of data governance, privacy policies, and the future applications of AI, stressing the importance of translating insights into practical actions. Have a listen: