$110,000 in Canvas Grants to education

Company announces winners of the 2015 Canvas Grants aimed to fuel innovation and openness in education.

canvas-grantInstructure, a software-as-a-service (SaaS) company and creator of the Canvas learning management system, announced the winners of the 2015 Canvas Grants, which empower educators to develop innovative programs and improve education.

A total of 16 winners in K-12 and higher education were chosen, totaling $110,000 in awards given to institutions from across the country.

This year the grants were centered on the “Lossless Learning” theme, which was presented at InstructureCon in 2014.…Read More

Performance-based funding could disrupt community colleges

A new report on performance-based funding reveals potential downfalls that could disrupt community colleges in the long run.

performance-based-fundingPerformance-based funding (PBF) has become progressively utilized in order to reward higher education institutions for their success in enhancing student advancement and completion, but may have some critical drawbacks.

Data has increasingly shown that performance-based funding  may cause some undesirable side-effects, such as more prestigious schools only admitting students who are likely to graduate, while institutions that serve a greater number of disadvantaged students fall even further behind without the additional funding.

Still, 35 states have already taken steps to adopt PBF initiatives. Texas adopted PBF for the state’s 50 community colleges in 2013, and their Student Success Points Model gives funding based on student achievement of intermediate performance metrics, such as completing developmental coursework or passing college-level gatekeeper courses; as well as key milestones such as earning a certificate or associate degree, or having students transfer to four-year universities.…Read More

School launches first-in-the-nation tuition matching program

Initiative aims to make legal education more affordable and expands Pace Law’s national recruitment.

law-Pace-tuitionPace Law School recently unveiled a first-in-the-nation tuition matching program designed to make legal education more accessible to students across the country.The School also announced a tuition freeze for 2015/16 academic year.

The program, which aims to save students tens of thousands of dollars, enables qualified students from throughout the U.S. to enroll at Pace Law at the in-state tuition rate of their home state; allowing those students for whom a legal education in New York might be out of reach.The new tuition matching program will begin with the 2015/16 academic year.

“The affordability of education has become a critical issue, and this program is a unique approach to making a first-rate legal education more accessible to students across the country,” said Pace Law School Dean David Yassky. “Law school enrollment has declined in recent years even as complex legal issues are becoming an increasingly common part of today’s business environment. This initiative will provide a broader population of students with a roadmap for successfully entering the legal field without the crushing weight of unmanageable debt.”…Read More

New commission will explore higher-ed finance models

Bipartisan panel will explore finance models that promote innovation, expand capacity to serve all students.

finance-HEDIncreasing pressure on state budgets, along with changing student demographics and new academic models arising from advances in teaching and learning, create both opportunities and challenges for American higher education.

However, without creative new funding policies that expand access to meaningful educational opportunities beyond high school, including increased access made possible by wise use of existing public funds and by partnerships that generate greater private investment, the nation could fall short of the educated population it needs.

To address the need for innovative new ideas, the University of Virginia’s Miller Center has announced the creation of a nonpartisan National Commission on Financing 21st Century Higher Education.…Read More

Is this global innovation the start of a new funding era?

First-ever program launches a global crowd-funded scholarship initiative.

scholarship-uniplaces-fundingIt may not be the answer to every student’s plea for scholarship help, but one company’s global call-to-action may signal the start of a whole new way of funding students’ higher-ed journey.

The initiative, named the ‘Living The Dream Scholarship’, is the first program to support student mobility funded collectively by the global student community.

The initiative aims to promote kindness as currency, asking interested students applying for the scholarship to submit videos of themselves carrying out ‘random acts of kindness’ on fellow students. At least one scholarship will be awarded to a student in America.…Read More

Georgia Tech receives $1M for financial technology

Three-year grant will establish financial technology entrepreneur program on campus

financial-technologyGeorgia Tech’s Advanced Technology Development Center (ATDC) received a $1 million donation from Worldpay in order to fully fund a new financial technology accelerator at the ATDC for the next three years.

The accelerator will include the hiring of a financial technology expert to serve as an entrepreneur-in-residence to mentor start-ups. Worldpay executives are also mentoring entrepreneurs at the center, providing both payments expertise and Worldpay’s global resources to support companies within the new program. Worldpay is a global payments technology and services company, which allows merchants to accept payments anywhere in the world, across any channel.

“This gift from Worldpay will enhance the innovation ecosystem that is rapidly developing in Tech Square,” said Georgia Tech President G.P. “Bud” Peterson. “We are fulfilling our mission to create new products which will foster new companies and job opportunities for all of Georgia.”…Read More

NASA Space Tech grants available to university faculty

Grants will sponsor research into areas of interest to NASA, U.S. space program

NASA-spaceNASA’s Space Technology Mission Directorate is seeking proposals from accredited U.S. universities on behalf of outstanding early-career faculty members who are beginning independent research careers. The grants will sponsor research in specific high-priority areas of interest to America’s space program.

Aligned with NASA’s Space Technology Roadmaps and priorities identified by the National Research Council, the agency has identified topic areas that lend themselves to the early stage innovative approaches U.S. universities can offer for solving tough space technology challenges.

“These research grants will help NASA in the development of new space technologies needed for future science and exploration while also fueling the intellectual innovation engine of our nation, powering new discoveries for years to come,” said James Reuther, deputy associate administrator for NASA’s Space Technology Mission Directorate in Washington. “Technology drives exploration and these research efforts will help us reach new heights while benefiting Earth right now.”…Read More

Tech expenses could be allowed under 529 spending

New bill, which moves to Senate for approval, would allow for purchase of computers, internet access

college-expensesComputers and technology equipment would become qualified expenses in 529 college savings plans under a bill passed by the U.S. House of Representatives on Feb. 25.

H.R. 529 also designates computer software and internet access as qualified expenses while students are enrolled in school.

The bill, sponsored by Rep. Lynn Jenkins (R-Kan.) and Rep. Ron Kind (D-Wis.), highlights the importance of technology for today’s students and recognizes that computers, internet access, and technology tools are essential parts of learning, supporters said.…Read More

“Sloppy” red tape requirements costing universities millions

Study says Vanderbilt University spends $150 million, or 11 percent of its expenditures, annually, complying with federal rules and regulations–not the only university.

tape-regulation-universitiesAccording to a new report released by college and university leadership, government red tape requirements are costing colleges and universities not only millions in administrative tasks, but depriving students of lower tuition costs and hindering university research and innovation.

U.S. Senator Lamar Alexander (R-Tenn.), chairman of the Senate education committee, yesterday said a report released by a task force of college and university leaders—and commissioned by a bipartisan group of senators—shows colleges in a jungle of red tape that “should be an embarrassment to all of us in the federal government.”

At a hearing on the report, Sen. Alexander said: “These should not be excused as normal, run-of-the mill problems of government. These examples, and others like them, are sloppy, inefficient governing that wastes money, hurts students, discourages productivity and impedes research.”…Read More

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