OpenPath Newsletter June Edition
Removing Barriers to Education for All Learners
Welcome to OpenPath. This month, Scott Pulsipher, WGU president, discusses how to help employees succeed; Stacey Ludwig Johnson shares how competency-based education will prepare the next generation of teachers; and the WGU Policy Team highlights strategies to make higher education achievable for adult learners.
If you know others who’d welcome insights on these topics, please invite them to subscribe.
Three Questions to Help Employees Thrive and Drive Success
“As a society, we need to elevate our mindset and recognize that every individual is innately talented, worthy, and motivated, with expanding promise and possibility,” WGU President Scott Pulsipher wrote.
Preparing Next-Generation Teachers via Competency-Based Education
“Competency-based education works, and if we integrate this model into initial teacher training, we can better generate sustainable habits that empower aspiring teachers as the future generation of educators,” said Stacey Ludwig Johnson, WGU senior vice president and executive dean of the School of Education.
Higher Education Should be Achievable
Students at traditional universities are often held to a cadence of coursework guided by semesters, increasing the time and cost of completion rather than allowing learners to progress at their own pace. This particularly disadvantages working adult learners, for whom time is at a premium. Flexible learning modalities, such as short-term programs and competency-based education (CBE), help working adult learners move through education more rapidly.
News We're Reading
University Business: 3 Ways to Demonstrate the Value of Your Institution to Prospective Students
Offering flexible models beyond just micro-credentials, like certificate programs and non-credit program offerings, may fulfill learners’ needs more effectively, close the skill gap, and make education more obtainable, equitable and affordable.
Forbes: The Test-Optional College Admissions Movement Continues to Grow
The number of bachelor-degree granting colleges and universities that will be using ACT/SAT-optional, test-blind, or score-free admission procedures for fall 2023 now exceeds 1,900 institutions according to the latest numbers from FairTest, the National Center for Fair & Open Testing.
WGU Student Story
Jason Maestri
B.S. Software Development (2021)
Owens Cross Roads, Alabama
Jason Maestri worked in IT and engineering positions from the time he was 16 years old, though he didn’t complete his bachelor’s degree until he was 44. While raising five kids, volunteering as a scoutmaster for his local scout troop, and working full-time, Jason was promoted to chief engineer of his business unit at Lockheed Martin, shortly after starting his bachelor’s program in IT software from WGU. Since then, he was promoted to vice president of engineering at Performance Drone Works and is now back at Lockheed Martin as the program manager for a significant technology development program. Jason credits WGU for his career success.
