EdUp Insights

In case you haven’t been paying attention, last November this book appeared on Amazon, co-authored by Kate Colbert and Dr. Joe Sallustio, with contributions by Elvin Freytes. It is taken from more than 100 interviews with college and university presidents and presents a cogent and coherent picture of higher education today, along with a glimpse of the future.  It’s not just for higher ed insi...

Accreditation has been in the news again recently. But not for the reasons you might think. Usually we hear about institutions that have sanctions imposed on them by accrediting bodies for any of a variety of issues related to the standards of a given accreditor. But recently accreditors themselves have come under scrutiny by the Department of Education for possibly not complying with Department o...

City University of New York has recently announced that it is discontinuing the last of its remedial math and English courses.  Many other institutions and systems have done or are in the process of doing the same.  The debate as to the value and effectiveness of remedial education has raged for decades.  Despite years of studies with the consistent message that remedial education i...

It goes by many names—continuing education, lifelong learning, vocational education, and extension curriculum, to name a few.  Why so many labels?  Because continuing education by any other name serves many masters in postsecondary education. It is composed variously by truncated academic curricula, job training, and credentials including certificates, licenses, badges, and short communi...

The signs are all around us.  But what are they telling us?  Colleges are closing or merging. Others are acquiring sister institutions in an effort to remain viable.  Students (remember them?) are being negatively impacted and/or disenfranchised, and many are opting out of postsecondary education altogether.  Meanwhile, declining birth rates will lead to fewer high school gradu...

Online Update Everyone beware!  Forget about communism, fascism and socialism. We are in crisis,  and the “tech utopians” are pushing online teaching as the new reality—at least for  higher education.  In this reimagination of higher ed human interaction will be replaced by computer domination.  Students hate online and yearn for a return to the Platonic method in the agor...

The U.S. Department of Education recently announced its newest attempt to develop a list designed to call out higher ed institutions with poor outcomes and lower return on investment for graduates. Following in the steps of Gainful Employment (see Episode 15 of EdUp Insights) and the College Scorecard, the government seeks once again to provide a way to rank institutions according to the value the...

Keeping College Relevant Some recent findings from a Gates Foundation Study provide a wakeup call for higher education.  They show that people want more information about and access to multiple education pathways after high school. Further, students want outcomes that support emotional and mental health, as well as financial stability. Higher education’s sluggish response to this cultural shi...

Question of the day:  Why is it easier to do your federal income taxes than to access financial aid to help fund the cost of higher education? The simple answer is that both processes are run by the government.  The difference is that we all have to pay taxes no matter what. But access to financial aid (which, by the way, is OUR tax money) is thwarted by a salad of numbers and terms that...

In the last exciting episode, I laid out the basics of ChatGPT in simple terms. This week I’ll take a look at how it might impact higher education.  Is it a tool or a menace?  Is it going to be to writing instruction what the calculator was to math education?  How do we adapt pedagogy to this evolving technology?  Some food for thought here. EdUp Insights with Bill Pepicello is...

CHATGPT:  What’s Up With That? So, what is ChatGPT?  Where did it come from? And why should we care? The latest hot development in Artificial Intelligence is suddenly everywhere.  Is it a search engine?  Is it a new version of Siri or Alexa?  What are its capabilities? In this episode I give a basic (read: dumbed down) explanation of what ChatGPT is and is not.  Then...

Who knew that the answer to this complex question in higher education is very simple?  The Spice girls told us that all you have to do is “Tell me what you want, what you really, really want.”  But this begs the question, if I tell you “What I want, what I really, really want,” is anyone listening?  This episode examines some interesting results from a recent survey that asks studen...

If we can believe in Bigfoot and the Easter Bunny, why not student loan debt forgiveness, too?  In this episode I'll cut through the smoke and mirrors surrounding state and federal efforts to relieve student debt burden.  And I'll suggest that the real problem is here is that the way that the U.S. pays for higher education just doesn't work.  The solution?  Put the consumer in...

In this first episode for 2023 I explore the confusing interactions of academic tenure, free speech and cancel culture.  Higher education is full of complex contradictions, and here is where some of the most puzzling aspects of the American system collide. And I just don't understand. EdUp Insights with Bill Pepicello is part of the EdUp Experience Podcast Network.

In this episode Bill discusses protectionism in higher education and the obstacles to a sea change that would transform the higher education ecosystem in America. EdUp Insights with Bill Pepicello is part of the EdUp Experience podcast network.

In this episode, Bill elaborates on how a new credential-centered model of higher education would result in changes to the position of higher ed in American society.  He explores the role of the university president, governing boards, as well as how government regulation would be affected, and the need for the higher ed ecosystem to integrate with other sectors. EdUp Insights with Bill Pepice...

This is the fourth episode dealing with an alternate structure for American higher ed.  In this think piece Bill deals in part with what the new structure would look like and how it would function. And more to the point, how a new ecosystem could bring higher education into step with American society. EdUp Insights with Bill Pepicello is part of the EdUp Experience podcast network.

This is the third episode in a series that discusses what a new paradigm for American higher education might look like. In this episode Bill looks at how a system built around student success could eliminate cumbersome barriers to access and success and increase transparency for all users.  The sea change entails a shift away from institutional control and duplicative processes to a centraliz...

This second in the series of creating a new paradigm explores the key driver of any education paradigm--students.  It begins by defining some essential "lego" building blocks and discusses how higher education needs to develop a deeper understanding of who today's learners are and what they need in order to assemble the building blocks into an accessible, meaningful, effective ecosystem. EdUp...

This is the first in a series of episodes that explores a possible new paradigm for American higher education.  In this episode Bill looks at sources outside of the traditional structure that can offer innovative perspectives and approaches to a education ecosystem. EdUp Insights with Bill Pepicello is part of the EdUp Experience podcast network.

This episode deals with the complexity of the higher education landscape that confronts today's leaders.  What must leaders be prepared for, and where will they learn the skills necessary to adapt and survive?  A list of some of the major issues that now affect higher education, as well as society generally, are discussed.  Wokeness is high on the list. EdUp Insights with Bill Pepic...

This episode gives advice to new leaders, or any leader coming into a new position, on how to orient their talent and experience to adapt to a new situation. The basic message is that leaders need to understand how the function of their organization is related to the structure.  The elements of vision and mission and key. EdUp Insights with Bill Pepicello is part of the EdUp Experience podcas...

This is the first in a short series of episodes dealing with leadership in higher education.  This episode starts with some basics.  Leadership is not something that is learned.  It is something that happens.  Leaders aren't made, they just ARE. Leadership emerges from natural ability and experience.   EdUp Insights with Bill Pepicello is part of the EdUp Experience podcas...

A rose is a rose is a rose. Things are what they are, regardless of what we call them. Cancel culture doesn't get this.  We can't change reality by simply renaming it to fit our own purposes. EdUp Insights with Bill Pepicello is part of the EdUp Experience Podcast network. 

Episode 3 is about the history of words and how some people just can't let the truth get in the way of a good story. EdUp insights with Bill Pepicello is part of the EdUp Experience Podcast network.