signals in higher ed

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signals in higher ed cuts through the noise to surface what’s actually working across admissions, enrollment, student success, and institutional strategy—told by the leaders building what’s next. Each episode turns real-world challenges into clear, actionable takeaways you can apply on your campus today. Expect candid conversations on innovation, policy, and the data behind better decisions. Host: Darin Francis—CEO & Managing Partner at Harbinger Lane Consulting and former host of DisruptED.

  1. Aug 25

    Work Generated Learning with Andrew Salmon of Intangled Learning

    What if the most valuable curriculum for working adults already exists inside the organizations where they work? In this episode of Signals in Higher Ed, Darin Francis sits down with Andrew Salmon, co-founder of Intangled Learning, to explore the idea of work generated learning, an approach that treats the practices, decisions, relationships, and challenges inside an organization as the foundation for learning. Salmon explains how Intangled Learning positions apprentices as researchers within their own communities of practice, using authentic work to surface knowledge, develop reflective practice, and identify where deeper academic theory can strengthen their capabilities. Rather than separating theory from practice, the model connects the two around the work learners are already doing. Drawing from Intangled Learning’s work in teacher education and advanced manufacturing, the conversation examines how mentorship changes when learning happens inside an active practice, why traditional approaches can struggle to capture organizational knowledge, and how community and social connection can improve both learning and professional development. The discussion ultimately raises a larger question for higher education: if content is increasingly abundant and inexpensive, where can institutions provide unique value? Salmon argues that higher ed has an opportunity to become a partner in inquiry, assessment, and practice, helping learners and organizations understand, develop, and validate knowledge as it is generated through real work.

  2. Aug 24

    Micro-Credentials at Scale: Inside NASH's 17-System Experiment | Dr. Kelvin Bentley

    Higher education is under growing pressure to prove that a degree translates into meaningful career outcomes. Micro-credentials may be one way institutions can close that gap, but scaling them across entire university systems requires much more than simply giving students access to another online course. In this episode of Signals in Higher Ed, Darin Francis sits down with Dr. Kelvin Bentley, Director of the Community of Practice on Microcredentials at the National Association of Higher Education Systems (NASH), to explore what NASH is learning from a nationwide initiative spanning 17 higher education systems and more than 25,000 learners. Bentley shares lessons from his earlier work with the University of Texas System and explains how institutions are integrating industry-backed credentials from organizations such as Google, IBM, and Meta alongside traditional degree programs. The conversation examines the importance of faculty champions, system-level collaboration, work-based learning, learning and employment records, and giving students better ways to communicate what they know and can do. Francis and Bentley also dig into the question that will ultimately determine the value of micro-credentials: Do they improve employment outcomes, career readiness, retention, or advancement? As NASH prepares to study those outcomes across participating systems, the initiative could offer higher education a valuable blueprint for moving from isolated credential pilots to a more coordinated approach to career-connected learning. Signals in Higher Ed: https://www.marketscale.com/creator-hubs/signals-in-higher-ed/

  3. Aug 17

    AI Access vs. AI Readiness | Dr. Ngoc Cindy Pham on Experiential Learning & AI in Higher Ed

    As artificial intelligence becomes more accessible across higher education, Dr. Ngoc Cindy Pham argues that access alone should not be the goal. The more important question is whether students know how to use AI to solve real problems, exercise judgment, defend their decisions, and translate new technology into professional opportunities. In this episode of Signals in Higher Ed, Darin Francis speaks with Pham about her approach to experiential learning at Brooklyn College and the work that grew from the CUNY AI Literacy and Professional Readiness Series into the Bridge AI Lab. Rather than treating AI use as inherently at odds with academic integrity, Pham designs assignments around critical thinking and reasoning. Students can use AI as a co-creator, but they must be able to explain, justify, and defend the choices they make. Pham also shares early findings from a spring 2026 program involving 101 participants, where researchers found no statistically detectable difference in measured outcomes between participating NYU Tandon graduate students and CUNY undergraduate students. While she emphasizes the need for larger samples and continued research, the finding points to a powerful possibility: structured training and real-world problem solving may help close readiness gaps that access alone cannot. The conversation also examines the role employers can play as curriculum co-creators. Pham believes higher education must start with the work itself, using evidence from employers and practitioners to identify emerging skills, build job- and task-specific frameworks, and continuously update training as AI changes the workplace. The result is a model of education focused not simply on teaching students to use AI, but on helping them become confident creators, critical thinkers, and professionals prepared to work alongside it. Signals in Higher Ed: https://www.marketscale.com/creator-hubs/signals-in-higher-ed/

  4. Aug 10

    First Experiences Drive Beyond Year One, A Panel Discussion

    The first year of college matters, but the experiences that shape student success extend far beyond a single academic year. In this panel discussion, host Darin Francis is joined by Brandee Popaden-Smith of ASU University College, Dr. T. Chase Hagood of the University of Utah, and Dr. Nicole Crevar of Podium Education to explore how institutions can create stronger pathways from students’ earliest experiences through graduation and career success. The panel examines how connection, exploration, empowerment, and career discovery can help students find direction without forcing premature decisions. They discuss embedding work-integrated learning and durable skills directly into the curriculum, creating space for uncertainty, demonstrating value each semester, and replacing institution-centered systems with experiences designed around how students actually learn, choose, and grow. From the University of Utah’s Quest program to ASU’s Work Plus Learn initiatives, the conversation offers practical insights into improving belonging, persistence, career readiness, and long-term student outcomes.

  5. Jun 30

    Higher Ed's Seed Round: How Universities Decide Which Programs to Build

    For years, the decision to launch a new online program rested largely on instinct and institutional appetite. But as competition intensifies and budgets tighten, universities can no longer afford to guess. The programs that succeed are increasingly the ones backed by rigorous market analysis, conservative enrollment modeling, and a clear-eyed view of the costs involved. So when a department wants to build or expand an online program, how should an institution decide whether it is actually worth funding? On this episode of Signals in Higher Ed, host Darin Francis sits down with Fritz Andover, Director of Online Program Support Services at the University of Minnesota, to unpack how that decision really gets made. Andover walks through the process his office uses across all five campuses, from the first conversation with a department chair to the financial modeling that determines whether a program can stand on its own. He explains why he deliberately discounts his own enrollment projections, how his team structures funding to carry programs through the lean early years, and what it takes to knit teaching capacity together across a large public university system. Key takeaways from the conversation… Successful online program decisions start with defensible market research and intentionally conservative enrollment projections, not optimism. Andover discounts his own numbers to avoid building a case on a rosy picture.Andover's office structures support as a two-year, loan-style investment, carrying programs through the ramp-up period before enrollment revenue can offset launch and marketing costs, then stepping back as the program repays the investment over roughly five years. He calls it a booster-rocket model.The "distributed" mandate goes beyond online launches. Part of the work is connecting teaching capacity across campuses so students can complete a program from different locations, online or in person, without administrative friction, a use of scale smaller institutions cannot replicate.Fritz Andover is the Director of Online Program Support Services at the University of Minnesota, where his office works across all five campuses to evaluate market opportunity, model enrollment scenarios, and help academic units secure funding for new and expanded programs. He brings an unusually broad background to the role, having started as a history PhD student at Washington University in St. Louis before moving into educational technology, spending nearly a decade working directly with faculty at Macalester College, earning a doctorate in higher education policy and administration at Minnesota, and working at a small online program management firm before returning to the university system. That combination of faculty-side experience, institutional research, and OPM market work shapes how he approaches program decisions today.

  6. Jun 15

    From Measuring Memory to Measuring Thinking: How Simulation-Based Learning Could Reshape Higher Education

    As artificial intelligence continues reshaping the workforce, higher education faces growing pressure to demonstrate its value beyond content mastery. According to the World Economic Forum’s Future of Jobs Report, employers expect 39% of workers’ core skills to change or become outdated by 2030, while 69% identify analytical thinking as the most essential workforce skill. As a result, employers are increasingly prioritizing critical thinking, communication, adaptability, and problem-solving abilities—capabilities that AI cannot easily replicate. If employers care less about what students can memorize and more about how they think, how can colleges effectively measure and develop those durable human skills at scale? On this episode of Signals in Higher Ed, host Darin Francis sits down with Chad Wilson, Founder and CEO of immersionED, to explore how AI-powered simulations are creating new opportunities for experiential learning. Wilson shares his journey from studying history and classics to founding an education technology company focused on immersive, adaptive learning experiences. Together, they discuss how simulation-based learning can bridge the gap between classroom knowledge and workforce readiness while offering institutions new ways to assess student growth. Key takeaways from the conversation… Simulation-based learning is helping students develop real-world skills faster than traditional instructional methods, particularly among students who have historically struggled in conventional academic environments.Generative AI has unlocked a new era of scalable experiential learning, enabling adaptive simulations that respond dynamically to student decisions rather than relying on predetermined pathways.The future of assessment may be a dynamic skills transcript, allowing institutions to track and measure critical thinking, communication, empathy, and problem-solving across courses, disciplines, and career pathways.Chad Wilson is the Founder & CEO of immersionED, a Techstars-backed edtech startup building AI-powered adaptive simulations that measure learners’ reasoning, decision-making, and competencies in real time. He brings a rare mix of education, product, venture, and finance experience, having worked as a high school history teacher, EdTech investing intern at Owl Ventures, and investment banking analyst at Morgan Stanley. His career highlights include growing immersionED to roughly 4,000 school signups, raising funding from angels and accelerators, partnering with organizations such as Arizona State University, The Gilder Lehrman Institute, and NVIDIA, and improving student engagement and test scores through game-based learning.

  7. Jun 1

    Scaling Experiential Learning in the Curriculum: How Iron Range Engineering Transformed Engineering Education

    Engineering has transformed nearly every part of modern life, from the phones in our pockets to the systems powering global industry. But the way engineers are educated has often moved far more slowly than the profession itself. Employers are asking for graduates who can navigate ambiguity, communicate across teams, and contribute meaningfully from the start. At the same time, AI is making it harder to rely on closed-answer assessments as proof of real understanding. Together, those pressures are forcing colleges to rethink what real mastery looks like in technical fields—and whether the traditional classroom-first model is still enough. So what would it take to redesign an engineering degree around real work, real projects, and real professional development—with community college transfer students at the center? On Signals in Higher Ed, host Darin Francis speaks with Dr. Ron Ulseth, founder of Iron Range Engineering, about how the program moved from project-based learning to a long-form work-based model. Their conversation covers Iron Range Engineering’s origins, its use of community college pathways, its shift toward 24-month work placements, and what other institutions can learn from its approach to curriculum, assessment, employer alignment, and student preparation. Top insights from the talk… Experiential learning can be an equalizer. Dr. Ulseth describes Iron Range Engineering as a model that helps “normal people” become engineers by giving students structured, applied experiences rather than relying only on traditional admissions filters or exam performance.Assessment has to move beyond closed-answer tests. Instead of relying primarily on written exams, the program uses verbal exams, whiteboard demonstrations, reflection, and feedback loops to assess whether students can explain, validate, and apply engineering knowledge.Employer relationships are built through student value. Rather than starting with a fixed list of employer partners, the program trains students to become strong job seekers, interviewers, and workplace contributors. When students perform well, companies come back asking for more.Dr. Ron Ulseth is the founder of Iron Range Engineering. He began his teaching career in the U.S. Navy, teaching undergraduate engineering subjects including thermodynamics, fluid mechanics, and heat transfer, and later spent decades in community college engineering education. His work at Iron Range Engineering has helped earn national recognition, including ABET accreditation and an ABET innovation award for the program’s project-based model.

  8. May 25

    Creative Confidence and Moral Courage: The Leadership Traits Business Schools Should Be Betting On

    What students need from higher education is becoming harder to pin down than it once was. As higher education faces mounting pressure—from student disengagement to the rapid rise of artificial intelligence—institutions are being forced to rethink not just what students learn, but who they become. New research and industry signals suggest that technical knowledge alone is no longer enough; employers increasingly value adaptability, ethical reasoning, and real-world problem-solving. Against this backdrop, experiential learning and values-driven leadership are emerging as critical differentiators, especially as AI reshapes both the workforce and the classroom. So what does it actually take to prepare students—not just to succeed in business—but to lead with purpose in an unpredictable, tech-driven world? Welcome to Signals in Higher Ed. In the latest episode, host Darin Francis sits down with Dr. Dayle Smith, Dean of the College of Business Administration at Loyola Marymount University, to explore how moral courage and creative confidence are being embedded into modern business education. Their conversation spans Jesuit pedagogy, experiential learning design, and how institutions can cultivate leaders equipped to navigate ethical complexity while driving innovation. Top insights from the talk… Moral courage as a leadership competency: Students are trained to make ethical decisions that balance profitability with responsibility to communities, employees, and stakeholders.Creative confidence through experiential learning: A “fail forward” mindset encourages risk-taking, adaptability, and innovation in real-world contexts.Education beyond the classroom: Programs like LMU’s CBA Advantage integrate reflection, application, and co-curricular experiences to deepen student development.Dr. Dayle Smith is Dean of the College of Business Administration at Loyola Marymount University and a globally recognized leader in business education, having previously served as dean at Clarkson University and holding extensive academic leadership experience at institutions including Georgetown and the University of San Francisco. Her expertise spans leadership development, organizational behavior, experiential learning, and values-driven business education, complemented by international teaching, a Fulbright fellowship in Hong Kong, and consulting work with organizations such as Cisco, Wells Fargo, and the U.S. State Department. She is also a published author and active board leader across global education and business organizations, with multiple recognitions including repeated selection to the LA 500 list of most influential business leaders.

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signals in higher ed cuts through the noise to surface what’s actually working across admissions, enrollment, student success, and institutional strategy—told by the leaders building what’s next. Each episode turns real-world challenges into clear, actionable takeaways you can apply on your campus today. Expect candid conversations on innovation, policy, and the data behind better decisions. Host: Darin Francis—CEO & Managing Partner at Harbinger Lane Consulting and former host of DisruptED.

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  • Creator
    🎥
  • Years Active
    2025 - 2026
  • Episodes
    39
  • Rating
    Clean
  • Copyright
    © 2025
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    signals in higher ed