ACE, Lumina Foundation to Establish Alliance for Global Innovation in Tertiary Education

WASHINGTON DC – The American Council on Education (ACE) is collaborating with Lumina Foundation to create a global learning community for the exchange of innovative practices shown to increase postsecondary degree attainment. 

Coordinated by ACE’s Center for Internationalization and Global Engagement (CIGE), a $551,200 grant from Lumina will support the formation of the Alliance for Global Innovation in Tertiary Education, a network of senior practitioners, thought leaders, policymakers and private sector employers across eight countries. Alliance members will meet in Washington, DC, in early 2018, and again outside the United States in 2019.

During this two-year initiative, the Alliance will identify flexible, student-centered approaches that enable diverse student populations to navigate the postsecondary system throughout their lifetimes to obtain knowledge, skills and credentials. Achieving more equitable outcomes for a changing student demographic is a central goal of the project, which will explore innovative modes of delivery, credentialing, credit recognition and degree pathways among the participating countries.

While national postsecondary systems are unique, the Alliance will test the hypothesis that strategies for achieving success for underserved students are transferrable across national borders.

Brad Farnsworth, ACE’s vice president for internationalization and global engagement, notes: “The challenge of increasing postsecondary attainment rates, and of reducing attainment gaps based on race, ethnicity or other factors, is not limited to the United States. The Alliance will identify innovations that have worked in other countries and explore how they might be adapted to improve outcomes for students in the American system.”

In addition to its organizational role, CIGE will produce a series of thought leadership papers, collect outcomes data from participating countries and develop a set of case studies with analysis and recommendations. Project outcomes will be shared widely among the U.S. higher education community.

ACE intends to sustain and possibly expand the Alliance to include other countries following the two-year project cycle.

Lumina Foundation is an independent, private foundation in Indianapolis that is committed to making opportunities for learning beyond high school available to all. Lumina envisions a system that is easy to navigate, delivers fair results and meets the nation’s need for talent through a broad range of credentials. The Foundation’s goal is to prepare people for informed citizenship and for success in a global economy.

For more information, contact CIGE at [email protected].

Featured

  • dormitory with green roofs, solar panels, balconies, and labeled architectural annotations

    2025 Residence Hall Design Trends Focus on Sustainability, Flexibility, Community, Technology, and Well-Being

    With the most technically advanced Gen Z (born between 1997 and 2012) at the helm, residence hall design trends for 2025 look to focus on flexible spaces, health and wellness, sustainability, community, and digital technology.

  • ClassVR Wins Tech & Learning Best of Show at ISTELive 25

    Avantis Education recently announced that its flagship product, ClassVR, won the Tech & Learning Best of Show Award at ISTELive 25 in San Antonio, Texas, according to a news release. The program is designed to celebrate products that are “transforming education in schools around the world and that show the greatest promise for the industry,” and this is the fourth consecutive year that Avantis has claimed the award.

  • Beeville ISD Starts Construction on New Elementary School

    The Beeville Independent School District near Corpus Christi, Texas, recently began a construction project that will consolidate two existing, aging schools into a new elementary school, according to a news release. The district is partnering with Pfluger Architects and Spawglass General Contractors for the design and construction, respectively, of the new facility.

  • ECM Technologies Wins ‘Most Innovative Business of the Year’ Award

    HVAC preventative maintenance and efficiency solutions provider ECM Technologies was recently named the “Most Innovative Business of the Year” at the 2025 Champions of Change Awards, according to a news release. The program recognizes Arizona business leaders and organizations taking steps to make a positive impact on the state through innovative thinking and philanthropy.

Digital Edition