Two nonprofits bet big on a new tech tool to guide students. Also, a survey shows colleges embracing outsourcing in response to enrollment challenges. ADVERTISEMENT [The Edge Logo]( You can also [read this newsletter on the web](. Or, if you no longer want to receive this newsletter, [unsubscribe](. Iâm Goldie Blumenstyk, a senior writer at The Chronicle covering innovation in and around higher ed. This week I report on plans for a new center for career navigation. I also share insights from the latest annual Chronicle-P3â¢EDU survey on trends in outsourcing. Also, thanks to all of you who got in touch about [the personal essay I wrote this month]( a donorâs renaming of a building at my alma mater to make a statement on antisemitism. It was a special experience to report and write that essay, and Iâm glad to know it resonated. ADVERTISEMENT SUBSCRIBE TO THE CHRONICLE Enjoying the newsletter? [Subscribe today]( for unlimited access to essential news, analysis, and advice. Can a career-navigation site really steer students wisely? Last week at its annual Horizons conference in Washington, D.C., Jobs for the Future announced the [new ASA Center for Career Navigation at JFF]( which will include a soon-to-be-developed tech tool that by 2030 aims to help 20 million young learners find, evaluate, and access the education and training that can help them kick off their careers. The project was begun with a $25-million grant from American Student Assistance, an education philanthropy. Itâs a big, bold idea that fits perfectly with ASAâs broader mission to ârevolutionize the school-to-work journey for every kid in America, starting in middle school.â But Iâll admit my first reaction was: Goldie, be careful what youâve wished for. I thought that because it was just two years ago during a JFF Horizons gathering in New Orleans that â prompted by a different funder â[I solicited your ideas]( for what gaps in the ecosystem philanthropies could be supporting, and my own answer to that question was better career navigation to help learners make sense of the growing number of educational options now available. I still believe such career navigation is sorely needed. But Iâm not convinced this is a challenge a tech tool can solve, even one as ambitious as what ASA and JFF plan. Thatâs because paths to many careers often arenât linear. And many of the careers young people might enter may not even exist right now. Finally, I wonder if any tool can really provide objective information on quality, especially considering how many traditional and alternative programs there are. Obviously, backers of the project think otherwise. Jean Eddy, the president and chief executive of ASA, told me sheâs confident that the tool to be developed by this three-year grant will be more comprehensive and more useful than the myriad other career-planning apps or industry-specific sites that now exist. âWeâre putting the learner first,â she told me, noting that the site will include information on a wide range of educational options as well as guidance on how to finance those experiences. âWeâre giving kids some agency.â Usually I flinch when I hear college students described as âkids.â But in this case itâs apt. At least initially, the siteâs target audience will be 16- to 24-year-olds, and Eddy said that ASA already has some experience with that demographic. Some 15 million 13- to 18-year-olds are active on three other youth-focused websites it runs: [Futurescape]( [Next Voice]( and [EvolveMe](. Jeff Bulanda, a veteran of Amazonâs education-benefit program, will be heading up the center for JFF starting in August. He told me at last weekâs Horizons conference that heâs already begun immersing himself in TikTok and other elements of Gen Z-ersâ culture to âunderstand their pain pointsâ and develop a site that suits their needs. The center will also be active in advocating for policies and funding âin support of high-quality, nondegree pathways.â My own reservations aside about prioritizing âcareer planningâ at such an early stage for students â because, yes, Iâm also aware that many of todayâs students donât have the luxury to just wing it with some help from mommy and daddy once they graduate â I appreciated hearing Bulandaâs take on what he hopes to accomplish with the tool. Ideally, he wants it to make it easier for students to compare programs based on standardized stats, such as job-placement rates and whether employers repeatedly hire from the programs. (Those reminded me of the ways Amazon evaluates education providers that are part of its Amazon Career Choice education program.) Heâs also eager to provide that kind of information in more user-friendly formats than what exists now. As he said to me, âWhat 19-year-old is going to be able to interpret the data in the [College Scorecard]( I was also glad to hear that he recognizes the tool is just one piece of a bigger puzzle that also needs educators who offer high-quality programs, employers who stay engaged, and learners who are informed. âIt is a tool,â he said, âthat is going to require an ecosystem.â Enrollment concerns drive continued interest in outsourcing Colleges leadersâ interest in partnerships with outside companies shows little sign of waning, according to [the latest annual survey]( conducted by The Chronicle and P3â¢EDU. Yet while the interest seems âcrazily consistentâ with recent years, as James Sparkman, a partner at Alpha Education, put it, the reasons often vary. This year, he said, concerns about enrollment and anxiety about the impact of artificial intelligence seem to be the biggest factors. (Sparkman is one of the organizers of the [P3â¢EDU annual conference]( hosted by the University of Colorado at Denver in October; the survey, which included responses from 376 college presidents and other top officials, is conducted in conjunction with that conference.) As with last year, employee training and health and telehealth services were the two areas of collegesâ greatest interest for outsourcing help. Marketing and recruiting was third, with 44 percent of respondents naming it as a priority. AI was fourth, with more than one third of respondents citing it. A year ago, only about a quarter of respondents named AI as an area their institution was most interested in for outsourcing partnerships. Whether AI was a top priority for outsourcing help or of lower interest, the vast majority â 71 percent â of this yearâs respondents said they expected they would need to forge a partnership with the private sector to put in place or manage new developments around AI. The survey didnât explicitly ask about why colleges might be interested in marketing and recruiting help, but it doesnât take a rocket scientist to venture an educated guess. Many colleges are suffering from enrollment declines. The survey did dig deeper on AI. Asked where they expect AI to have a positive impact on their campuses in the next two to three years, college leaders cited greater efficiency, creating personalized learning experiences, and advancing research. As for the negative impacts of AI, the top concerns included reducing student engagement, perpetuating bias, disrupting learning, and exposing student data. Two other sets of questions on the survey also caught my eye. The first set suggests that colleges are becoming more confident of their abilities to create online programs but still remain very dependent on outside partners to scale them up. Only a quarter of respondents agreed or strongly agreed that an outside party was needed to start online programs, but 42 percent agreed or strongly agreed that partners were necessary to scale them up. The second set of questions compared satisfaction levels on partnerships built around revenue-share models versus those where colleges pay a direct fee for services Those results (which covered not just online programs but partnerships for all sorts of services) showed higher satisfaction levels for the fee-for-service models (77 percent were satisfied or very satisfied) than for revenue sharing (64 percent). Worth noting here: 2U, one of the most prominent companies offering online-program-management services â including enrollment and marketing services â [last week announced a pre-packaged bankruptcy](. Itâs also a company that relies heavily on the revenue-share model for its income. Make of that what you will. Join me and colleagues for The Chronicle Festival: The Road Ahead to 2035 The Chronicleâs annual ideas festival takes place online September 10-12. As part of the program, Iâll be talking with Eboo Patel, founder of Interfaith America, on how higher ed can prepare students to live and work in our increasingly fragile democracy. The agenda also includes a bunch of other terrific guests, with several of my colleagues as moderators. We hope youâll join us for some or all of the programs. Registration is free. Sign up [here]( to watch live or later on demand. Keep up with developments on DEI Is your work being affected by the movement against diversity, equity, and inclusion? With so many bills and new policies impacting higher ed across the country, itâs hard to keep track. But my colleagues have been on the case for months with a special [DEI Legislation Tracker]( that monitors state and federal actions in this arena. If you want to stay on top of developments, [sign up]( for an email alert and weâll update you when new bills or laws drop. Got a tip youâd like to share or a question youâd like me to answer? Let me know, at goldie@chronicle.com. If you have been forwarded this newsletter and would like to see past issues, [find them here](. To receive your own copy, free, register [here](.
If you want to follow me on LinkedIn, youâll find me [here](. On X, [@GoldieStandard]( is my handle. On BlueSky Social, itâs [this.]( UPCOMING WORKSHOP [The Chronicle's Leadership Transformation Collaborative | Starting in August 2024] Join The Chronicle’s Leadership Transformation Collaborative this fall to not only learn a new set of leadership skills, but to gain a structure for implementing them into your day-to-day work. This 15-week virtual program is designed to help current and aspiring higher-ed leaders instill new practices across the fall semester and beyond through practical tools, community building, and flexible learning. [Learn more and register today!]( Goldie's Picks INTELLECTUAL-PROPERTY DEBATE [Two Major Academic Publishers Signed Deals With AI Companies. Some Professors Are Outraged.]( By Christa Dutton [STORY IMAGE]( The agreements will allow tech giants access to the enormous archives of Wiley and Taylor & Francis. 2024 ELECTION [What Bidenâs Exit From the Presidential Race Could Mean for Higher Ed]( By Megan Zahneis and Michael Vasquez [STORY IMAGE]( Should Vice President Kamala Harris become the Democratic nominee for president, experts across higher ed expect a continuation of the Biden administrationâs initiatives. CAREER RESOURCES [Preparing for a New Role] [Read the July collection]( for advice on preparing for a new role. Learn how you can prepare for onboarding, move into your new office, and more. ADVERTISEMENT FROM THE CHRONICLE STORE [Adapting to AI - The Chronicle Store]( [Adapting to AI]( Artificial intelligence has taken higher ed by storm, and the implications extend far beyond the classroom. [Order this report]( to improve your understanding of AI technologies, and explore how other colleges are adapting their policies and guidelines. JOB OPPORTUNITIES [Search jobs on The Chronicle job board]( [Find Your Next Role Today]( Whether you are actively or passively searching for your next career opportunity, The Chronicle is here to support you throughout your job search. Get started now by [exploring 30,000+ openings]( or [signing up for job alerts](. NEWSLETTER FEEDBACK [Please let us know what you thought of today's newsletter in this three-question survey](. This newsletter was sent to {EMAIL}. [Read this newsletter on the web](. [Manage]( your newsletter preferences, [stop receiving]( this email, or [view]( our privacy policy. © 2024 [The Chronicle of Higher Education](
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