September

What does higher education look like in 2030?

MSU Denver has an idea to potentially transform the way higher education organizes, stores and validates students’ accomplishments.

By Nancy Sayre

September 12, 2018

Metropolitan State University of Denver has advanced to the next stage of the Reimagining the Higher Education Ecosystem Challenge sponsored by the U.S. Department of Education Office of Educational Technology.  

The MSU Denver Center for Teaching, Learning and Design and Innovative and Lifelong Learning collaborated to recruit partners, brainstorm ideas and develop a proposal to participate in a pilot project. Our bold idea, called FlexchainEdu – Learning Connected, explores offering students credentials valued by employers based on their acquired knowledge and skills at MSU Denver — even if they are short of total credits toward a bachelor’s degree. 

Few students follow a linear path toward earning a degree at a single institution. For the typical student with multiple transcripts and no credential, we propose a flexible, industry-driven, blockchain-backed passport to empower lifelong learning. FlexchainEdu is a student-owned skills map connected to learning outcomes and is fully verifiable by potential employers. It has the potential to transform the way higher education organizes, stores and validates students’ accomplishments — as well as provide credentials that are universally respected by an evolving employment marketplace.

More than 160 teams submitted transformative pilot projects and bold visions for education in 2030, and 25 finalists were selected. Judges will select eight winners from the 25 teams this fall, and winners will be announced in Washington, D.C., on Oct. 11.

Please support MSU Denver by reading about the pilot project and voting for public choice awards. Public voting will be open until Sept. 27. 

Rather than awarding a “like” to only one project, anyone with an account will be able to invest “edu2030-coins” in the projects they think are the most exciting or promising. Although edu2030-coins are not real or virtual currency and hold no monetary value, we encourage MSU Denver faculty and staff to “invest” wisely.