In The News

One of the most innovative companies is Civitas Learning, based in Austin, Texas, which is now working with more than 300 colleges, including the University of South Florida and Utah State. Civitas’s basic thesis is that the best indicator of whether a student will graduate is not grades or test scores or demographics—it’s their behavior.

Pressure is growing for colleges to improve student outcomes, but sliding enrollment and tighter budgets threaten their ability to do so. In response, they are deploying technologies like artificial intelligence (AI) and predictive analytics that promise to help them do more with less.

The University of the Witwatersrand in South Africa has begun working across organisational structures to establish an institutional framework for student success, according to Senior Director of Academic Affairs, Professor Diane Grayson.

With work-life balance and good benefits becoming a requirement rather than a perk, the work culture at Silicon Valley tech giants like Google or LinkedIn is always a popular topic. To attract the best talent, companies around Silicon Valley are consistently competing to provide the best working environments.

When you think of educational technology, do you picture a classroom full of teens immersed in their tablets—perhaps dissecting cyber-rats? That happens, no doubt, but edtech goes beyond K-12 classroom engagement tools, and plays an increasingly crucial role in the educational experience.

As author and educator George Couros put it, “Technology will never replace great teachers, but technology in the hands of great teachers is transformational.”

Whether it’s unique gatherings that bring employees together or showering staff with perks that promote well-being, these companies prioritize their workforce. Interested in joining them? Take a look at seven fast-growing teams from Austin tech bursting at the seams with opportunity.

A multi-year campaign to improve student success at Lorain County Community College is seeing positive results. The Ohio institution utilized Civitas Learning‘s student success platform and suite of application to identify common barriers to student persistence and streamline pathways to completion, increasing full-time student retention by nearly 12 percentage points.

Civitas Learning founder and CEO Charles Thornburgh is shifting his role to chief strategy and innovation officer, and the company is adding Chris Hester as its new CEO. Hester was previously president of WellSky, and he had been CEO of Kinnser Software for about 15 years.

The end of the school year is a time to reflect on accomplishments and — ideally — to abandon regrets, or at least learn from them.

Last September, professors from institutions around the country shared with “Inside Digital Learning” their plans for new classroom initiatives and made some predictions about what they might accomplish. We came back to them recently to ask how they went. A few said they’re too busy with an end-of-year crush of grading to reply. Here’s what the rest of them reported back.