The business of higher education has been turned on its head. Still coping with the lingering impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, university and college leadership are being forced to reinvent how their institutions function going forward. Everything has to be examined including course curriculum, recruitment and enrollment strategies, technology implementation and training, and strategic partnerships with other institutions and associations.
Fierce Education is highlighting those higher education leaders that are rethinking their business models so we can spotlight their vision and help others through these challenging times.
Fierce Education Leader:
Dr. Jill Buban, Vice President, Digital Strategy and Online Education
Affiliation: Fairfield University
Being a Fierce Education Leader:
Dr. Jill Buban was named VP of Digital Strategy and Online Education at Fairfield University approximately one year ago and oversees strategic development, infrastructure and programming. She is responsible for the expanding the university’s online and hybrid academic program offerings, with a particular focus on graduate and professional studies. Before that, she served as the chief academic officer of the Unizin Consortium, overseeing the organization’s research activities, member and partner engagement, and acting as the liaison for Unizin’s robust teaching and learning committee.
Dr. Buban is in charge of overseeing one of Fairfield’s current strategic priorities of expanding into online programs for graduate students. Even before the pandemic, Fairfield saw this shift as important due to shifting desires of graduate students and the university’s geographic constraints. Under Dr. Buban’s leadership, this spring, it planned to launch seven online master’s programs and nine online certificate programs.
Much of Dr. Buban’s work included laying the internal groundwork for such a launch as well as finding innovative partners to work with to make it successful. There has been discussion with ISTE, an organization that can provide participants in EdTech programs with a national certificate. Similar discussions have also occurred with Cisco and IBM. Fairfield also partners with Guild to provide benefits to the workforce and has had discussions with EdAssist regarding upskilling the workforce. Other potential future partners include EdX and Coursera. Dr. Buban believes there is so much opportunity to not only provide quality online programs to Fairfield’s graduate students but also possibly provide free professional training to the local community and to high school students, and this idea drives many of these potential partnerships.
Another key aspect of Buban’s work is to ensure students online are still receiving a holistic education. As a Jesuit institution, it is very important to Fairfield that students receive not only a quality academic experience but also a positive personal experience. Thus, one important partner includes Uwill, which provides telehealth and mental health services to students. Graduate students across the nation have been calling for expanded mental health services for over a decade, and the Uwill partnership enables Fairfield to answer that call.
Going forward, Dr. Buban and Fairfield’s leadership plan to continue to pursue partnerships and opportunities around online learning that will allow Fairfield to strengthen and expand its regional presence while remaining true to its Jesuit mission.
For more Fierce Education Leaders, see:
Fierce Education Leader: Dr. Joe Sallustio, Claremont Lincoln University
Also, to register for Fierce Education's "Higher Education Business & Leadership: Summer Edition" click here