Policy

ExcelinEd Launches Free Online Courses for Ed Policymakers

• By Joshua Bolkan
• 03/09/15

The Foundation for Excellence in Education (ExcelinEd) has launched a series of free, self-paced courses focused on education reform and designed specifically for policymakers.

Hosted on Canvas Network, the courses, dubbed EdPolicy Leaders Online, will feature superintendents, senators, teachers, tech gurus, CEOs, community leaders, policymakers and parents, among other stakeholders.

The series is "designed to give those who influence education policy access to the in-depth knowledge and messaging strategies necessary for implementing trending reforms," according to a news release. "The lessons come in convenient, self-paced modules to accommodate busy schedules. There also will be official recognition of course completion, which can be displayed on social networks, such as LinkedIn, or on résumés."

Each course includes five or six modules requiring no more than an hour each. Courses are open to anyone and there is no limit to how many individuals can join.

The first three courses include:

• Data Privacy: Get Schooled, beginning March 23, was developed with the Data Quality Campaign and covers issues such as effective data use and privacy concerns;
• Securing Our Nation's Future, also beginning March 23, will explore how education can improve national security; and
• Communications Boot Camp, launching March 30, is designed to help participants build communication skills regarding media relations, targeted messaging and social media.

Speakers featured in the series include:

• Aaron Lichtig, head of industry at Google;
• Data Quality Campaign CEO and President Aimee Guidera;
• Mississippi State Senator Gray Tollison;
• Joel Klein, former chancellor of the New York City Department of Education;
• Kathleen Styles, chief privacy officer for the United States Department of Education; and
• Katie Harbath, manager of policy for Facebook.

"We are passionate about improving education," said Melissa Loble, senior director of the Canvas Network at Instructure, in a prepared statement. "We want to fuel the conversation around education reform from both ends of the political spectrum, and these free courses from the Foundation for Excellence in Education are designed specifically for that very purpose."

More information is available at excelined.org.