NMC Horizon Report > 2014 Higher Education Edition

Long-Range Trend
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make improvements to teaching models. Faculty are
using One Button Studio to create introductions for
online courses along with demonstration modules to
better illuminate complex concepts. Students are also
encouraged to use the One Button Studio for green
screen recording and class presentations, changing the
scope of what is expected of them. Other institutions
are taking note and launching similar studios, including
Abilene Christian University.
The growing emphasis of university programs on
entrepreneurship has created a need for policies that
more aggressively support innovative faculty and
student work. The University of Southern California,
for example has garnered attention for its policies in
rewarding and funding faculty-created projects, while
just a few years ago the University of Virginia’s School of
Medicine was one of the first programs to incorporate
entrepreneurial activities in its promotion and tenure
criteria. The University of Nebraska Medical Center’s
Entrepreneur in Residence supports the development
of new companies that are based on the work and
innovations of their faculty and staff researchers.
There are many opportunities for higher education
institutions to become leaders in promoting
innovation across their campuses. The University of
Colorado Denver, for example, offers an international
entrepreneurship experience for faculty who wish
to study abroad and learn about the most effective
pedagogies related to teaching business courses
with global applications. Similarly, the Rady School of
Management at the University of California San Diego
incorporates faculty training in their Entrepreneur
Development Services Program. A growing number
of external organizations, such as the Coleman
Foundation, are also targeting faculty development as
a major space for nurturing campus innovation. They
provide a Fellows program to faculty to build capacity
for areas such as boosting the frequency and quality
of interdisciplinary entrepreneurship, as many other
programs are limited to business schools.
For Further Reading
The following resources are recommended for those
who wish to learn more about agile approaches to
change:
Are Edutech Startups Plugging an Innovation Gap
in Our Universities?
go.nmc.org/gap
(Claire Shaw, The Guardian Higher Education Network,
27 March 2013.) The CEO of Mendeley, a UK-based
edtech startup, encourages universities to choose small
companies over the leaders in the market for technology
services because they offer more personalized solutions
to an institution’s problems.
Change Is Coming
go.nmc.org/isco
(Dan Greenstein, Inside Higher Ed, 16 December 2013.)
This article argues that including technology is the only
way to facilitate new business models that provide
students with an education that is tailored to their
needs, their learning styles, and their goals, including
appropriate coaching and advising.
John Kolko on Finding Purpose Working at an
Edtech Startup (Video)
go.nmc.org/flag
(Capture Your Flag, 30 October 2013.) The VP of Design
at an edtech startup and founder of Austin Center for
Design explains what he has learned working from
a venture capital funded company as a designer of
MyEdu, a software solution for matching students and
their future employers.
Rutgers President Barchi Calls for New Business
Model in Higher Education to Focus on Public-
Private Partnerships
go.nmc.org/rut
(Rutgers University, accessed 16 December 2013.)
Rutgers University President Robert Barchi wants
to forge public-private partnerships to gain new
sources of revenue and resources, and he believes
that an important aspect of this is creating research
collaborations.
Stanford University Is Going To Invest In Student
Startups Like A VC Firm
go.nmc.org/inves
(Billy Gallagher, TechCrunch, 4 September 2013.)
Stanford University is working with StartX, a nonprofit
startup accelerator, to help students get their
companies off the ground. Stanford Hospital and Clinics
will be investing in companies alongside Stanford in the
Stanford-StartX Fund.
U-M’s Ross School Student-Led Venture Invests in
EdTech Startup
go.nmc.org/ross
(Greta Guest, UM News, 18 April 2013.) University of
Michigan’s student-led investing group, the Social
Venture Fund, provided funds for Mytonomy, a
Maryland startup company that is developing a videobased
social learning environment for first generation
students.