Dear Center for Academic Innovation Community,
One of the great privileges of working in academic innovation is seeing faculty discover new ways to connect a University of Michigan education to opportunity.
Besa Xhabija, an associate professor of biochemistry at the University of Michigan-Dearborn, recently provided a powerful example of what can happen when faculty combine disciplinary expertise with innovative approaches to teaching and learning. Like many faculty members across our university, Besa is deeply committed to helping students succeed not only in the classroom but also in their future careers.
She recognized that her students would benefit from developing skills in areas such as AI, data analysis, coding, and data visualization alongside their studies in biochemistry. Through Michigan Online, she integrated online courses and Google Career Certificates into her curriculum, creating new opportunities for students to engage with career-relevant learning, connect with expert-developed content, and build skills that will serve them long after graduation.
What I find particularly compelling about Besa’s work is that it rejects a false choice that sometimes emerges in conversations about higher education. We do not have to choose between a rigorous academic experience and career preparation. We can, and should, provide both.
By pairing deep disciplinary learning with opportunities for students to develop and demonstrate additional skills, Besa is helping students better understand the value of what they have learned and communicate that value to employers and graduate programs. Her work is a powerful example of faculty innovation in service of student success. It also demonstrates how Michigan Online can amplify the impact of exceptional teaching and help connect education to opportunity.
We have spent more than a decade ensuring those types of opportunities are available to global learners and our U-M community through Michigan Online.
Today, Michigan Online is home to more than 300 online learning experiences created by leading faculty and academic units to more than 12.75 million learners in 195 countries. These courses, series, and degree programs extend the reach of a Michigan education from those on campus to learners around the world.
As Michigan Online continues to grow, we are also seeing schools and colleges across the university embrace new ways of engaging learners through online education.
Campus Hubs allow schools and colleges to curate online learning experiences that reflect their unique strengths, priorities, and educational missions. They help learners discover relevant pathways while showcasing the breadth and depth of Michigan’s expertise.
Today, three campus hubs are live: the College of Engineering, Michigan Law, and the University of Michigan-Dearborn, with additional hubs actively under development. These hubs are examples of schools and colleges embracing online modes of education as part of a broader commitment to lifelong learning and learner engagement. They also demonstrate the role Michigan Online can play as a shared university platform that brings together learners, faculty, schools, and colleges around a common vision for education.
Faculty members like Besa are using Michigan Online to enhance the residential experience and help students prepare for meaningful careers. Schools and colleges are using campus hubs to organize and showcase learning opportunities in ways that support their strategic priorities. And learners are discovering new pathways to engage with Michigan throughout their lives.
This work remains a collective effort. It depends on innovative faculty, academic units commited to a culture of innovation in learning, and a university community willing to imagine new possibilities for learners at all levels.
I look forward to sharing more examples in the months ahead, and I invite faculty and campus partners who are interested in exploring how Michigan Online can support their educational goals to connect with us.
Together, we are building new pathways to learning, opportunity, and lifelong engagement with the University of Michigan.
Go blue!
James DeVaney
Associate Vice Provost for Academic Innovation
Founding Executive Director of the Center for Academic Innovation