PLA Workshop 3

• Higher Education Administrators & Managers: Those who oversee Continuing Education, Adult Learning, or Degree Completion programs and need to develop or improve PLA policies.

• PLA Directors & Coordinators: Professionals tasked with creating student handbooks, managing the "processing flow" of portfolios, and ensuring "truth in advertising" regarding costs and credits.

• Registrars & Academic Records Staff: Individuals responsible for the transcription of experiential learning and ensuring that PLA credits adhere to institutional and accreditation standards.

• Academic Deans & Department Chairs: Leaders who need to advocate for PLA at the executive level and integrate experiential learning into the broader college curriculum.

• Lead Faculty & Subject Matter Experts: Instructors who serve on policy committees or are responsible for training other faculty members on how to assess non-sponsored learning.

• Student Success Advisors: Staff who guide adult learners through the initial identification and articulation of their prior learning.

The program is designed for those who want to move beyond the "how-to" of individual assessment and master the systemic side of the field. By the end of the program you should be able to:

1. Learn how to navigate the approval channels for a new PLA program.
2. Align your program with the 10 Quality Standards (specifically Standards VII–X) to satisfy regional accrediting bodies.
3. Structure fair fee schedules and efficient internal workflows for handling student evidence.
4. Ground your program in the 10 Quality Standards, you ensure that your institution’s PLA process is academically rigorous and defensible.
5. Align your policies with the requirements of regional accrediting bodies to avoid "skepticism" regarding academic standards.
6. Implement standardized "Step-by-Step" evaluation processes that remove subjectivity and ensure all students are treated equitably.
7. Define the "Processing Flow" from initial student inquiry to final transcription on the record.
8. Design fees based on the service of assessment rather than the amount of credit, avoiding the appearance of "buying credit."
9. Minimize internal confusion by clearly outlining the responsibilities of the Registrar, Faculty, and PLA Director.
10. Move beyond being an "assessor" to becoming a "program designer" capable of creating full-scale PLA plans.
11. Use the latest theories in andragogy (adult learning) and experiential learning (such as Kolb’s Cycle) to justify your program’s rationale to skeptical stakeholders.
12.  Help students graduate sooner by recognizing their prior college-level competencies.
13. Provide students with a cost-effective alternative to traditional coursework that still maintains high academic standards.
14. Identify and document "prior learning" often increases a student's confidence and engagement in their current degree program.

• Institutional Leadership & Strategy
• Operational Excellence & Compliance
• Educational Impact & Student Success

What are the system requirements this program?

The program is delivered online with some offline assignments.

You will need a computer (IBM Compatible PC or Apple Macintosh) with:

• Internet access (Broadband preferred, dial-up is acceptable)
• Internet browser (Microsoft Internet Explorer, Safari, Firefox
• Email
• Microsoft Word
• Adobe Acrobat Reader

The program is taught asynchronously - you can take it anywhere, anytime you have access to the above. However, there is a weekly schedule you are expected to keep.

What is the weekly time commitment for the workshops?

On average you should spend five to seven hours weekly on the workshops. The best way to do this is to spread the hours over the week, perhaps half an hour each evening or during lunch, then longer at the weekend.