[vc_row css_animation=”” row_type=”row” use_row_as_full_screen_section=”no” type=”full_width” angled_section=”no” text_align=”left” background_image_as_pattern=”without_pattern”][vc_column][vc_empty_space][vc_single_image image=”3056″ img_size=”600×300″ alignment=”center” qode_css_animation=””][vc_column_text]
For Immediate Release
March 27, 2019 (Washington, D.C.)—Credential Engine today announced the launch of its Credential Transparency Partner Program, including leading education data organizations BrightHive Inc., Ellucian, Credly, DXtera Institute, Powerminds, Inc., and Credential Commons which will focus on publishing credential data and improving communication across data systems to empower learners, workers, employers, educators, and others with the data they need to make informed decisions about credentials.
Many credential providers, including higher education institutions, have long since faced the challenge of organizing and cataloging data about their programs to meet various reporting requirements, as well as providing sufficient details to current and prospective students looking to pursue credential pathways. Credential Engine is dedicated to ensuring that all relevant data about credentials—their content, competencies, quality indicators, connections, pathways, and outcomes—are made openly available to the public.
This initial group of partners will work with Credential Engine to support individual credential providers, higher education systems, states, and others looking to publish their credentials to the Credential Registry, a cloud-based library that collects, maintains, and connects information on all types of credentials, from diplomas to apprenticeships and from licenses to PhDs. Partners will help these providers by translating the information using the Credential Transparency Description Language (CTDL)—the first and only common language that describes credential data. This groundbreaking work will empower credential providers with the ability to provide more comprehensive data on their program offerings in formats that will allow, for the first time, the ability to search, discover, and compare all credentials regardless of the type (e.g., diploma, badge, certificate, license, certification, degree), or provider (e.g., school district, boot camp, apprenticeship, licensing body, industry or professional association, college or university).
All of the partner organizations see unique benefits of this new program.
“Through this partnership, Credential Engine looks forward to making it easier for more organizations to make public essential information about the credentials they offer, and to unlock key data that may be challenging to access,” said Scott Cheney, Executive Director of Credential Engine. “By making data searchable and comparable through a common language, we will bring data transparency not only to credential providers, but also to the students, counselors, employers, and other users who need clear data to make critical education and career decisions.”
“Credly’s commitment to the creation and adoption of open standards has been central to our work since our founding. As more learning providers, associations, and employers have embraced the movement to recognize indemand skills and certifications in a portable and digital manner, the appreciation for the value of credential transparency in the labor market has grown,” said Jonathan Finkelstein, CEO of Credly. “Our partnership with Credential Engine will help increase the connection between digital credentials and the professional pathways and opportunities they unlock.”
“DXtera Institute was founded on the ideal that we can advance student success and career success through collaborative partnerships focused on better access to data and information,” said Dale Allen, Ph.D., President and Co-Founder of DXtera Institute. “We’re humbled and excited to bring the full support of our consortium to this project and to partner with many more like-minded innovators, like Credential Engine, who are advancing important data issues in the education space.”
“At BrightHive, we believe that when organizations securely and ethically link their data with each other to achieve collective goals, everyone in their network benefits. We’re excited to partner with Credential Engine in the development of the Credential Transparency Partner Program, which we believe will empower educators, students, employers and workers to make better decisions by having greater access to the credentials provided by higher education institutions,” said Matthew Gee, BrightHive CEO.
“Powerminds believes that through transparent credential data, specifically data around competencies, we can help open up a world of applications that uses competency mapping to connect potential employees and industry,” said Renah Wolzinger, Chief Technology Officer for Powerminds, Inc.
“At Credential Commons, we enthusiastically support the Credential Engine mission and ecosystem as a nonprofit community. We work with educators and employers to publish with the Credential Registry, provide open-source Credential Engine professional development, and to promote the credentialing movement,” said Kelly Cooper, Credential Commons, 501(c)(3) CEO.
This year, these initial partners will work together to update their products and services so that their customers can easily publish credential data to Credential Engine’s Registry. Credential Engine looks forward to expanding these partnerships and adding new partners to the program in the future to further reveal the credential marketplace, dismantle data silos, and empower everyone with the credential data they need to succeed.
[/vc_column_text][/vc_column][/vc_row]
