A Note from Pat Cassella, USDLA executive director — Hello, friends! In celebration of us all heading back to school this month, I am happy to announce a handful of exciting things at the US Distance Learning Association. Scroll down for details, and feel free to connect with me with questions and ideas. — Pat
New Association Management Platform: As our membership has grown over the years, so has our need for a more robust Association Management Platform (AMP). In the coming months, we’ll launch this platform that will allow you to access premium USDLA-produced content, register for webinars, update your membership details and interact with your peers, pay your dues, and more. The platform will also support our sponsors and chapters to help manage our relationships more closely. Our target goal for launch is by the end of 2022.
Industry Job Opportunities: Another free benefit from USDLA is a selection of distance/digital learning-related job openings across the US. Recent postings include openings for instructional designers, educational directors, online educators, and more. If you are looking for a career change, visit usdla.org/membership/job-opportunities/ for an up-to-date listing of all active job postings.
2022 National Conference Survey: We are thrilled to report that we recorded in-person and virtual attendance at our 2022 conference. And, we are constantly updating our program to be inclusive across all demographics. Every year we poll our past attendees for their input to help make the following year’s conference better than the prior one. As an association predominantly driven by volunteers, these survey results are helping us to determine the location, time format, and content focus for our 2023 National Distance/Digital Learning Conference. Stay tuned for an update in the coming weeks!
Social Media: The association is ramping up our social presence and has just created an Instagram account. Be sure to follow @USDistanceLearningAssociation for digital/distance learning news.
Weekly Webinars: Starting on Friday, Sept. 16, we will be relaunching our Friday Webinar Series from 1-2 pm Eastern each week. This first webinar is sponsored by our partner Vyopta the digital collaboration experience management company. Stay tuned for more details in the coming days!
National Distance Learning Week, Nov. 7-11: In a long tradition of honoring National Distance Learning Week (NDLW) in 2022, the United States Distance Learning Association (USDLA) will once again host a free virtual week-long conference. This is our 15th anniversary, and the theme this year is leadership across all aspects of distance learning. While many conference sessions are by invitation only, we reserve the right to include proposed sessions. Our mission is to generate greater awareness and appreciation for distance learning, discuss current issues and emerging trends, highlight best practices, and recognize leaders in the field. We encourage proposals focused on leadership in education practice and research related to distance learning in the United States of America. Click here to learn more!