Chancellor Li: It’s Never a Bad Time to Explore Flexible Options for Education

It’s time for higher education to build classes around students’ lives rather than asking students to build their lives around classes, according to a new op-ed piece by Joanne Li, Ph.D., CFA, Chancellor of the University of Nebraska at Omaha (UNO).

According to a recent study by the National Student Clearinghouse Research Center, more than 300,000 Nebraskans have completed some college but never earned a credential. Li argues that flexibility, financial support, and generous credit transfer policies can open the door for students to finally earn their degree.

“True flexibility requires meeting students where they are,” Li writes. “Maverick thinking encourages us to look at the whole student, their experiences, and their past work. It means focusing less on which degree to pursue and instead on what doors that degree can open.”

The article includes student stories such as Brianne Ramirez, who found her academic dreams to be achievable thanks to flexible course offerings that allowed her to maintain her business, her family, and her physical health.

It also shares the story of Madeline Adams, who used Pell grant funding and credits she earned 60 years ago at then Omaha University to finally earn her degree in her 80s.

The full article by Chancellor Li can be read on the Omaha World-Herald’s website.