Continuing and Professional Education University of illinois springfield

The growth of CAPE

In January 2020 the first two full-time CAPE team members were hired

In September 2022 CAPE has expanded to six full-time and 1 part-time team members

In fiscal year 2022 CAPE gross revenue totaled $599,818

From 2020 to 2022 CAPE reduced expenses by 66% while maintaining project growth.

• Expenses in 2020: $835,402
• Expenses in 2022: $599,818

Support high-quality teaching

In 2021, the ION Professional eLearning Program won University Professional and Continuing Education Association Outstanding Program Award.

Since 2018, there have been 5,833 duplicated enrollments in ION Professional eLearning programs. The top five courses are:

• Overview of Online Instruction - 2,164
• Instructional Design for Online Course Development - 745
• Student Assessment in Online Courses - 625
• Practicum for MOT - 376
• Blended Learning Design & Instruction - 298

ION enrollment, by academic year:

• AY2018/2019 - 809
• AY2019/2020 - 1,942
• AY2020/2021 - 1,194
• AY2021/2022 - 800

ION enrollments rose sharply during the COVID-19 pandemic

Improve Assessment

Student Assessment in Online Courses is part of the ION Master Online Teacher certificate.  In FY22, 64 students enrolled in this course, and 625 students have enrolled since 2018.

Invest in ongoing faculty development

ION professional certificate programs are aligned to best practices in the field of online learning.

• The Master Online Teacher certificate prepares participants with knowledge related to online course design, online instruction, and other issues related to online teaching and learning. These competencies make a master online teacher.
• The Master Online Leader and Administrator certificate is a comprehensive professional development program based on the Hallmarks of Excellence in the Online Leadership from the University Professional and Continuing Education Association and provides researched best practices and practical insights from recognized leaders.
• The Digital Accessibility for Educators certificate focuses on foundational information and specific skills for educators, instructional designers, and other staff who develop digital resources for courses.

CAPE has partnered with the Illinois State Board of Education to develop micro-credentials to help K-12 teachers utilize open educational resources and serve gifted students. We are currently updating the gifted learner course.

Develop & deliver content that meets learners' needs

CAPE is partnering with the Illinois Governor's Office, the Illinois Criminal Justice Information Authority, and the Illinois Department of Human Services to develop grant training tools that will increase applicant diversity and success. In FY2022 these projects generated $323,351 in revenue for CAPE.

The ION Professional eLearning program helps faculty expand and improve their online teaching skillsets. As more and more resources are devoted to online learning, demand for highly-trained online teachers will only increase.

In 2021, CAPE launched a partnership with Green Flower to offer cannabis training certificates online. Seven cohorts have launched since then, enrolling 123 students. This partnership has generated $29,682 in revenue for CAPE since August 2021.

Through our partnership with ed2go, CAPE is able to offer learners a robust catalog of high-quality online skill-building courses. 184 students have enrolled in ed2go courses since 2020 to develop or improve their skills.

CAPE issues digital badges as a way to recognize and celebrate student accomplishments. They are a powerful tool that provides students a way to share achievements and show competence in online instruction. In FY2022 CAPE issued 1,381 digital badges.

Partner with others to enrich the student experience

• CAPE partnered with the Alliance for Experiential Problem-Based Learning to offer "The Night Before: A Trauma-Informed Virtual Experiential Training" webinar series in FY2022.
• In summer 2021 and 2022 2021, CAPE has supported eleven faculty workshops that addressed topics as diverse as LGBT History for Educators, Experiential Crime Scene Investigation, The Theory of Relativity, and Strategies to Enhance Educator and Student Well-Being.
• CAPE collaborations in FY2023 include partnering with the U of I System to host an Advanced Placement Summer Institute for teachers, and a Boy Scout Merit Badge camp.

CAPE works with the Illinois Center for State Policy and Leadership on content that is timely and relevant. In the Spring of 2022, we co-sponsored a free webinar series on the Crisis in Ukraine that featured analysis from UIS faculty and other institutions.

CAPE maintains an marketing list with over 15,000 email addresses.

Integrate experiential activities

In FY2022 CAPE completed a statewide implementation and an outcomes evaluation of the Illinois Competency-Based Education Program for the Illinois State Board of Education.

CAPE leadership serves on several committees for the Illinois Innovation Network, has helped organize the annual STEAM Expo at the Illinois State Fair, the IIN Innovation Awards, and the High School Innovator of the Year Competition.

CAPE has developed an extensive catalog of online courses that support the Illinois Grant Accountability and Transparency administrators and users.

CAPE is developing a series of "Innovation Courses" for the Illinois Criminal Justice Information Authority to ensure grant success for diverse applicants.

Connect to learning beyond the classroom

In FY 2022 CAPE continued to expand our online infrastructure. We deployed our own Moodle instance, allowing us greater flexibility to meet the needs of our partners. These updates allow us to streamline the leaner registration process and improve content delivery in a cost effectively manner.

CAPE woks closely with the Illinois Innovation Network and the Discovery Partners Institute to connect our programs with other relevant initiatives across the state.

Integrate UIS' liberal arts strengths into programs

Liberal education provides students with versatile skills that are valuable across careers, and in life. All of CAPE's offerings fulfill this requirement.

Critical thinking, communication, problem solving and applied technical skills provide learners the ability to be prepared for career success through an interdisciplinary liberal arts approach. All of CAPE's offerings fulfill this requirement.

In FY2022 CAPE offered the Master Online Facilitator course to support online trainers that are new to the digital world. Partners included: Springfield YMCA, Illinois State Board of Education, Corporate Dollar General, Springfield Sangamon Growth Alliance, Downtown Springfield, Synergetic Solutions, Illinois Small Business Development Center.