University Extension and UCR Vision
Putting Knowledge to Work

The workforce of the future will be better educated, older, and more flexible than at any time in the past. Preparing the future workforce to meet the needs of employers will increase pressure on postsecondary institutions to expand access to meet demand. The pressure to accommodate all students and workers seeking educational opportunities to remain competitive and improve their quality of life will alter the postsecondary landscape, placing greater emphasis on institutions that can provide shorter credentialing programs and employ other part-time and just-in-time educational methods including online and distance learning.

The importance of lifelong learning will increase for virtually all careers in the coming decades — by 2015, 31% of all new postsecondary students will be 35 years of age or older, according to Crossing the Great Divide, a report by the Educational Testing Service. In fact, adults are already engaging in lifelong learning in record numbers as they take advantage of a growing supply of shorter, customized and focused professional certificate programs, and engage in part-time degree programs from institutions that can accommodate their careers and lifestyles. Put simply, more students currently and in the coming years are seeking educational opportunities than ever before. This continuing demand for education will exert mounting pressure on traditional institutions to provide facilities and access. University Extension at UCR is uniquely positioned to meet this important societal need.

The University of California Extension, in keeping with the long established tradition of the public land grant institutions of higher learning, is charged with the responsibility to provide instruction and public service programs to the adult population of the state.

The vision of UCR Extension is to promote through its diverse programs the lifelong process of education for learners of all ages. Meeting the academic standards of the University of California, Riverside, it serves the broadest possible constituencies, from youth and college students to professionals and others in the Inland Empire and from around the world, through educational programs of the highest quality.

This vision is guided by several fundamental values:

• Lifelong Access — UCR Extension seeks to be available to people of all ages, at any time and at their convenience, with educational programs that meet their diverse needs.

• Commitment to Excellence — We are driven to provide the best instruction and the best possible educational experience.

• Learner Centered — Extension measures itself by what students have learned, by the knowledge and skills that can improve students' quality of life and competitive position in the workplace.

• Public Engagement— UCR Extension considers itself a critical partner in the social, cultural and economic development of the Inland Empire community.

• International Education — UCR Extension is a recognized leader in providing educational programs to a worldwide audience and in fostering campus faculty, student and institutional relationships with the global community.

As the comprehensive outreach element of the University, it is appropriate and in keeping with the spirit of Vision 2010 that University Extension be charged with the responsibility for the broadest possible response to the educational needs of the people we serve. This charge should include the full range of program offerings (credit, certificate, non-credit, enrichment) and the full range of delivery methodologies available.

Level I – Long-Term Vision

As a national and international leader in continuing education for over 40 years, UCR Extension proposes to build on that leadership base, consolidate its resources into a new and more efficient structure and respond to the changing needs of our region and beyond with the establishment of a school of continuing and professional studies. In adopting this model, University Extension will join many of its peer institutions in the recognition that citizens of the 21st Century have need for educational opportunities of more range, depth, and diversity of access than ever before.

Basically, a "school of continuing education and professional studies" would be the umbrella organization for UCR to serve the adult, nontraditional students of the local region and those globally who have educational needs that can best be met by UCR quality. Programming would be in three categories: 1) current programs of University Extension, credit and noncredit, 2) assistance to the nontraditional student in assessing the appropriate degree and/or certificate programs that currently exist in the UCR colleges and schools; and, 3) development of Extension's own degree credit programs unique to the needs of the nontraditional student.

Medium and Short-Term Vision

University Extension has reached its capacity in its current facility. In order to grow to meet the region's adult, nontraditional education needs, and to better serve the campus, region, community college, and global constituencies, Extension proposes to build an adjacent Executive Conference and classroom facility. An additional strategy is to work with the campus to develop satellite branch locations in Temecula, Ontario, the desert, and globally, such as our Gangnam, Korea UCR Educational Center.

University Extension is working collaboratively with various academic units to design, develop, and implement part-time graduate degrees, for the nontraditional adult learner called Master's of Advanced Studies (MAS).

Additionally, Extension is taking a leadership role as an academic and financial partner in promoting student and faculty global relationships. This is being accomplished through study abroad, the cultivation of inter-institutional relationships, partnerships to develop language and cultural academic programs with sister universities, and the support of faculty research programs. Finally, Extension is developing a comprehensive distance learning capability that will enable the delivery of quality educational programs on demand and as-needed basis.

In summary, University Extension provides leadership in putting knowledge to work. Our moral imperative is to create a campus culture of engagement by creating opportunities for lifelong learning, public service and outreach and by connecting with the global community.