AUSTIN and CAMBRIDGE, October 23, 2017 – Unizin, a nonprofit consortium of 25 universities, today announced a partnership with edX.org, the leading nonprofit online learning platform founded by Harvard and MIT. Unizin will operate and invest in the Open edX platform, the learning experience platform that powers edX.org. The software will serve as a hosted platform for Unizin’s member universities, and key enhancements to the software will be coordinated and shared with the Open edX community. Ohio State University, Indiana University, and University of Michigan have committed to the hosted Open edX software from Unizin.
Unizin and edX will collaborate to advance education technology standards and to open access to data for users of the Open edX learning experience. This partnership will shape the future of education both on-campus and online and will increase the scale and speed as well as enhance the mission of both communities.
“We are excited to announce this new partnership between edX and Unizin,” said Anant Agarwal, edX CEO and MIT professor. “By adopting Open edX and working closely with the other members of the community to accelerate the development of open standards and educational services, the twenty-five institutions that comprise Unizin will play an integral part in advancing and supporting all forms of digital education. This partnership marks an exciting step in furthering our joint missions of increasing access to high-quality education for all learners, everywhere.”
“Unizin was created to enable universities to innovate together and shape the essential tools for education, and this strategic alliance with edX expands those possibilities for our members,” added Amin Qazi, Unizin CEO. “We are pleased that the Unizin and Open edX communities will have the opportunity to share leading practices to shape the future of education both online and on-campus.”
This partnership also emphasizes the commitment of both organizations to provide open teaching and learning resources, with one of the goals being to lower the cost of education for both institutions and students. By providing faculty with a platform and tools that support teaching, learning, and research, both organizations are continuing to lead in their respective areas of the emerging digital learning ecosystem.
About Unizin
Unizin, Ltd. is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit consortium of 25 universities. Our interoperable technology ecosystem supports the diverse teaching and learning environments across our institutions. Our solutions promote technology standards, enable integrations, ensure ownership and accessibility of content and data, preserve and promote faculty choice, and support institutional collaboration. Unizin is operated by its Member institutions through a Board of Directors and is headquartered in Austin, Texas. Learn more at unizin.org.
About edX.org
EdX is a nonprofit, open-source learning destination offering online courses from more than 130 member institutions, composed of both leading global universities and colleges, and a diverse group of prominent organizations from around the world. Founded by Harvard University and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and based in Cambridge, MA, U.S.A., edX is focused on transforming online and classroom learning through groundbreaking methodologies, game-like educational experiences and cutting-edge research on an open-source platform.
Media Contacts
Olivia Arredondo, olivia.arredondo@unizin.org, (512) 640-6100
Carolyn Tiernan, press@edx.org, (617) 324-7072