Flexible, Nimble, Entrepreneurial: An Unconventional Approach to Higher Ed

Flexible, nimble, entrepreneurial. These are three words that most of us wouldn't associate with our traditional college system.

But what if we restructured the way we approach higher education to make it more flexible for all learners, to adapt more nimbly to workforce needs, and to instill an entrepreneurial spirit in the way education does its business?

Tim Hood, President of Mid-Michigan College is an unconventional leader in his own right. His working-class upbringing and entrepreneurial background make him the perfect disruptor to traditional approaches to college education.

This episode is full of non-traditional ideas about how we should be doing college, like:

• Getting rid of the stigma that career and technical education is less important than academic programs
• Creating ultra-flexible pathways for adult learners to earn certificates and degrees
• Removing the polarization between business and education and instead embracing collaborative partnerships
• Making college all about experiential learning...and designing curriculum that's closely tied to the needs of industry that are hiring these individuals
• And when it comes to incumbent worker training, listening to the shop floor employees to see what they want/need to learn

Education is facing some major changes in the coming years, and leaders like Tim Hood who think outside the box are going to get us where we need to go.