The Growing Influence of Online Learning in Higher Ed
Sophie and Kristen talk with Melissa Vito and Bethany Simunich about the 2026 CHLOE Conversation Report Series and the growing influence of online learning in higher education.
Dr. Bethany Simunich is the Vice President of Innovation and Research at Quality Matters (QM), an educational non-profit dedicated to quality online learning at all levels of education. In this role, Dr. Simunich leads efforts to help institutions, faculty, and staff make data-driven, research-based decisions to implement quality assurance best practices and promote online student success. In her 20+ years in higher education, she has held faculty roles for both in-person and online teaching, and also worked in educational technology, instructional design, and faculty development for online learning. As an online learning administrator, she has both created and managed processes and teams for instructional design and online faculty development. Dr. Simunich is also co-Director of the CHLOE Project (Changing Landscape of Online Education), which presents the unique perspective of senior leaders in online learning from U.S. higher education institutions, and co-author of High Impact Design for Online Courses (HIDOC) – the first instructional design model that reflects the unique considerations of online learning modalities.
Sophie and Kristen talk with Melissa Vito and Bethany Simunich about the 2026 CHLOE Conversation Report Series and the growing influence of online learning in higher education.
The 2026 CHLOE Conversations Report Series is a new qualitative study that builds on these national survey findings to explore how online learning leaders are approaching some of the field’s most pressing strategic questions.
This report reveals a continued increase in student preference for online learning and the strategies institutions are employing to address this demand.
| Status: | Yes, current member |