See what's new with Credential Engine in "Transparency" our monthly newsletter.

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Transparency
Credential Engine develops its data standards through open, inclusive, and transparent processes
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October 18th, 2023

Welcome to Transparency, Credential Engine’s monthly newsletter.

Did you know that 3,139 organizations and 57,906 credentials have been published to the Credential Registry so far? In addition, 1,106 competency frameworks, 3,726 outcomes, 19,564 learning/training opportunities, 743 assessments, 2,795 transfer values, 74,479 competencies, and more are in the Credential Registry as CTDL-linked open data. We encourage our readers to publish your credential and competency data to aid in our mission of credential transparency!
Jump ahead:

> Spotlight (#Spotlight)
> U (#Policy) pdates (#Updates)
> Policy Corner (#Policy)
> State Connections (#State)
> Technology & Support (#Technology)
> News (#News)
> Events (#Events)


** Spotlight.
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Excerpt from our new ‘Value of CTDL for AI ([link removed]) ’ one-pager

The use of AI in relation to credential and skill data is changing the way credential providers, educational institutions, product vendors, government agencies, and others are creating data-driven solutions. This affects Credential Engine’s work because AI and machine learning are very quickly evolving for applications like skills mapping, learning opportunity recommendations, and career exploration. The Credential Transparency Description Language ([link removed]) (CTDL) and structured data in the Credential Registry ([link removed]) provide significant advantages for improved accuracy and relevance in these applications. The CTDL schema and CTDL data in the Credential Registry are highly useful for training and refining AI models because they are structured data that is organized, predefined, and formatted consistently.

Credential Engine is working with partners on innovations that combine CTDL as a rich data schema, the huge body of CTDL data that is already in the Credential Registry, and new AI-assisted tools that publish to and consume from the Credential Registry. The more structured data we have in the Credential Registry, the more reliable information will be fed into these machine learning tools. Publish your CTDL data today!

If you are interested in learning more about CTDL and machine learning or want to learn more about Credential Engine, please reach out to [email protected] (mailto:[email protected]) .

Read the full one-pager here ([link removed]) .


** Updates.
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Survey Request: At Credential Engine, our goal is to provide Transparency readers with up-to-date information on what we are doing each month, what our partners are doing, what is upcoming, and what is going on in this landscape. We are asking our readers to fill out a brief survey to gauge if we are providing content that is useful and beneficial to our readers. Please follow this link ([link removed]) and provide us with your feedback!

Credential Engine Welcomes New Staff Member: We are excited to welcome Brian Sylvester to Credential Engine! Brian has started as our new Director of Business Partnerships where he leads efforts with solution providers and vendors to further credential transparency by providing products and services that use CTDL to empower people. Prior to joining Credential Engine, Brian amassed more than 20 years of Edtech experience in sales leadership, partner marketing, product ownership, and portfolio strategy roles at McGraw Hill, TurnItIn, Cengage, CompTIA, and Kaplan. To learn more about partnering with Credential Engine and to view a list of our current product and service provider partners, click here ([link removed]) .


** Policy Corner.
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Workforce Data Policy Reform Recommendations: A group of organizations have come together in support of workforce data policy recommendations. These recommendations cover the key principles for an improved data ecosystem that includes workforce data and recommendations to achieve a stronger data ecosystem that includes workforce data. These recommendations and supportive organizations support the work of Credential Engine goals around transparency and open data. To learn more, click here ([link removed]) .


** State Connections.
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[link removed] Talent Triad and the Use of Learning and Employment Records (LERs): At our most recent state partners meeting, representatives from Alabama ([link removed]) and the Competency-Based Education Network (C-BEN) discussed the Alabama Talent Triad ([link removed]) . Alabama’s Talent Triad is a learning and employment record (LER) model that closes the loop between job seekers and employers using a true competency-based approach. It seeks to complement existing HR and talent management systems to fill jobs faster with verified candidates. This work began with Governor Ivey’s aim to affect postsecondary attainment from a demand perspective.

Powered by linked open data and interoperability, the Alabama Talent Triad includes an Alabama Credential Registry (where credentials are tied to the competencies), the Alabama Skills-Based Job Description Generator (where employers can create job descriptions), and the Alabama Digital Wallet (where residents can connect their skills and learning and employment records to employer job descriptions). The goal is to generate a marketplace of skills that connects jobseekers, employers and education providers.

At the state partners meeting, Nick Moore from the Alabama Governor’s Office and Amber Garrison-Duncan from C-BEN discussed the critical importance of engaging employers early and often in developing and implementing the Talent Triad. Key approaches include employers sharing in-demand jobs, the involvement of industry councils, and ensuring the platform’s portability, operability, and ease of use. Employers see particular value in the ability of the platform to validate credentials and skills, which has the potential to streamline hiring pipelines and make job matching quicker and more accurate. The Talent Triad will continue to scale and aims for seeking new ways for data interoperability so both job seekers and employers can increase economic growth and personal mobility.


** Technology & Support.
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Jobs Data Webinar: Credential Engine now supports publishing Job, Occupation, Work Role, and Task information as CTDL Linked Open Data. To demonstrate the practical aspects of how to publish and use this data, we will be hosting an interactive webinar on October 25, 2023, at 11 AM ET. Join us by registering here ([link removed]) to learn about and get started with publishing using the Credential Registry API and bulk upload options for Jobs, Occupations, Work Roles, and Tasks. Learn more about this webinar here ([link removed]) .

CTDL featured in Education Design Lab’s ExperienceYou Demonstration: At the July 17th T3 Innovation Network event, Education Design Lab highlighted how the Credential Transparency Description Language (CTDL) can be used to support the exchange of credential information across systems for multiple use cases, such as supporting incumbent workers, alumni, military veterans, and unemployed but experienced individuals. To watch the demonstration, click here ([link removed]) .

New Rubric CTDL Terms Released: Credential Engine is pleased to announce the release of new terms in the Credential Transparency Description Language (CTDL) to facilitate the publishing of Rubric information. This development is the result of collaboration with experts and partners in the Rubrics Task Group in accordance with our Significant Managed CTDL Specification Updates Process which ensures the enduring value of CTDL Linked Open Data. Rubrics are vital for understanding competencies in relation to credentials and jobs, outlining observable behaviors indicating a person’s competence level. These rubrics support various processes, such as assessing learning outcomes or job task performance. CTDL, which was already capable of describing credentials, competencies, assessments, and tasks, now includes rubrics connected with these other data types. At this time, the Credential Registry Publishing System is being updated to support publishing Rubric data to the Credential Registry, and an
implementation webinar is scheduled for November 2023. To learn more about this release, click here ([link removed]) .


** News.
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1. The Job: College Board on Careers - Work Shift (opencampusmedia.org) ([link removed])


** Events.
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Merit’s Building a Skills-based Workforce Webinar
Online. October 24th at 3:30pm ET.
On October 24th, Credential Engine will collaborate with Merit's workforce team and industry experts to share insights and experiences related to the evolving skills-based workforce economy. The discussion will dive deeper into skills-based strategies, defining key terms such as credentials, digital wallets, and Learning & Employment Records (LERs), while exploring methods to connect data throughout the ecosystem, including how employers interact with candidates and their digital wallets. This event marks the start of an ongoing conversation aimed at navigating the skills-based workforce landscape. To learn more about this event and reserve your spot, click here ([link removed]) .

Convergence: Credential Innovation in Higher Education
November 1-3, 2023. Washington, DC.
Credential Engine will be in attendance at this year's Convergence conference and presenting at both the “Achievement Wallets and Alternative Credentials are Unlocking Pathways to Opportunity” and “Catalyzing a Paradigm Shift: A First in the Nation Data Collaborative for Alternative Credentials” sessions. These sessions will also include Western Governors University (WGU), Education Design Lab (EDL), and Brighthive. Attendees will share lessons learned in efforts to empower learners in a new era of alternative credentialing and learn about the collaborative efforts between EDL, Credential Engine, the National Student Clearinghouse, Brighthive, and Education & Employment Research Center (EERC) in launching a Data Collaborative for Skills-Based Hiring. To learn more about this event, click here ([link removed]) .

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