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Comprehensive Learner Record/Learning and Employment Record

Building A Learning and Employment Record

AACRAO is a long-standing leader in the advancement of innovation in learner records.  Since 2015 AACRAO has supported the development of over 50 CLR/LER projects across the U.S.  AACRAO is working to promote awareness and advance knowledge around the Learner Employment Record (LER), a system that contains verifiable information about a person’s achievements spanning an inclusive range of contexts to include the CLR, the higher education component of the LER, in order to provide credentials that represent the skills and competencies achieved by the student during their academic career.  These learner records seek to capture, record, and communicate learning when and where it happens in a student’s higher education experience in ways that traditional transcripts are not usually able to accomplish. This includes learning outcomes from courses, programs, degrees, and experiences students have outside the classroom that helps develop their career-ready skills and abilities.

AACRAO Consulting will work with you and your team to provide recommendations for academic record practices that protect the integrity and validity of these expressions of learner achievement, supporting the principles of interoperability and student-centered records.  

While institutions should have various stakeholders engaged in CLR/LER exploration, implementation, and management, AACRAO strongly believes the Registrar must play a vital and necessary role to assure the expansion of the learner record and that its expressions beyond the institution are valid, have integrity, and represent the learner.  Additionally, as stewards of learning data, the Registrar defines and operationalizes the processes and practices to ensure compliance with Federal, State, institutional and academic policies while also providing the means and scale through which the curriculum is taught, recorded, and expressed on behalf of the learner for those outside the institution.

AACRAO CLR consulting services are learner-focused.  We believe the main reason to develop and deliver a comprehensive learner record is to demonstrate the learning outcomes of your students.  

The AACRAO process

Your CLR/LER planning and implementation process begins with a careful assessment of multiple areas, first focusing on the needs of the learners you serve - from delivery of student services, to use of staff resources, to workflow processes, to how you leverage technology.

Together, we’ll consider new CLR/LER strategies and processes, allowing you to:

  • Build frameworks and communication plans related to the CLR/LER

  • Measure, capture, and assess learning data

  • Analyze and understand data needs, inputs, sources and connections

  • Facilitate collaboration and stakeholder involvement

  • Identify goals and measure your success in reaching them

  • Enhance the use of technology to drive efficiencies and improve service

  • Work with curricular and co-curricular stakeholders to identify and record learning where and when it happens

  • Assist in evaluating current curricular and co-curricular landscape 

  • Determine areas, practices, and policies for the development of additional alternate credentials 

  • Evaluate the many components of a successful CLR/LER project

Contact AACRAO Consulting today to schedule your CLR Planning and Implementation and learn how we can help you.

Related Resources

State University of New York at Fredonia (Fredonia)

Location: Fredonia, NY

Objective:

A comprehensive, public, liberal arts university in Western New York, Fredonia serves more than 4,600 students on its beautiful residential campus that blends intimate learning with a wide range of academic programs. In 2015, Fredonia contacted AACRAO Consulting to guide them through the process of taking a more strategic approach to its enrollment efforts. Beyond improving enrollment numbers, Fredonia wanted to align enrollment with the university’s overall vision and mission.

Challenge:

Fredonia had a strategic plan in place; however, it did not include any cohesive or complementary strategies around enrollment. After multiple years of decline in enrollment  numbers, the university knew it needed to reassess the way it was approaching recruitment and enrollment. To date, the university had been chasing the latest trend-of-the-moment in an effort to boost enrollment numbers. But without a cohesive strategy in place, these one-off efforts had generated few positive results.

Fredonia realized it needed a new model for enrollment management. Familiar with AACRAO Consulting’s expertise in Strategic Enrollment Management (SEM), Fredonia reached out to the organization for help in paving the way for SEM planning that would support sustainable enrollment gains for long-term institutional vitality.

Solution:

AACRAO Consulting came to the Fredonia campus to conduct a series of interviews with faculty and staff to gather feedback as well as make a case for a SEM approach. AACRAO Consultants additionally analyzed years of the university’s enrollment data to develop a clearer picture of trends, challenges, and opportunities. Once the interviews and analysis were complete, AACRAO Consulting developed and presented a report outlining actionable recommendations around expanding the university’s enrollment reach beyond the current service area; clearly differentiating Fredonia from the competition; and ensuring the university remained an affordable option for prospective students.

AACRAO Consulting also provided recommendations for increased retention, including engaging all faculty and staff in supporting student success; re-evaluating policies that were inhibiting student success; engaging all students in the university experience; and revising the curriculum to simplify choices and provide clearer degree pathways.

Results:

Following AACRAO Consulting’s report, Fredonia established a SEM Steering Committee comprised of leadership, faculty, and staff. Additional committees focused on recruitment, retention, and data-sharing were also formed to ensure a cohesive, collaborative, and unified approach to implementing a SEM plan.

Fredonia has already seen positive results from AACRAO Consulting’s recommendations. Enrollment and student services have improved. Recruiters have also been able to respond more quickly to prospective students with faster decision times.

In fall 2019, Fredonia experienced a 2 percent increase in applications, while other universities in the SUNY family experienced decreases. The Fredonia student body is diversifying to include more first-generation college students, and the university is now focusing its efforts on improving retention for the new students they’ve attracted.

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Testimonials

One of the big plusses of working with AACRAO Consulting is that their people have extensive experience in the field. They are seasoned professionals who have been in my shoes, and know how to work with culture and change in the real-world operation of an institution. They also understand the need for recommendations to be actionable. I appreciated their ability to dissect the situation, get right to the meat of the issue, and prioritize implementation. Their insight and guidance proved invaluable in helping us manage change. I couldn’t have asked for more empathic and professional consultants.

—Luisa Havens Gerardo, PhD, Vice Provost, Enrollment Management, Virginia Tech University

Contact an AACRAO Consultant today with questions.

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