Turning a Necessary Merger into a Tectonic Shift in Teaching and Learning
Description
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In this episode of TRANSFORMED, Joe Gottlieb talks with Alin Vrancila, CEO of Jessup Global and former provost at Multnomah University, about how a challenging institutional merger catalyzed innovation in online learning and pedagogy.
Alin shares how Multnomah’s financial and enrollment struggles led to a merger with Jessup University—but rather than a mere transition, the partnership sparked bold change. Together, they launched JSA+AI, the first fully AI-enabled learning management system in U.S. higher ed, and introduced Neogogy, a new student-centered educational framework designed for the AI age.
This episode explores how AI is redefining faculty roles, reducing administrative burden, and making online learning more interactive, efficient, and human.
What You’ll Take Away:
- Mergers can be more than survival tactics—with vision and alignment, they can become platforms for transformation.
- AI doesn’t replace educators—it repositions them to focus more on mentorship, expertise, and student impact.
- A strong innovation model includes a sandbox—Jessup Global operates as a branch campus to test, refine, and scale new approaches before full rollout.
References:
Find out more about Neogogy here:
https://neogogy.ai/whitepapers
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