By Aiysha S. Johnson, MA, IOM As we embark on our continuing education efforts in 2014, I want to share a few key discoveries on staying laser focused on your audience.  I had a chance to reflect at the close of the 2013 American Dental Association (ADA) annual meeting in New Orleans. While our overall

Millennials — The Beat (Up) Generation. That’s the headline of the new Psychology Today magazine and online story that includes an interview with LERN’s own generational guru Julie Coates. The story, by Abby Ellin, begins “They’re narcissistic. Impatient. And just try to get them to work nine to five. Trouble is, the conventional view of Millennials

The more your learners interact with the content, the more they learn.  This is particularly true of Generation Y (born 1980-1999), your association’s future. Gen Y, and Gen Z following it, learn more when they interact with the content.    One great technique, now available with low cost software, is called “drag and drop.”  At LERN

From talking with numerous lifelong learning CEOs, it appears that leaders in central administration in institutions are clueless about transforming their institutions for the 21st century. Institutional leaders are also drifting, with no clear direction or consensus. One lifelong learning CEO noted three key buzzwords currently in her institution, which exemplify the situation. The current

Gen Y is interested in leadership skills, and already is assuming leadership positions in the workplace, says LERN’s Julie Coates, one of the nation’s foremost generational experts.  Coates was interviewed recently by Psychology Today. The reason is simple numbers. Numbers-wise, there simply are not enough Gen Xers to assume all the leadership positions being vacated

Brian Banmiller, national business reporter for CBS News Radio, reports a survey of CEOs finds that the top 2014 New Year’s resolution for CEOs is to learn something new this year. That’s your first ‘Must’ 2014 resolution, to learn something new this year.  You have many options, from technology to leadership skills. And LERN has

Search Engine Optimization (SEO) took a central role in numerous sessions at the record LERN conference. SEO was featured in sessions on content marketing, inbound marketing, website design and even email promotions. SEO took center stage as the key to enabling people to find your program and your offerings. SEO is the process of getting

Gen Y is committed to local neighborhoods and community, revitalizing a sense of community. This is surely good news for avocational and leisure programs serving local communities, stated generational expert Julie Coates.  She said Gen Y even forsakes moving to other states and provinces, and also is willing to live in less desirable housing to maintain

Top Three Stories of 2013  More than 2,000 visited our NineShift blog in the last month to read the Top 10 Stories of 2013.  Here are the top three stories of 2013: #3 The End of Text Based Online Courses This was the year every online expert endorsed multi-media in online courses. Online courses are

In this spring’s Nine Shift seminar for college senior administrators, Ryan Purdy, President of Mid-Plains Community College in North Platte, Nebraska, reported that virtually his entire cabinet of senior college administrators are Gen Xers.  It’s the first report of a college being run by Gen Xers. Purdy, himself 36, said he does not know of

Sheila Quirk Bailey, Chief of Staff and Vice President at Harper College, is seeing Harper’s suburban demographics changing dramatically At this spring’s LERN Nine Shift seminar for senior administrators in colleges and universities, administrators reported seeing the Nine Shift predictions now happening on campus. One of those changes is the economic decline of suburbs. Sheila

Highlights,  high points, and what was new this year:  1. Focus on the Good Stuff    Opening keynoter Mike Robbins was so good there was a long line at his book selling table afterwards and he sold out of books.  A top pointer from Robbins, don’t worry too much about what people think about you:

2013 was another record year, thanks to you.  The calendar year 2013 was another record year for LERN, with membership strong, a record income, and a record conference attendance as just a few of the highlights. Thanks to all 5,000 members in all 1,100 member organizations for your support and involvement. We’re here to serve

Shown here wearing Google Glass is our Video Marketing instructor Rob Lee. Lee is a Google Top Contributor, testing new features, products and services.

A new mentoring program for LERN members under age 36 starts this month. LERN leader Mark Mrozinski of Palatine, Ill., created the program design. Anyone under age 36 who wants a mentor, and anyone older who wants to be a mentor, should email info@lern.org to become involved.

Susan Davis of the American Society of Civil Engineers in Washington D.C. has been named the first Chair of the new Future Leaders Council, serving members under age 36. She leads the first meeting of the Future Leaders Council in San Francisco.

Roughly 80 percent of all mail delivered is opened compared to only about 20 percent for emails.

Gen Xers and Gen Yers attending the big LERN conference are the majority for the first time ever, according to birth years of those attending.

Use Google+ in your marketing, eMarketing expert Suzanne Kart is telling people in the Top 10 Promotion Ideas of the Year session at the big conference.

New LERN data show that programs in suburban areas are already feeling the effects of the decline in auto driving and younger people moving back into cities. A special report, “The End of the Auto Age,” marks the 10th Anniversary of the classic Nine Shift book predicting the changes occurring now.   The report is part

LERN members registered 36 percent more students for UGotClass online courses in November than last November. The 2013 UGotClass Annual Report is a special free 30-minute webinar Thursday, Dec. 12 at 2 p.m. ET.  Everyone is welcome to attend.

  The top new November course for UGotClass is “Creating Visual Presentations” with Jenna Soard, instructor.

With membership income up and a record conference this month, LERN has much for which to be grateful.

The most frequently asked question LERN’s lead consultant, Greg Marsello, has been asked during the last six months when visiting with programs has been “How do we increase staff productivity?”

Julie Coates’ original research and story in your fall LERN magazine got rave reviews from members. For example, she found the pinkish Engineering Barbie a stereotype that does not work with most young women. Coates will present more of her latest research on learning at the big LERN conference in San Francisco.  Join her there.

Provide your customers with all the information you would want in their situations and treat them with the same courtesy and respect you would want to receive.

Come to the big LERN Conference in San Francisco and find out which LERN staff member met President Obama last month.

Every day LERN answers your toughest questions. To ask your question, send an email to info@lern.org.

Prezi, an online course taught by Kimba Green of Washington, D.C., was one of the top new courses premiering this month for UGotClass.

Participants in our Certified Online Instructor (COI) program last month found our summer 2013 photo of a lake in a national forest calming. Some 100 people registered to become COIs last month. For a group rate on COI training, email Tammy at info@lern.org                        

As of Aug. 1, more than 500 people have registered for the LERN annual conference in San Francisco Nov. 20-23, up 10 percent from last year at this time. We expect strong attendance of more than 900 people.

New Internet tools you’ve never heard of can improve your marketing, says Dan Belhassen, the leading eMarketing guru for lifelong learning and continuing education. 

During the tough recession people cut back on avocational and leisure courses and focussed on professional development. Now, enrichment courses appear to be on their way back.

When potential students have the chance to receive a free how-to guide, white paper or webinar, they aren’t the only ones benefiting, even if your program is giving the content away for free.

There’s new evidence your program is critical to the economic well being of your community. It’s called “knowledge spillover,” and the data suggests that whenever anyone takes one of your courses, others who don’t take your courses still benefit from the knowledge spillover. 

A new mentoring program for younger professionals in the field will be created at the big LERN annual conference in San Francisco Nov. 20-23. Mark Mrozinski of Palatine, Ill., will conduct mentor training and help lead the new effort.

LERN’s online training starts in September. Choose from the Certified Program Planner (CPP), Contract Trainer; Certified eMarketer Professional (CeP) or our new Certificate in Teaching Adults.

Last year’s NineShift had fun with a singing telegram of bank account numbers, passwords and medical diagnoses to the horror of the presenter, and delight of the audience.

“Content marketing is a way to find your story,” says Michael Weiss, a leader in web marketing and a SuperStar presenter at the big annual LERN conference in San Francisco Nov 20-23. He also teaches a UGotClass online course on content marketing. Weiss continues, ” Then use content to engage your audience. If your web

The following template has been developed by LERN Consultants to provide you with guidelines on how to prepare a report to your Superintendent or School Board. The goal of this template is to guide you in selecting information that will provide critical information necessary for you to demonstrate that you have solid information about your program’s performance and to positively

The staff of the Bunker Hill Community College community education department has taken the art of making connections to another level. Today, people are seeking them out on a daily basis, and it’s partially thanks to a happenstance LinkedIn strategy the staff of three adopted in 2010. When Wayne K. Johnson came on board in

When and why do you add new courses or seminars to your lineup? New offerings are now critical to maintaining the vitality and viability of your programming, and LERN recommends that every program offer 20 to 30 percent new activities or seminars each year. There are seven very specific and very important reasons to create

If you and your staff are struggling to meet demand for new courses, or, if your current continuing education lineup is falling flat, there are a few places to look for guidance you might not have considered. Here are seven places you can find ideas for new programming and courses: Pinterest: You can search for

By Laura T. Wetherald, MS, CPRP Bureau Chief, Howard County Recreation and Parks Columbia, MD Staff Evaluation can be the most important opportunity between a supervisor and employee during the year. The process of planning goals, coaching, mentoring, and evaluating can change an employee’s performance at many levels. Not meeting with the employee annually or

Don’t call them seniors and don’t expect them to want ordinary programming. T he 55+ crowd is more active and demanding than ever before and, that means there are now more opportunities to deliver to them high quality, original programming that delivers a great return on investment. Greg Milano, the recreation supervisor for the Los Altos, Calif. Recreation Department, said programs run by his department do well because they incorporate camaraderie, learning, activity and variety. Tap into

They come in all different sizes and themes and, if done right, they can be lucrative for not only your parks and recreation program, but for your entire town. Races and walks are among the most popular parks and recreation department activities out there and with so many fitness-focused and fun loving participants, the sky’s

While very popular with association members, the problem with webinars is revenue. Webinars continue to provide meager income compared to in-person education.  The problem has been made worse in that association members have become accustomed to expect webinars to be inexpensive, sponsored, or free. A typical fee range for an individual registering for a one-hour webinar

The first association is reporting a planned blended course to start by the end of this year. Ozzie Logozzo, a LERN member and association executive head of the Ontario Real Estate College in Toronto, Canada, told LERN recently, “We offer courses via correspondence, classroom and online and have done so since 1997.  We are currently mapping

More than 80 association executives accessed our new State of Association Online Learning for 2014. Thanks for your interest! If you want to access the four-page report, click below to start the download.

The biggest thing in face-to-face (F2F) learning is online. And the biggest thing in online learning is F2F.  Once considered separate and opposites, they are now impacting each other. LERN’s classic book on teaching, with more than 100,000 sales, has just been updated with a new Fourth Edition. The new edition has all-new chapters on:

Yes, says LERN’s Julie Coates, one of the leading learning style researchers. Coates was interviewed by Psychology Today this spring on generations in the workplace.  Coates says all the research shows there are learning styles, including sensory, gender, generational and neurological (e.g. Asperger’s) learning styles. Coates says the denial of learning styles by some may

Welcome to the Society of Automotive Engineers (SAE) International as our newest LERN member. Kevin Perry, Manager of Professional Development, is the primary member contact. SAE engaged LERN to do consulting several years ago.  SAE International is headquartered in Warrenburg, Pennsylvania. Here’s a great story on the SAE website called “Building the Sector Knowledge Base.”

Tonya Deskins and the Southeast Valley Regional Association of Realtors (SEVRAR) has engaged LERN to do consulting and a review of its educational programs for members. LERN did a previous consulting project with an association in Washington State when she was there. So it’s great to be working with Tonya again.

Outdoor movie nights and musical performances are summer staples in many towns, and even parks and recreation departments with small budgets and staffs can take part in the fun. Here are some ideas for having the best movie or music night possible: 1. Pick a location that makes sense Just like with fun runs and races, a great location can make or break