Betty Vandenbosch

Education Management

Education: Computer Science, Western University - PhD in Information Systems, Western University, London Ontario
Chicago, IL, USA

Biography

Betty Vandenbosch has served as an advisor to Boards and prominent educational committees for over 15 years and currently serves on corporate, nonprofit, and private boards including Active Transportation Alliance Advisory Committee (2022 to present), Presidents’ Forum (2016 to 2018), and Committee for Economic Development of The Conference Board (CED) Education Subcommittee (2016 to 2018). She is dedicated to partnering with universities and policy makers to skill American workforce and establishing programs that inspire student participation and engagement which in turn increase graduation rates.

As a regarded industry thought leader, Betty has authored multiple publications, books, and articles contributing her expertise and insight on topics related to education. She is frequently requested by top universities and educational institutions globally to demonstrate her passion of championing opportunities for adult learners to earn college degrees.

Ms. Vandenbosch has a distinguished reputation as a trusted advisor to executive leadership teams. She is known for pioneering first-in-class education programs serving as an advocate for adult college attainment through her unique combination of expertise in her time as Chief Content Officer/Senior Advisor to CEO at Coursera (2020 to 2022). Betty made immediate impact in her two plus years with Coursera cultivating strategic university and industry partnerships increasing
the footprint across 275+ university and industry partners; Georgetown University, Howard University, three Indian IITs, Meta, Salesforce, PwC India etc. She was a key contributor to doubling the catalog of job-relevant degrees and 4x certificate program growth to serve 110M learners. Ms. Vandenbosch demonstrated her strong ability to adapt in challenging situations during the
pandemic where she was instrumental in rapidly pivoting the organization. Employing her insights, she was able to drive digital transformation of higher education offering flexible solutions for students to continue learning.

As Chancellor of Purdue University Global. (2018 to 2020), Betty led the successful acquisition of Kaplan University and its acceptance by the greater Purdue community. She optimized acquisition value and ensured regulatory requirements and accreditation adherence.

For more than 10 years Ms. Vandenbosch served in a variety of prominent roles for Kaplan University (2008 to 2018); President (2015 to 2018), Provost (2013 to 2015) Interim Provost (2012 to 2013), Dean of Students (2012), Vice President of Business & Information Technology (2009 to 2011), Interim Dean, School of Information Systems & Technology (2008 to 2010), Dean of School of Business & Management (2008 to 2010). Here Betty transformed the institution into a non-profit adult-serving online university affiliated with one of the best land grant universities in America. She was a key contributor to university growth devising and implementing strategic plans to offer the highest standards in education.

Betty earned the Council for Adult and Experiential Learning (CAEL) Morris T. Keaton Award in 2019 and the International Conference on IS Doctoral Dissertation Award in 1994 where she was recognized as world’s best doctoral dissertation as judged by panel international Information Technology scholars.

Passion

My experience as a woman and single mother–and the experiences of the many women who continued and completed their education at the organizations I led–convince me that those days should be over. Now, more than ever, educating and employing mothers in technical fields has the potential to solve both the mismatch between tech job openings and the skills of those looking for work, and the dearth of women employed in tech, while also enabling mothers to participate fully in the new economy.

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Topics

education ed tech leadership women in tech women in stem education leadership mothers work

Best Story

How I got interested in technology: When I was in Grade 13, a credential the Province of Ontario required to prepare for a university education from 1921 through 2003, I was invited to the University of Waterloo for a Saturday session on something new to me called computer programming. I found out that computer programming was a ton of fun, and I was good at it. The upshot was I took a Fortran class in my first year of university and then got a degree in Computer Science. The classes were tiny and the professors earnest.

While this wasn’t a planned pathway, it was, nevertheless, a pathway. It was an opportunity to explore learning, to discover a passion and begin my learning trajectory. Everyone needs low-cost options to test their interests. How can they know if they want to be a data analyst or a digital marketer unless they try it on for size?

Origin Story

Even though I’m not particularly talented in math or engineering, technology has been central to my career. From COBOL programming and consulting to technology research and teaching, online university leadership, and most recently, ed tech, I have had the opportunity and privilege to participate in and influence the way technology has drastically re-shaped education. Often, I was the only, or one of few, women in the room. And, I'm the first in my family to graduate from grade school.