UF’s yearlong celebration of land-grant universities will conclude today with a conference about online education called “Bricks and Mortar in a Digital Age: The Uncertain Future of Higher Education.”
The daylong symposium will address the challenges and changes that face universities entering the digital era.
Jeff Selingo, editor of the Chronicle of Higher Education, and Daphne Koller, co-founder of Coursera, will speak at the event.
“This is an opportunity for the University of Florida to start the conversation about the future of higher education on a global scale,” said Teri Balser, dean of the College of Agricultural and Life Sciences and head of the event.
The event will be at the University Auditorium, and about 500 people have registered to attend, Balser said.
More people will watch from around the world via live stream, which is available on the website, and a Twitter hashtag to follow.
“We’ll tackle questions like ‘are professors obsolete?’ and if higher education is worth the costs,” Balser said.
The symposium is hosted by UF but is aimed at all universities around the world, according to a news release.
Balser said she is excited to discuss these topics in a setting that allows such a large number of people to participate.
“One UF professor of ours is teaching a class in Italy right now,” she said. “She said she was going to have her students watch the live stream in class tomorrow.”
