Toronto, Canada — Today, the Mastercard Foundation, United States International University-Africa (USIU-Africa), and Arizona State University (ASU) announced the launch of the Mastercard Foundation Scholars Program e-Learning Initiative, which over the next five years, will enable more than 600,000 university students to successfully pursue their studies online, from anywhere across Africa.
The COVID-19 pandemic forced many universities, including those within the Scholars Program network, to suspend face-to-face classes and pivot to online learning. Building on what was learned during the disruption, this initiative will increase the investments that have already been made and strengthen the existing capacity of university partners to deliver high-quality, relevant, and inclusive e-learning courses. It will increase the number of young people accessing tertiary level education, particularly those living with disabilities, young women, refugees, internally displaced persons (IDPs), and those living in rural areas. More than that, it will contribute to an e-learning community of practice in Africa, and beyond, that will enable collaborative learning and sharing of best practices and resources.
"This agreement will bolster our e-learning capacity-building alongside 10 other participating international universities and strengthen the Scholars Program partner universities to deliver high-quality and inclusive online instruction and provide virtual support to all students," said Professor Freida Brown, Interim Vice Chancellor, USIU-Africa. "It will also support the development of a community of practice in e-learning."
During the first phase of the program (2020 to 2022), 135 faculty and staff from across 10 partner institutions will be trained to design and deliver online courses, and an estimated 95,000 students will access online learning. In the second phase (2022 to 2025), the number of online learners will grow to more than 600,000 and the initiative will be scaled to include new partners and institutions that are not currently part of the Scholars Program network.
Arizona State University (ASU), a leader in the space of e-learning, will serve as Lead Trainer, providing foundational training to the faculty and staff and conducting a series of tiered leadership roundtables and learning sessions. As the Network Facilitator, USIU-Africa, which was one of the first institutions in East Africa to successfully transition 90 percent of its programming online, will contextualize the content for an African setting and facilitate engagement and learning across the network. The Mastercard Foundation Centre for Innovative Teaching and Learning will play a key role, hosting a shared Content Management System that will curate content from participating universities within the Partner network. The Centre will also provide support to those institutions interested in developing in-house e-learning resource centres.
"Arizona State University is bound not by geography, but by principles," said ASU President Michael M. Crow. "Our focus is on student success and embracing technology to expand not only the quality of learning but access to education and thus our embrace of digital education. We are eager to take our work to a new level as part of this collaboration with USIU-Africa and the Mastercard Foundation to build online learning systems in Africa that are resilient to future shocks and customized to meet the individual needs of learners, anywhere on the continent."
The initiative is aligned with the Foundation's Young Africa Works strategy and the vision for the Mastercard Foundation Scholars Program to create a transformative network of young people and institutions driving inclusive and equitable socio-economic change in Africa. This initiative will connect young people to educational content that is relevant and context specific through a curriculum that reflects labour market realities, includes courses on transformative leadership and ethics, and prioritizes mental health and well-being. Students will successfully acquire knowledge and be able to fully engage with faculty and course work in a supportive online environment.
COVID-19 provided the impetus to rethink how we conceptualize and deliver education. "Digitally-enabled learning is the wave of the future," said Philip Cotton, Director, Human Capital Development, Mastercard Foundation. "But for everyone to benefit from this trend, we have to act now to ensure that all young people – irrespective of their background or location— are able to access work-relevant training conveniently and affordably. A big part of that is strengthening the capacity of higher education institutions to deliver online learning."
Since training began in July 2021, the 135 e-Learning Champions have commenced their learning journey by completing the two-week virtual Master Class for Teaching Online with ASU and have advanced to the next phase, which includes Specialized Coaching tracks in Instructional Design and Online Pedagogy with USIU-Africa.
The partners participating in the first phase of the Mastercard Foundation Scholars Program e-Learning initiative are:
- African Institute for Mathematical Sciences (AIMS)
- American University of Beirut
- Ashesi University
- EARTH University
- Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology (KNUST)
- Makerere University
- United States International University-Africa
- University of Abomey-Calavi
- University of Gondar
- University of Rwanda
About the Mastercard Foundation
The Mastercard Foundation works with visionary organizations to enable young people in Africa and in Indigenous communities in Canada to access dignified and fulfilling work. It is one of the largest, private foundations in the world with a mission to advance learning and promote financial inclusion to create an inclusive and equitable world. The Foundation was created by Mastercard in 2006 as an independent organization with its own Board of Directors and management. For more information on the Foundation, please visit: www.mastercardfdn.org
About USIU-Africa
USIU-Africa is one of the leading private Universities in Kenya, representing over 70 nationalities undertaking 35 Undergraduate, Graduate and Doctoral programs. It is the only University in the region with dual accreditation in Kenya by the Commission for University Education (CUE) and the United States of America (USA) by WASC Senior College and University Commission (WSCUC). https://www.usiu.ac.ke/
About Arizona State University
ASU is continuously recognized as a leader in innovation and digital education. The university has been ranked #1 out of all colleges and universities in the U.S. for innovation by U.S. News & World Report the past six years. Additionally, ASU is in the 6th out of the 353 best U.S. online bachelor's programs and is larger than the programs of the top five schools combined (U.S. News & World Report). EdPlus, the university's central enterprise unit focused on the design and scalable delivery of digital teaching and learning models to increase student success and reduce barriers to achievement in higher education, has developed over 200 fully online degrees, from software engineering and biological sciences to political science and business. www.asu.edu
Media Contacts
United States International University-Africa
Taigu Muchiri, Principal Marketing and Communications Officer-External Communications
M: +254-730 116 585
E: tmuchiri@usiu.ac.ke
Arizona State University
Jay Thorne, Assistant Vice President, Media Relations & Strategic Communications
M: +1-602-677-7518
E: jay.thorne@asu.edu
Mastercard Foundation
Tonya Reid, Partner, Scholars Program Communications
M: +1-437-992-3432
E: treid@mastercardfdn.org
