By William Gaudelli, Ed.D., Dean of the College of Lifetime Learning

The public perception of higher education has taken a lot of hits in recent years, some self-inflicted and others systemic features of a misfitted system. Student debt, demographic shifts, perceptions that studies do not support public needs, and a sharp decline in public trust for pretty much all large institutions…it’s a mountain of problems and a heap of trouble. 

Yet at Georgia Tech we are not lamenting bygone days. We are ideating and acting to create a new future, a new college—the College of Lifetime Learning—that will inspire and inform new ways of learning that will respond to these challenges. 

The Institute is delivering the best value education of any public university in the nation, conducting more groundbreaking research, and making more impact in our city, state, and the world. We will expand that even further.

We spring from the mantra of limitless learning for everyone as a way to reorient the mental model of what people think constitutes a university. We are actively building partnerships with a range of institutions—from major corporations to the U.S. military to small startups fired by entrepreneurial spirit to individuals who just want to participate in the learning revolution that is underway. A revolution that will expand access, unbind geographic barriers, ease navigation, and be more responsive to societal needs.

Today as we celebrate the first anniversary of the founding of the College of Lifetime Learning, I am reminded of reading about its establishment in Inside Higher Education. I shared it with colleagues with a message: “All universities should be doing this! This is the future!” Little did I know what the future held for me! But that’s often true in life, and as often the result of learning. 

A lot has happened already in that first year—our first students, our first philanthropic gift, building out the leadership team, the establishment of a robust External Advisory Board, recruitment of courtesy and joint-appointment faculty, and the governance to facilitate operation. Like a lot of foundational work, it is not always visible but is absolutely necessary to a successful future. 

All of this progress has come in the context of ongoing service by the teams brought together to form our College. The Rural CS Initiative, a collaboration between CEISMC and GTRI, has grown to more than 10,000 Georgia students in 40 districts. The Center for 21st Century Universities launched the Bill Kent AI in Higher Education Faculty Fellowship. We’ve seen 109,000 enrollments across our Professional Education programs. And Georgia Tech Savannah continues to fuel innovation and leadership in the vital coastal regions and beyond. Together, we serve learners at all stages in life every day.

In yesterday’s 2025 Institute Address, Georgia Tech President Ángel Cabrera celebrated the Institute’s progress on its strategic plan. “We are serving more and more students,” he noted. “We are number one in return on investment. Increased outcomes, increased graduation rates, increased value, and a true effort every year to make room for more students.”

Serving learners is what our College is all about, and this increased access to more impactful learning we believe will answer many of the challenges higher education faces. Access, applied research, and optimized learning will create new opportunities for learning to endure a lifetime, leading to clearer purpose and mastery in learning for all. We envision the move from a learned society to a learning society, where knowledge acquisition is abundant, not scarce, where knowledge dissemination is accessible, not firewalled. 

We are supercharged for a bright, new future where every person—regardless of their background or starting point, has the ability to grow, develop and flourish through learning. We can do ALL of that!