Program Overview
Benefits of Attending
- Participate in and engage with a cohort of international professionals in the digital learning landscape
- Interact with national- and international-level leaders in the fields of higher and online education
- Experience leadership-development thinking in order to respond to digital learning opportunities
- Participate in an immersive, team-building case study
- Formulate a strategy for defining a vision for the future of digital learning within your institution
- Join a growing network of alumni and international professionals engaged in leadership in online, digital, and blended learning at the OLC Leadership Network, held in conjunction with the OLC Accelerate conference
Program Objectives
- Explore and define a personal understanding of leadership in online learning
- Develop an understanding of the role of digital learning in a rapidly changing higher education context
- Conceptualize a leadership perspective to address institutional challenges to advancing online learning in higher education
- Recognize and seize institutional opportunities for leadership in digital education
- Establish a network of international colleagues involved in a variety of online education initiatives
- Identify the leading forces impacting higher education and online learning globally
Who Should Attend
The IELOL program is designed for those in positioned-for-leadership roles within an individual’s institution with occupational titles such as manager, associate director, assistant director, vice provost, etc., with leadership responsibilities related to online learning initiatives.
Program Details
IELOL is a four-part leadership development, blended-learning program that runs from mid-July to November annually. The program is a cohort-based leadership development opportunity requiring a variety of individual, group, and team project work including a team-based case study. It is expected that participants fully participate in all aspects of the program in order to build community and maximize the potential of this program for all participants.
The program begins in July with a three-week Online Immersion Experience, using the OLC learning management system. The Online Immersion Experience is designed to identify and focus attention on key leadership challenges in online learning while building group dynamics.
The onsite Residency Experience will be held in-person at the host institution’s campus for four days immediately following the Online Immersion. It will provide IELOL participants with an opportunity to develop specific leadership skills, styles, networks, and strategies for leadership by understanding the dynamic forces in the field. This intensive experience is faculty-led with individual, small-group, and team activities.
The third component, a three-month Implementation phase (online), provides participants the opportunity to apply the skills learned during the previous two phases to a personal project at their institution. Senior-level mentoring and consulting is made available to support these projects.
The program culminates with the Leadership Network Symposium, a full day pre-conference event at the annual OLC Accelerate conference held in the fall. IELOL alumni are invited to attend this day-long workshop along with members of the current IELOL class as well as alumni from previous classes and other prominent leaders in the field of online and digital learning.
Overview Agenda for the IELOL Residency 2026
The IELOL 2026 Residency program* (the 2nd phase of the overall IELOL program), will take place this year from August 3-6, 2026, onsite at George Washington University. Attendance at the onsite Residency week in person is required for successful completion of the program.
*Full Schedule to be posted for IELOL registered participants in the LMS site during the Online Immersion portion of the program.
Program Goal
The Online Learning Consortium (OLC) in collaboration with an academic host partner, will provide an intensive, comprehensive leadership development program to IELOL participants to expand the career pathways and networks of leaders in the field of digital and online education.
Program Overview
The Institute for Emerging Leadership in Online Learning (IELOL) is OLC’s premier blended-learning leadership development program. IELOL serves the development needs of leaders who are responsible for a variety of online and digital learning initiatives.
Program Competencies* and Objectives
- Self-Awareness – Explore and operationalize a personal understanding of digital learning leadership across various institutional contexts
- Adaptability – Develop an understanding of the role of digital learning in a more complex and rapidly changing higher education environment
- Learning Agility – Conceptualize a leadership perspective to address institutional challenges to advancing digital learning in an increasingly hyper-competitive marketplace
- Entrepreneurial Leadership – Recognize institutional opportunities and strategic values inherent within digital education
- Collaboration – Identify and collaborate with strategic partners across the digital learning global landscape
- Network Thinking – Establish a network of national and international colleagues involved in a variety of digital education initiatives
*Program competencies were drawn from work published by the Center for Creative Leadership.
