Linked Learning is a systemic approach to transforming education that integrates rigorous academics, career technical education, work-based learning, and comprehensive student supports. The Linked Learning Alliance (“the Alliance”) collaborates with field practitioners, employers, and education experts to establish clear standards and a process for validating their work, demonstrating success, and ensuring both equity and impact. The Alliance uses research-based standards and independent evaluation to certify high-quality Linked Learning programs, called pathways. Gold certification indicates that a pathway meets the highest quality standards for Linked Learning. 

By 2019, the Alliance had outgrown their existing certification platform. The Alliance needed a platform that would allow the Alliance to track and report on progress pathways are making toward developing a high-quality program of study, and ultimately, how pathways are impacting student outcomes.

Presence built the Alliance’s new certification platform on Salesforce, providing the Alliance not only with bespoke certification workflows, but a best-in-class CRM. Presence implemented Salesforce Experience Cloud for pathways to use as they go through the certification process. Presence also implemented solutions for the Marketing and Communications team, allowing them to better manage events and communications. 

The new platform is allowing the Alliance to bring in new pathways and support them as they begin their journey through certification (starting as candidates for Silver certification and then moving toward Gold certification). The platform operates as a repository for pathways to build their evidence of high-quality practices and impact on student outcomes over time. The platform also brings pathways together to share their practices, examine their evidence and data, and work together to improve student experiences and outcomes. According to Miya Libes, the Alliance’s Manager, Special Projects, “Having a more robust platform allows us to have more insight into our work. We can better advocate for students and make the case to expand Linked Learning to other schools.”

The platform serves as a tool for the Alliance to review evidence and data and provide ongoing, timely feedback. The Alliance’s certification staff can easily gather data and run ad hoc reports, something they were not able to do before without complex queries. The flexibility of the solution allows the Alliance to modify their system as their evaluation standards, data, and documentation requests evolve over time.

To learn more about Linked Learning Alliance, please visit their website at https://www.linkedlearning.org. To learn how Presence can ready your organization for a true digital transformation, email us at  contact@presencepg.com or call 415-970-5770.