2026 CHLOE Conversation Report Series

Published:: Monday, August 31, 2026
: Briefs, Case Studies, Papers, Reports

Author(s) and Contributors:: Author(s): Kristen Gay Bethany Simunich Eric Fredericksen Richard Garrett

Source(s) and Collection(s):: Sources(s): EDUCAUSE Research Collection(s): Research Hub Research Report

ParentTopics:: Artificial Intelligence (AI) Generative AI Online Course Development Planning Online Learning Organizational Issues, Teaching and Learning Teaching and Learning Teaching with Artificial Intelligence

A Collaboration with Quality Matters and Encoura Eduventures Research

For ten years, the CHLOE (Changing Landscape of Online Education) project has tracked how higher education institutions are organizing, supporting, and advancing online learning at scale. The 2026 CHLOE Conversations Report Series is a new qualitative study that builds on these national survey findings to explore how online learning leaders are approaching some of the field’s most pressing strategic questions.

Drawing on 6 focus groups with 30 online learning leaders across community colleges and public and private four-year institutions, the report series examines three areas shaping the future of online learning—online program strategy; quality, accessibility, support, and data; and generative AI—while also exploring how experiences and approaches vary across sectors.

Explore the 2026 CHLOE Conversations series to see how online learning leaders are charting the futures of their programs, influencing their institutions’ approaches to AI, and making quality central to their story for students.

Reports | Other materials

Video

Hear from one of the researchers about what’s exciting and what you need to know in these reports.

What’s in the series?

Online Quality, Support, and Data

This report explores the strategy, support, and data gaps that limit online quality at scale and outlines how institutions can build coordinated ecosystems that support student success, continuous improvement, and long-term growth.

Online Quality, Support, and Data Report
AI

This report explores how institutions are balancing experimentation with evidence, preserving the human elements of teaching and learning, and working to measure AI’s impact on student success, instructional quality, and operational effectiveness.

AI Report
Online Program Strategy

This report explores the future of online program strategy, including market expansion, AI-driven innovation, evolving approaches to teaching and learning, and the increasingly important question of cost and return on investment.

Online Program Strategy Report
Institutional Sector Summary

This report explores the common challenges, emerging strategies, and future opportunities shaping online learning across higher education.

Institutional Sector Summary Report