November 25, 2025

Act Fast! Nominations Close December 15th!

Free Friday Webinars
January 20-22, 2026 – Public Policy Week
June 17-18, 2026 – USDLA National Conference (Virtual)
June 22-25, 2026 – USDLA National Conference (Cleveland, OH)

Celebrating Excellence in Distance Learning

The USDLA International Awards

Nominations due by December 15th.

Each year, the United States Distance Learning Association (USDLA) proudly honors excellence in the field of digital and distance learning through its International Distance Learning Awards.

These awards recognize individuals, institutions, and organizations that are transforming education and training through innovative and impactful practices across K–12, higher education, corporate, government, and telehealth sectors.

Open to both members and non-members, the USDLA Awards highlight those who demonstrate leadership, creativity, and a commitment to advancing learning opportunities in a connected world. Categories span from outstanding leadership and instructional design to excellence in online teaching, innovation, and research.

Each nomination is carefully reviewed by a committee of peers, ensuring that the recognition reflects true excellence within the field. For many educators and innovators, receiving a USDLA Award is not only an honor but also a meaningful acknowledgment of their dedication to improving access, quality, and engagement in digital learning.

This year’s nomination submission deadline is December 15th. Learn more or submit your nomination today: https://usdla.org/international-awards/

Reduce, Reuse, Repurpose, and Upcycle

December 5, 2025

1p.m. EST

Do you have an approach to reworking stale, lifeless, outdated, or ugly content? If so, great! But if you don’t or could use some pointers and tips, join us for Reduce, Reuse, Repurpose, and Upcycle. In this fast-paced web session, Dawn J Mahoney, CPTD, will take you through the ways she tackles rebuilding others’ learning content, plans, and strategies. Leave this session having spent a lively hour with peers in a similar situation to yours, as well as with a few tips and tools to use to work your magic!

To get the most out of this session, bring a course, deck, syllabus, learning plan, or equivalent, and some sticky notes, paper, pens, pencils, fun markers (whatever you like to scribble on and with) to make real work notes and decisions for how to move forward.

Dawn J Mahoney, CPTD, is a talent development professional passionate about enhancing people’s skills through improved learning content, experiences, strategy, and dialogue. (In short, SOLUTIONS) Asking better questions helps Dawn design and develop solutions that are relevant to work, aligned with business objectives, and set people up for success. After a long career as a learning professional in corporate settings, Dawn founded Learning In the White Space in 2015, her own boutique consultancy dedicated to all of the above.

Click to register: https://usdla.org/events/webinars/

USDLA State Chapters are an essential part of our mission to expand access, connection, and innovation in distance and digital learning across the country. These chapters bring together educators, technologists, policymakers, and business leaders at the local level to exchange best practices, host events, and advocate for digital learning in their states.

We invite new states to join this growing movement! Whether you’d like to establish a chapter in your own state or collaborate with neighboring states to create a regional chapter, USDLA is here to support you. Together, we can strengthen the national network of distance learning leaders and amplify our collective voice.

If you’re interested in learning more or taking the first step toward building a chapter, please email Chair of State Chapters, Erica Bell, ebell3@utm.edu.

Thank you for supporting USDLA, our Sponsors, and our State Chapters.

To subscribe to our Wednesday newsletter “USDLA Market Pulse Powered by SmartBrief” please click here.

Shana Garrett, PhD, President

Farah Bennani, PhD, President-Elect

About United States Distance Learning Association (USDLA)

Formed in 1987, USDLA is a 501(c)3 non-profit association formed in 1987. Our weekly newsletters reach more than 100,000 people globally, including our members and sponsors working in industries including pre-K-12 education, homeschooling, higher education, continuing education, corporate, military, government, and telehealth. Our mission is to promote the development and application of distance learning for education, training, advocacy, and networking: USDLA.org