Systemness in Action: NASH and Google’s Microcredential Community of Practice Reaches Nearly 15,000 Learners

WASHINGTON, D.C. – December 4, 2025 – Today, the National Association of Higher Education Systems (NASH), in a first-in-the-nation partnership with Google, announced that its Microcredentials Community of Practice (CoP) has reached nearly 15,000 learners in its inaugural year.

The CoP, modeled after the University of Texas’s Texas Credentials for the Future, brings together 11 higher education systems, 88 institutions, and over 100 faculty members and leaders from the Louisiana Board of Regents, City University of New York, California State University System, State University of New York, Maine Community College System, University System of Maryland, Minnesota State Colleges and Universities, University of Hawaii System, Texas A&M University System, Texas State University System, and the University of Colorado System.

In support of expanding access to microcredentials and AI essentials to more students across the country, participating systems and institutions in the CoP receive:

• Targeted technical assistance (TA) and professional development from the University of Texas System, select experts, NASH, and Google, including implementation plan support, PD sessions, and ongoing coaching to ensure successful program delivery
• $15,000 stipend per system to be used flexibly to support action-oriented outcomes
• Networking and collaboration opportunities with other participating systems, including access to virtual and in-person convenings about microcredentials, AI, and the future of work
• Access to resources and promising practices, including playbooks, case studies, and marketing collateral
• Collaborative opportunities for sharing best practices and driving sector-wide progress

“Reaching nearly 15,000 learners is powerful validation of ‘systemness’ in action,” said Nancy Zimpher, President of NASH. “When public higher education systems work together, we can rapidly scale access to the high-demand, workforce-aligned credentials and AI literacy that are essential for today’s learners and tomorrow’s economy. Google has been the perfect partner in this endeavor as we are both uniquely equipped to share and leverage knowledge at an unprecedented scale. NASH is proud to be a catalyst for this kind of collective and institutional transformation.”

“Every student deserves access to the AI skills needed to succeed in today’s job market,” said Lisa Gevelber, Founder of Grow with Google. “We are proud to partner with NASH to provide students with our most advanced AI products and training, ensuring they know how to make the most of the technology in the classroom and beyond. This program builds on years of us working together with universities to help students prepare for exciting careers.”

Along with the CoP benefits, systems also receive perks as part of the Google AI for Education Accelerator, which provides essentials to students, faculty, and staff across the CoP at no cost, including:

• Google Career Certificates: These certificates are industry-recognized credentials that equip students with job-ready skills in in-demand fields such as cybersecurity, data analytics, IT support, and more. An employer consortium of over 150 top companies—including Google—use these certificates for hiring or upskilling. To date, the program has helped over one million people get training for higher-paying jobs. Over 70% of certificate graduates report a positive career impact within six months of completion.*
• AI Essentials: Google’s AI training teaches foundational AI skills, effective prompting techniques, and responsible AI usage. Students will also learn how to use AI tools for academic and career-related tasks, such as creating study guides, building resumes, and practicing for interviews.
• Gemini and NotebookLM through Workspace: Institutions can gain enterprise access to Gemini and NotebookLM, including data protections, through Google Workspace for Education Fundamentals.

“The adoption of the Google Career Certificates and AI training across our Community of Practice proves the strong demand for this critical, job-ready training”, said Kelvin Bentley, NASH’s inaugural Director, Microcredentials Community of Practice. “My goal has been to help systems design and evaluate microcredential initiatives that improve learner outcomes. By collaborating closely with faculty and industry partners, we are successfully embedding skills-based learning across public higher education, ensuring our graduates are prepared for the future of work.”

In his new role as NASH’s Director of Microcredentials Community of Practice, Dr. Bentley leads efforts to help public higher education systems and their campuses design, scale, and evaluate microcredential initiatives that improve learner and workforce outcomes. Prior to joining NASH, he served as the inaugural Program Manager for Texas Credentials for the Future at the University of Texas System, which provided the targeted technical assistance and professional development referenced above.

The partnership between NASH and Google, along with the positive outcomes of the CoP, reinforces NASH’s commitment to “systemness,” the power of public higher education systems working together to solve shared challenges. By building collective capacity around workforce-aligned credentials and AI literacy, systems are demonstrating that collaboration at scale can drive meaningful student outcomes and institutional transformation.

Interested in learning more? Visit: nash.edu/nash-google-microcredentials-partnership/

To learn more about the Google AI for Education Accelerator, visit: https://grow.google/certificates-academic-institutions/

 

*  Based on program graduate survey, United States 2024, including data protection

 

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About NASH

Founded in 1979, the National Association of Higher Education Systems (NASH) works to advance the role of multi-campus systems and the concept of systemness to create a more vibrant and sustainable higher education sector. NASH represents the nearly 90 public higher education systems in the U.S., which include more than 1,200 institutions and serve nearly 14 million students nationwide. Learn more at www.nash.edu.

 

About Grow with Google

Grow with Google is committed to helping everyone—those who make up the workforce of today and the students who will drive the workforce of tomorrow—access the best of Google’s training and tools to grow their skills, careers, or businesses. Learn more at grow.google/students.