Credential Engine

We're excited to share that Credential Engine has received funding from Google.org to use AI to accelerate transparency across the U.S. credential ecosystem. This funding will enable us to expand CTDL xTRA, our AI-enabled platform, to continue building the infrastructure needed to make learning-to-work pathways more connected, interoperable, and AI-ready using the Credential Transparency Description Language (CTDL). By leveraging AI, we can advance efforts to make the credential ecosystem more transparent, connected, and interoperable, supporting stakeholders with better access to trusted credential and skills data. We're grateful for Google.org's support and look forward to continuing this work with partners across the ecosystem. Learn more: https://lnkd.in/ePnJdtnY

As digital credentials move across systems and jurisdictions, one question becomes increasingly important: Can I trust the organization that issued this credential? That is the problem Credential Engine and Ayra Association are committed to solving. Credential Engine has joined Ayra, a global nonprofit network building partnerships for safe, secure, and interoperable digital trust ecosystems. The newly launched Issuer Identity Registry (IIR) is a verified, machine-readable registry that confirms credentialing organizations are who they say they are. By making issuer identity verifiable at scale, the IIR aligns with Ayra's Trust Registry Protocol, giving the credential ecosystem a reliable way to establish trust at the source. Together, Credential Engine and Ayra are supporting the foundation that lets credentials travel as far as opportunity does. Read the full announcement to learn more: https://lnkd.in/eMM3TmJu

📢 Upcoming Webinar: Exploring the Issuer Identity Registry (IIR) Digital credentials only work when the organizations behind them can be trusted. Join Credential Engine on June 17th at 11 AM ET to explore the newly launched IIR, a new trust infrastructure designed to help credential issuers, employers, workforce organizations, and other partners verify issuer identities and strengthen confidence across credentialing ecosystems. We'll demonstrate how the IIR works in practice and hear from the Arkansas Department of Shared Administrative Services about how trusted issuer identity supports a more connected talent marketplace. 🔗 Register today: https://lnkd.in/eMJNx6mS 📖 Learn more about the IIR: https://lnkd.in/eb5gmPKv ✅ Explore how to register in the IIR: https://lnkd.in/e96Un7_z

As the credential marketplace grows, the ability to compare and act on credential information hinges on one thing above all else: trust in the validity of the data. Explore our May newsletter to learn how Credential Engine is helping build a more trustworthy credential ecosystem through the launch of the Issuer Identity Registry.

Today, Credential Engine is launching its Issuer Identity Registry (IIR) and Governance Framework -- new infrastructure designed to help verify the organizations behind credentials. As digital credentials move across platforms, systems, and borders, one question becomes increasingly important: how do we know who issued a credential? The IIR helps answer that question by connecting verified issuer identities with credential data in the Credential Registry using the Credential Transparency Description Language (CTDL). The result is a more transparent and interoperable ecosystem where credentials can be traced back to trusted sources. Why this matters: ▪️Credential providers, including colleges, universities, and training providers, gain a structured way to verify their identity and strengthen trust in the credentials they issue. ▪️Employers and verifiers can more easily confirm who issued a credential, helping reduce friction in hiring and talent decisions. ▪️Learners benefit from portable, trustworthy records of achievement that can move with them across education and career pathways. ▪️State agencies and workforce systems gain scalable infrastructure for accountable credential verification. Credentials only create opportunity when they can be trusted, and trust starts with knowing who stands behind them. We invite credential issuers to register in the IIR today: https://lnkd.in/e96Un7_z Join our launch webinar on June 17th at 11:00 AM ET: https://lnkd.in/eMJNx6mS Read the press release: https://lnkd.in/eb5gmPKv Explore the IIR webpage: https://lnkd.in/eGCXgvrS Explore the Governance Framework: https://lnkd.in/ec7GwSwy

The U.S. Department of Education has announced a new $44M Career Pathways Exploration grant opportunity, with applications due June 9th. Join Credential Engine, 1EdTech, and Territorium on May 28th at 1 PM ET for a practical conversation on what states need to know about building Learning and Employment Records (LERs), talent marketplaces, credential registries, and AI-enabled career exploration tools. We’ll discuss what the grant is really asking for, what makes an application competitive, and how states can move from concept to implementation on a tight timeline. Register here: https://lnkd.in/eiTKbZNt

Credential transparency is most valuable when paired with trusted outcomes data. That’s the focus of the partnership between Credential Engine and CredLens. Together, we’re helping connect the infrastructure used to describe credentials with outcomes data that demonstrates their impact, supporting states, credential issuers, workforce systems, policymakers, and learners as demand grows for clearer evidence of credential value. This work can help support emerging needs around: ➡️ Credentials of Value (CoV) initiatives ➡️ Workforce Pell and federal funding opportunities ➡️ Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act (WIOA) accountability and workforce reporting ➡️ More informed education and career decision-making We have a new resource outlining how this partnership supports a more connected and interoperable approach to credential transparency and outcomes reporting: https://lnkd.in/ezCVyei6

📢 This week’s new Credential Engine blog highlights how states are continuing to build the infrastructure needed to support talent marketplaces and Workforce Pell implementation. Blog: https://lnkd.in/eBFr266w Those themes are increasingly reflected in state policy developments. Earlier this week in Georgia, Governor Kemp signed the Education and Workforce Strategy Act (HB 1302) as part of a broader workforce package. (https://lnkd.in/eXsy5cEz) The legislation strengthens coordination across the state’s education and workforce systems, including efforts to identify and map different credential types, streamlines planning through more unified state-level processes, and supports closer alignment across agencies responsible for workforce development and education strategy. Taken together, Georgia’s legislation reflects the broader direction many states are moving in ➡️ toward more integrated, data-informed workforce systems that make skills and credentials more visible, comparable, and useful for learners, employers, and policymakers alike.

Credential Engine joins America Forward, Data Quality Campaign, and Results for America in calling on the Senate HELP Committee to prioritize bipartisan WIOA reauthorization this Congress. A modernized workforce system depends on data that is structured, open, linked, interoperable, and durable (SOLID). When workforce data across credential registries, talent marketplaces, and learning and employment records (LERs) meet that standard, workers, employers, and policymakers can make better decisions, and programs can deliver real results. WIOA reauthorization is a critical opportunity to establish these principles at the federal level.

We're excited to share that Trellis Strategies has been selected as the research partner for a project we're building alongside AACRAO and the Education and Employment Research Center, Rutgers University (EERC): a standardized credential information label. Think of it like a nutrition label, but for credentials. The goal is simple: give learners, employers, educators, and policymakers a consistent, reliable way to understand what a credential actually offers. This label aims to create a common framework that supports informed decision-making across the education and workforce ecosystem. Trellis will lead focus group research with diverse stakeholders to shape what information the label includes and how it's presented. Their work will ensure the final product is grounded in real voices and real needs. 📖 Read the full announcement to learn more: https://lnkd.in/eji9TezF 👉 Want to weigh in? A community feedback form is open & your perspective matters as this work takes shape: https://lnkd.in/eBDQBg7x 🔍 Those interested in the origins of this initiative, we encourage you to explore "A Nutrition Label for Credentials", which outlines the foundational concept behind this work: https://lnkd.in/eVR5ABMe