The Rise of Western Governors University, 1996-2006

From the Foreword: This book about WGU's opening decade is, of course, the story of how the university has implemented its founders' visions. It is also, however, the story of an innovation, how that innovation arose and unfolded, its mistakes and failures, what it learned from them, and how ultimately it prevailed. Innovation is never easy, perhaps especially educational innovation is never easy. Nine hundred years of tradition lean against it. In countless ways the code of right practice, established by generations of bureaucracy and enforced by all the conventional structures of modern educational life - from the definition of terms and credits to financial aid regulations - line up to force compliance with accepted orthodoxy. That WGU survived at all is extraordinary. That it remained true to the heart of its mission, created a unique learning model, earned multiple accreditations, and today serves more than seven thousand enrolled students is a story worth telling. This is it.