Ryan Craig (education innovator and investor)

Ryan Craig (born February 12, 1972) is an education innovator, investor, and writer. He is the co-founder of University Ventures, a firm that invests in higher education and at the intersection of education and employment.[1]

Ryan Craig
Craig at the Yidan Prize education conference, December 2017.
Born Ryan Craig
February 12, 1972
Toronto, Canada
Occupation Education Innovator, Investor, and Writer

He is best known for the concept of "unbundling," pertaining to degree programs offered by colleges and universities. He also developed the concept of "Last-Mile Training," signifying the skills gap between what employers are seeking in candidates for entry-level jobs and the skills that colleges and universities build. The missing skills are primarily technical or digital, and Craig has focused his writing and investing on the impact of technology on employment and education.

Early Life

According to his book, College Disrupted: The Great Unbundling of Higher Education[2], Craig was born in Toronto, Canada where he participated in French Immersion programs. He attended Yale University where he double-majored in literature and economics. In his book A New U: Faster and Cheaper Alternatives to College[3], Craig recounts numerous amusing anecdotes of his college years, including as chairman of the progressive party of the Yale Political Union and as founder of Rumpus Magazine. Craig worked at McKinsey & Company, and then attended Yale Law School before launching his career in education, initially at Columbia University.

Career

2004-2010

See also: Wellspring Academies

In 2004, Craig founded Wellspring Academies and Camps, initially Academy of the Sierras, which were the first scientifically based residential treatment programs for childhood and adolescent obesity.

2011-present

In 2011, Craig co-founded the higher education investment firm University Ventures. University Ventures is best known for innovative pathways to employment that may or may not involve traditional colleges and universities. It is also well known for the UV Letter, a bi-weekly newsletter that combines thinking on higher education and education-to-employment topics.

Written Works

As of September 2018, Craig has authored or co-authored three books:

  • The Sierras Weight-Loss Solution for Teens and Kids: A Scientifically Based Program from the Highly Acclaimed Weight-Loss School, published in 2007, is a summary of the day-to-day activities and weight-loss initiatives at Academy of the Sierras, co-authored with Daniel Kirschenbaum and Lisa Tjelmeland.
  • College Disrupted: The Great Unbundling of Higher Education, published in 2015, is a review and critique of the state of American higher education, and forecasts the coming of online competency marketplaces to guide education and employment decisions.

A New U: Faster + Cheaper Alternatives to College, published in 2018, discusses the twin crises of affordability and employability facing American higher education and the rise of faster and cheaper pathways to good first jobs in the form of bootcamps, Income Share Agreement programs, staffing, and new apprenticeship models, all incorporating "Last-Mile Training."

Notes

  1. ↑ "About University Ventures". universityventures.com. Retrieved 2018-10-02.
  2. ↑ "College Disrupted | Ryan Craig | Macmillan". US Macmillan. Retrieved 2018-09-29.
  3. ↑ Yeffeth, Laura. "A New U - BenBella Books". BenBella Books. Retrieved 2018-09-29.
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