Javier A. Reyes, vice provost for distance education, has accepted a one-year appointment to the board of directors for the University Professional and Continuing Education Association and will attend his first meeting June 17.

Reyes, head of the Global Campus and an economics professor, will fill an unexpired term through March 2015 and then be eligible to serve a full two-year term of his own.

UPCEA, founded in 1915 and based in Washington D.C., is a leading national association for professional, continuing and online education that serves more than 395 institutions, including most of the leading public and private colleges and universities in North America. The association serves as a link between adult learners and public policy issues, and it provides innovative conferences and specialty seminars, research and benchmarking information, professional networking opportunities and timely publications.

The UPCEA board directs the affairs of the association, determines its policies and advances its goals, except as otherwise provided in the association’s bylaws.

 “As the university continues to grow its online programs and offerings, it is important that we step into national leadership roles that allow us to share our innovations and achievements with our peers,” Provost Sharon Gaber said. “I am confident that Javier Reyes, in his new appointment, will bring national attention to our accomplishments and help guide policy development that will shape the future of online education.”

 UPCEA recognizes the growing importance online education in addressing the needs of non-traditional students who seek to continue or further their education, Reyes said.

“UPCEA is looking to those who are leading the way in reshaping education by expanding online offerings,” Reyes said. “The University of Arkansas is taking an innovative approach to online learning because our online offerings are not separate from our academic campus, but an important part of it, an extension of it.”

Some institutions separate their on-campus and online academics. At the University of Arkansas, online degree programs and courses are embedded in the academic ecosphere, growing within departments inside colleges and schools on campus and nurtured by the faculty who create course content, set learning outcomes and establish degree programs.

Reyes leads the Global Campus, which supports academic colleges and schools in the development and delivery of online education by providing instructional design services, faculty development and workshops, technology services and help with strategic academic planning and marketing.

Other higher education institutions represented on the UPCEA board include Syracuse University; University of Wisconsin; Brown University; University of Massachusetts Amherst; North Carolina State University; University of Colorado, Boulder; Western Michigan University; McGill University; University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill; University of Minnesota; and University of California, Los Angeles.