Minnesota clarifies: Free online ed is OK

Minnesotans, rest assured: Your state government believes you are entitled to free online higher education.

The Minnesota Office of Higher Education said, “Obviously, our office encourages lifelong learning and wants Minnesotans to take advantage of educational materials available on the Internet, particularly if they’re free. No Minnesotan should hesitate to take advantage of free, online offerings from Coursera.” Larry Pogemiller, director of the office, said a 20-year-old statute requiring institutional registration clearly did not envision free online, not-for-credit offerings. “When the legislature convenes in January, my intent is to work with the Governor and Legislature to appropriately update the statute to meet modern-day circumstances,” said Pogemiller. “Until that time, I see no reason for our office to require registration of free, not-for-credit offerings.”