 Higher education institutions are facing enormous pressures from multiple angles, access, cost, value, demographics, and competition for students. They're slow to adapt to the changing landscape, leaving potential students confused and vulnerable to the pitches of snake oil salesmen. It has become truly urgent that these institutions address this challenge collectively and head on, using their resources and knowledge of education to transform themselves. The time of nibbling at the edges is over. It is time for a holistic approach for creating a new model of higher education, one that integrates multiple emerging innovations such as competency-based learning, stackable credentials, individualized pathways, and advances in online learning. These are often disjointed at present, but can be integrated into a coherent whole, while at the same time striving to lower cost and broaden access. The first step on that path is the creation of something we call the Cloud University. Initially, it'll be a consortium of four or six colleges and universities, each contributing human resources such as faculty, advisors, instructional designers, multimedia specialists, and educational materials. Education of students in the Cloud University is built around a new standard called C-M-I-L, or SMILE, competency, modularity, and individualization in learning. Modularity means that educational content is not divided into semesters or credit hours but delivered in modules of different lengths covering a specific topic or a skill set. The modules themselves are composed of learning objects, self-contained, short, interactive pieces of educational content, each covering a specific competency and including knowledge checks or assessments. Thanks to individualization, students will be able to select and complete modules that are aligned with their own educational goals, leading to the acquisition of needed skill sets, certification, or degrees. In fact, students will be the biggest beneficiaries of this project. The virtual doors of the Cloud University will be wide open to students across the educational spectrum, from high school seniors to traditional age students to adult learners. This model is flexible enough to accommodate those seeking certifications, associate degrees, or bachelors. An important concept here is that of stackable credentials. It means that students who may have to discontinue their education will not lose it all but are likely to receive credentials that will help them in their careers or further education. This project does not seek to apply a band-aid to what ails higher education but to transform it from within by using its own strengths and potential. We call it rational disruption and envision more and more institutions of higher education joining the Cloud University. We see the smile model being adopted, even by those choosing to stay outside. The motivating factor from the institutional point of view is the opportunity to shape one's own future instead of waiting for the commercial interests to sort things out. It's not about preserving the status quo but about having a seat at the table and proposing a deep reform that has a well-defined and sustainable business model behind it. Higher education is too important for a society to allow impatient Silicon Valley solutionists to dismantle it in the hope that they may build something new and better from a pile of ill-fitting parts. From the student perspective, it's about lowering the barrier to higher education while assuring quality and validation, very important components of the educational value proposition. This is not another for-profit venture peddling cheap credits with little market value but an attractive offer coming from known and respected brands. It's very difficult in a very short video to provide sufficient level of detail for a project as complex and multifaceted as this one, so we tried to give you this high-level overview. Please consult our project plan for a more detailed description. Thank you for watching.