Digital Badging Makes its Debut

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Eastern Washington University to Award Digital Credentials

Eastern Washington University is preparing to issue its first digital badges in conjunction with a new, non-credit certificate program: Teaching English as a Foreign Language (TEFL).

Beginning June 1, the TEFL Certificate - a series of nine, three-week noncredit courses offered as part of EWU's Professional & Continuing Education (PCE) - will qualify for digital credentialing upon completion.

"Each of the nine courses leads to its own digital badge. If you complete the entire program, you will get 10 digital badges," says Gina Petrie, PhD, professor and coordinator of the English as a Second Language Program.

Digital credentials are part of global trend to modernize learning and employment records. The skills-based digital systems, an alternative to less detailed PDF certificates of completion, increase opportunities for students to market themselves to future educational institutions and potential employers.

Conversely, digital badges make it easier for registrars at colleges and universities to verify credentials for students seeking admission, and for employers to find candidates with verified skills that align with the specifics required for a wide range of positions.

Each badge contains a list of earned skills and accomplishments, or micro-credentials, providing students with portable, lifelong records that can be displayed and readily verified online.

Dr. Christi Harter, assistant vice president of PCE, is leading a team of faculty and staff at EWU who are exploring best practices for implementing digital badging for noncredit professional and continuing education courses, as well as for-credit classes linked to degrees.

The 15-member committee, which started meeting in June 2025, includes Petrie and other faculty and staff. (To see a full list of participating committee members, go to the end of the article.)

The TEFL Certificate program was developed by Petrie, in partnership with instructional designer Jim Ryan, and alumna Kathryn Kremble who works for Spokane Colleges' Institute for Extended Learning.

Petrie wanted the TEFL Certificate courses to be gamified to increase engagement, something Ryan accomplished. She and Kremble focused on creating courses that easily accessed the Canvas learning management system via cellphone - giving students the capacity to study on the go and take classes from anywhere in the world.

Harter notes that the badges, provided through Parchment Digital Badges, a global credentialling company, will be particularly convenient for the learners who earn TEFL certificates as they are likely to apply for positions in far-reaching places.

"Those digital credentials will likely be used across the globe because the people earning that certificate are typically working in another country," Harter says.

Some of the costs of piloting Parchment Digital Badges are funded through EWU's involvement in the LER Accelerator, a coalition of national organizations committed to modernizing how learning and job skills are documented. EWU is one of just 25 universities nationwide chosen to pilot projects to create secure, interoperable, and learner-centered credentialing systems.

The next phase of the rollout will involve the for-credit Teaching English to Speakers of Other Languages (TESOL) Certificate, also housed within Petrie's department. Starting this academic year, students completing the 11-course for-credit certificate will receive a single digital badge verifying course completion and the skills acquired.

The PCE team has hosted four informational webinars for faculty, staff, employers, and students that explain the benefits of digital credentialing while also collaborating with EWU MarCom to promote the TEFL certificate to potential learners. Future digital badging workshops will be offered in Fall 2026.

In addition, PCE is working with program leaders and advising teams throughout the university, and has recently launched a new EWU Digital Badging webpage to answer questions and provide up-to-date information.

Harter hopes to establish a digital badge steering committee in July to define badge taxonomy - the particulars of classifying, naming and structuring the badges - and to determine what is credentialed, at what level, and how it is governed.

As digital credentialling continues to evolve and gain momentum, Harter expects that "talent marketplaces" will expand - allowing students and graduates who are job seekers to catch the eye of employers who are searching for specific skills and respect an EWU education.

"These credentials show that Eastern Washington University is the organization verifying this learning," she says.

EWU Credentialing Committee Representatives:

Christi Harter, PhD |Assistant Vice President | Professional & Continuing Education

Jackie Coomes, PhD | Vice Provost | Academic Affairs

Sue Magyar, EdD | Director | Interdisciplinary Studies

Ashley Stettler | Business Manager | Professional & Continuing Education

Mikyla Sears | Program Coordinator | Professional & Continuing Studie

Julie Fournier | Program Manager | Records & Registration

Ryan Weldon | Assistant Director | Career Development

Aimee Pope | Registrar | Records & Registration

Heather Veeder, PhD | Associate Vice President | Student Success, Policy & Planning

Gina Mikel Petrie, PhD | Executive Director | Global Studies

Luis Matos, PhD | Associate Professor | Biology

Kandi Teeters | Director | Financial Aid & Scholarships

Mark Ward | Management Analyst & Academic Planning | Records & Registration

Jens Larson | Associate Vice President | Enrollment Services

Michelle Mowrey | Director | Student Engagement and PUB