University of the People
President Shai Reshef. (Pic by James Duncan Davidson) The University of People was formally announced in January 2009. The next day, the New York Times published an article about the university, followed by numerous other media outlets. From there, tens, then hundreds, then thousands of people joined the university as professors, advisors, volunteers, and of course as students. It was their effort that realized the university and gave me the privilege of leading this institution and a movement for accessible and affordable education." Shai saw the potential of technology and the internet to revolutionize higher education to serve people wherever they are around the world. For Shai Reshef, "The timing was right: the tools needed to make online education universally accessible were already in place, including open source technology, open educational resources,