New $20-Million Nonprofit Effort Seeks to Spur Online Learning

The Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation is supplying $20-million to kick off an effort to develop online-learning tools to boost college-graduation rates, says The New York Times.

The William and Flora Hewlett Foundation and four nonprofit education organizations are also partners in Next Generation Learning Challenges, the first phase of which will dole out grants of $250,000 to $750,000 for software, online courses, and other technological tools designed to help community colleges and low-income people.

Another round of grants for programs tailored to high schools is planned for 2011.