Announcing Learnvia, a National Learning Collaborative Launched by CMU and the Gates Foundation

Dear Members of the Carnegie Mellon University Community:

I’m thrilled to share important news that reflects Carnegie Mellon’s leadership in learning science, artificial intelligence, educational innovation and service to the nation.

Today, Carnegie Mellon University and the Gates Foundation announce the launch of Learnvia,  a new national nonprofit focused on transforming student success and workforce development on a national scale. Learnvia is enabled by a historic $55 million philanthropic investment from the Gates Foundation — the largest grant to a single entity in the foundation’s higher education portfolio — and it builds directly on decades of Carnegie Mellon scholarship in learning science.

At Carnegie Mellon, we have long believed that understanding how people learn and applying that knowledge to expand opportunity is central to the public mission of higher education. More than half a century ago, Herbert A. Simon — Nobel laureate, Turing Award winner and one of the intellectual founders of artificial intelligence and cognitive science — argued that improving education would require “converting teaching from a solo sport to a community-based research activity.” He challenged universities to apply data, experimentation and theory to understand how people learn, and to use that knowledge to expand opportunity at scale.

That vision has guided Carnegie Mellon ever since, carried out by scholars such as John Anderson, Ken Koedinger and countless others. From early leadership in computation and cognitive psychology to the creation of the Open Learning Initiative, the Pittsburgh Science of Learning Center and the Simon Initiative, CMU faculty from across our schools and colleges have a legacy of pushing boundaries at the intersections of learning science, educational technology and AI.

Learnvia is the next chapter in this story.

Across the United States today, high-enrollment gateway courses, particularly in mathematics, remain a significant barrier to degree completion and workforce participation. Roughly 30% of students nationwide do not complete these courses successfully, limiting access to careers that depend on strong quantitative skills. At the same time, employers across the economy — from the skilled trades to healthcare, data science and engineering — face persistent shortages of workers with required math preparation.

Learnvia addresses this challenge by combining free, AI-enabled courseware with support for evidence-based instructional practices that is grounded in decades of CMU learning science research. This academic year, nearly 40 institutions — including Carnegie Mellon University, public research universities, regional campuses and community colleges — are piloting Learnvia’s Calculus I courseware. We expect this learning collaborative to more than double by fall 2026 with course offerings continuing to grow. 

In the long term, Learnvia aims to bolster math skills in learners of all types, ultimately supporting the upskilling, reskilling and workforce development required for the United States to remain competitive in the global economy.

Provost Jim Garrett and I are deeply grateful to our colleagues across campus whose vision, scholarship and sustained leadership made this milestone possible. While there have been many champions of this work over the years, we want to especially acknowledge Richard Scheines for his long-standing leadership and Amy Burkert for her decades-long dedication to advancing this effort. We are also thankful to the Simon Initiative leadership team and Learnvia’s implementation team, including Norman Bier, Marsha Lovett and the members of Learnvia’s Board of Directors.

We are also profoundly grateful for the extraordinary partnership of the Gates Foundation. Their confidence in Carnegie Mellon is a resounding reminder that higher education can be a powerful engine for economic mobility and national prosperity.

At a moment when our nation is grappling with rapid technological change and an evolving workforce, Learnvia exemplifies what Carnegie Mellon does best: translating foundational research into real-world impact and designing systems that expand opportunity for learners everywhere. I am proud of this community’s leadership, and I look forward to the work ahead.

With appreciation,

Farnam Jahanian
President
Henry L. Hillman President's Chair