Credentials Solutions and Parchment Complete Merger

SCOTTSDALE, Ariz., Feb. 11, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- Credentials Solutions, a leading higher education transcript service provider, and Parchment, a leading multi-faceted platform for issuing and receiving academic and professional credentials, announced today the closing of their merger. The new organization, Parchment, will support an integrated network of 13,000 schools, universities and professional organizations as they securely exchange over 18.5 million academic records annually, enabling learners to turn their credentials into opportunities across a range of enrollment and employment pathways. 

This combination will provide credential issuers and receivers with a scaled partner focused on modernizing the exchange of verifiable academic and professional credentials, most notably accelerating machine-readable data formats. In addition, the new organization will invest in the innovation agenda of registrars and school counselors as they look to better support learners with records that more effectively reflect verified learning outcomes and achievements.  

The combined company will leverage resources to focus on five industry trends at a particularly dynamic and exciting time in academic credentialing:

1. Enrollment Pathways: The high school transcript is becoming the central source of information for admissions and post-matriculation advising, while credit transfer is also increasingly important for postsecondary students as they move between schools on their path to a degree.   
2. Credential Innovation: Colleges and universities are reimagining the scope, form, and function of their academic credentials to help translate their learners' education into successful employment pathways. 
3. Lifelong Learning: Traditional barriers between secondary, postsecondary, and professional education are blurring as the learner expects greater control and stewardship of their knowledge profile. Technology must also support stackable, secure, and verifiable credential management.
4. Open Standards: Postsecondary Electronics Standards Council (PESC) and IMS Global are enabling sustainable innovations in digital credentialing based on the principle of interoperability.  
5. Interoperable Learner Records: Providing an open, learner-controlled credentialing ecosystem that enables the exchange of verifiable credentials without aggregating large amounts of student data in a single data source/clearinghouse.

"From higher education's first degree verification service to automated transcript processing, our heritage at Credentials has been listening to and serving the college and university registrar," explained Randy Levy, Chief Administrative Officer at Credentials Solutions. "The mandate we are driving toward today is to accelerate the transformation of the transcript into one that is machine-readable data, based on open standards, learner-managed, and exchangeable across a broad network of organizations. Our team at Credentials is incredibly excited to join with our new colleagues at Parchment to collectively deliver on this shared opportunity."   

"Combining Parchment's and Credentials Solutions' networks of schools and universities, creates a comprehensive technology platform for issuers and receivers, a unified experience that integrates transcripts, diplomas, certificates and badges, and most of all a customer service mentality that puts the learner at the center," said Matthew Pittinsky, Ph.D., Chief Executive Officer of Parchment and leader of the new combined organization. "Across our two organizations we have a talented team who care deeply about serving the credentialing community. Our first priority is to deliver on our members' high service expectations today, while integrating the two platforms and processes to support continued innovation for the future."

The integrated Credentials Solutions and Parchment network spans 5,240 high schools, 1,500 university registrar offices, and 10 state education agencies, as well as 7,750 receivers, including university admissions offices, background check companies, employers, college application services, OPMs, and certification and licensing boards.   

Current and prospective Credentials Solutions and Parchment members may learn more by visiting our comprehensive information site, credentials.parchment.com.

About Credentials Solutions

Credentials Solutions specializes in identifying labor-intensive administrative processes at postsecondary institutions and replacing them with simplified, automated software solutions at a lower cost to the institutions.

About Parchment

Founded in 2003, Parchment is a widely adopted credential service, allowing learners, academic institutions, and employers to request, verify, and share credentials in simple and secure ways. 

SOURCE Parchment LLC