University of Texas at San Antonio joins elite ranks of Adobe Creative Campus Innovators

Known for its commitment to innovation in education, The University of Texas at San Antonio (UT San Antonio) has been named one of the first Adobe Creative Campus Innovators. This new designation honors universities that champion creative thinking, forward-looking instruction, and transformative learning experiences — going beyond simply adopting Adobe tools to truly reimagining how students learn and grow.

As a longtime Adobe Creative Campus, UT San Antonio empowers students to gain a competitive edge in the job market through Adobe microcredentials. These short, skill-focused credentials recognize students’ mastery in areas like presentation design, generative AI, and digital storytelling. Designed to be self-paced and completed in just a few hours, microcredentials offer students the flexibility to fit creative skill-building into their busy academic lives.

“We’re always looking for innovative ways to expand what’s possible for our students,” said Claudia Arcolin, executive director of teaching and learning experiences at UT San Antonio. “Whether it’s infusing creativity across disciplines or offering new ways to deepen learning, Adobe microcredentials help students develop valuable skills, pursue new interests, and build confidence that can shape their college experience and future careers.”

UT San Antonio students can choose from more than a dozen microcredentials covering essential digital and creative skills. Each course culminates in a hands-on project that supports experiential learning. Upon completion, students earn a digital certificate and badge they can proudly share on their resume and LinkedIn profile. To date, UT San Antonio students have earned over 250 microcredentials — with participation growing steadily.

Educating from the top of the mountain

To launch the program successfully, Willie Schaefer, an Adobe specialist at UT San Antonio, prioritized driving awareness of these new microcredentials among the 40,000 UT San Antonio faculty and students. He focused first on gaining support from the most senior and influential faculty. He asked department chairs to champion microcredentialing in meetings and encouraged faculty influencers to talk about the benefits.

Now, Schaefer is developing summer training and asynchronous courses to help faculty learn more about Adobe creative tools and generative AI capabilities and the value of earning microcredentials.

Embedding creative skills across the curriculum

In addition to spreading the word among key faculty, Schaefer actively promotes microcredentials in classes that reach students across majors and departments, such as the Academic Introduction & Strategies (AIS) courses required for all first-year students or Honors classes aimed at members of the Honor College, an optional, invitation-only program open to the most highly motivated and successful students from any field of study.

During the Professional Development module in the Honors 101 class, students complete either a microcredential on essentials of applying for a job or one on pitching a product with generative AI, learning skills that will help them start their careers. Meanwhile, in the Skill Development module, students learn to improve communication with a microcredential in presentation design or storytelling through short-form video.

Faculty-led innovation in diverse disciplines

UT San Antonio professors are integrating Adobe microcredentials into a wide range of subject areas:

• Ryan MacPherson, in his communications courses on public relations, podcasting, and personal branding, introduces microcredentials early and builds on them throughout the semester.
• Dr. Chris Packham, a physics and astronomy professor, incorporates the “Intro to Generative AI” badge and challenges students to visualize space concepts creatively.
• Cindy Roberts, assistant professor of practice in mathematics, teaches students in her Calculus for Biosciences class to build a mini-website by linking Adobe Express pages that illustrate potential uses of calculus in their chosen field. Students first complete the presentation design credential to prepare for their project.

Exploring long-term impact

UT San Antonio is currently looking into the impact of microcredentials through both qualitative and quantitative research. While microcredentials set students’ resumes apart, UT San Antonio wants to go further and determine how badges influence interviews, post-graduate careers, and self-confidence.

As one of the first institutions to earn Adobe Creative Campus Innovator designation, UT San Antonio is redefining what it means to prepare students for success — equipping them with the knowledge, creative skills, and experiences that matter in today’s workforce.

Interested in integrating Adobe tools on your campus? See the full list of Adobe Creative Campus Innovators and find out more about becoming an Adobe Creative Campus.