Alison… and it’s the brainchild of an Irishman named Michael Feerick. It offers more than 400 courses, from fundamentals of accounting and various levels of English language to understanding systems engineering at Alison.com. According to Feerick, more than a million people all over the world have plugged into Alison. Learner traffic is highest in the United States, but the fastest growing number of users is in India.

Most Alison users are trying to learn more so they can earn more for themselves and their families. In the United States, Alison is now part of the official workforce development websites in 17 states; when the new unified California workforce website Caljobs is launched next month at www.caljobs.ca.gov, those receiving unemployment benefits will be urged to go to Alison.com to “up-skill” themselves. California and other states will soon be looking for evidence that unemployed people receiving benefits are taking active steps to improve their prospects... read more.