Building Education Programs with Iconic Brands with Edconic's Victoria Weinfeld

LIVE! from the Harbor Terrace at ASU+GSV 2026 in San Diego, Mike Palmer sits down with Victoria Weinfeld, Vice President of Enrollment, Marketing, and Sales at Edconic. In this fast-paced environment of "drinking from a fire hose," Victoria shares the evolution of Edconic (formerly known as BrandED) and its unique mission to bridge the gap between traditional education and the future of work. Edconic specializes in creating industry-immersive programs alongside some of the world’s most recognizable brands, including Vogue, The New York Times, Sotheby’s, Manchester City, and their newest partner, Mayo Clinic. Victoria explains how these partnerships go beyond simple guest lectures; they involve co-designing curriculum with practitioners to ensure students gain the hands-on, practical skills that employers frequently find lacking in early-career workers . Whether it’s high school students touring the New York Times newsroom or master’s students graduating at a Sotheby’s auction house, the focus remains on experiential learning and building a tangible work-product portfolio . 🎓 The conversation also dives into the dominant themes of the 2026 conference, specifically the Power of Fusion and the unavoidable influence of AI. Victoria highlights how Edconic’s partners are now demanding AI exposure in curriculum to prepare students for day-one workplace expectations. We explore the strategic growth of Edconic’s portfolio and the potential for "white labeling" their expertise to help more organizations translate their brands into educational experiences. It’s a visionary look at how education and industry can deeply tie together to foster the next generation of talent 🚀. Want more? Check out Edconic CEO Brandon Busteed's previous appearance on Trending in Ed. If you enjoyed this episode, make sure to follow, like, and subscribe to Trending in Education wherever you get your podcasts! Timestamps 00:00 - Introduction live from ASU+GSV in San Diego 01:54 - Victoria Weinfeld’s 10-year journey and the rebranding of Edconic 02:58 - Defining the Edconic model: Industry-immersive learning with iconic brands 03:52 - Highlighting powerhouse partners: Vogue, NYT, Mayo Clinic, and more 04:31 - Serving the learner lifecycle from pre-college to professionals 05:39 - The logistics of in-person, experiential access to industry facilities 06:55 - Bridging the "unprepared worker" gap and integrating AI exposure 08:52 - Strategic growth and deepening the existing brand portfolio 11:37 - The "Special Sauce": Co-designing curriculum with practitioners 14:14 - Advice for K-12 and Higher Ed on building closer industry ties 17:34 - The value of rotational "taster" experiences and portfolio building 19:12 - Alumni success stories: From summer courses to the Washington Post 20:46 - Exploring future models and "white label" educational services 21:55 - Final takeaways: AI, Fusion, and workforce development themes