Six Red Marbles
Designed for
Institutional Mission.
Built for Student Success.
We partner with historically Black colleges and universities to create digital learning experiences that honor what makes each institution distinctive, and build on it. Here's a snapshot of what that looks like in practice.
Our Approach
Partnerships That Begin with Listening
At Six Red Marbles, we believe the best educational partnerships start with a simple commitment: we meet institutions where they are. Every HBCU we've worked with brings its own strengths, mission, culture, and community responsibilities to the table, and our job is to translate those strengths into high-quality digital learning without losing what makes the institution distinct.
That means working closely with faculty, respecting institutional voice, and delivering course design, production support, and learning experience design that is both rigorous and genuinely usable. Not a template. Not a shortcut. A real collaboration.
What We Bring
Core Capabilities for HBCU Partners
Faculty-Centered Design
We collaborate directly with faculty and subject matter experts so every course reflects the instructor's voice, priorities, and disciplinary depth, not a generic template.
Online, Hybrid & On-Ground
From fully online programs to blended delivery, we help institutions design and build courses that strengthen engagement and instructional clarity across any format.
Rigor & Accessibility, Together
Academic quality and learner accessibility aren't trade-offs. Our approach ensures digital learning is both instructionally strong and genuinely usable for every student.
Production Support
From course structure and multimedia planning to LMS build and quality assurance, we help institutions move from vision to launch, on time and with confidence.
Scalable Frameworks
We build standardized systems: syllabus templates, course frameworks, LMS pilots, that make future course development faster, more consistent, and easier to sustain.
True Partnership Mindset
We work as an extension of your institutional team, adapting to your goals, processes, and constraints. We don't impose a one-size-fits-all model. We build for you.
Selected Work
HBCU Partnerships in Practice
Howard University
Bringing Howard's Academic Voice to Online Learners Through Coursera
Howard University partnered with Coursera to share its faculty expertise with online learners worldwide, and they needed a design partner who could translate that expertise into a compelling digital format without sacrificing the university's rigor or institutional identity.
SRM partnered with Howard and Coursera to design and develop two online specializations. Working closely with faculty and platform stakeholders, our team adapted course material for Coursera's format, supported faculty in developing short-form video instruction, and coordinated across Howard, Coursera, and production partners from planning through launch.
The result: two high-quality specializations that feel distinctly Howard and work effectively for learners at scale on a major online platform.
- Designed and developed two full Coursera specializations
- Supported faculty through a clear, structured development process
- Aligned course structure, content, and assessments with Coursera's platform standards
- Coordinated across multiple stakeholders throughout the development lifecycle
Shaw University
Building a Scalable Foundation for Online Course Delivery
Shaw University needed to transition existing courses to online delivery: quickly, consistently, and without overburdening faculty or disrupting curriculum. The challenge wasn't just moving content online. It was building a repeatable system that could sustain quality over time.
SRM delivered a structured approach that gave Shaw both immediate deliverables and a long-term framework: a standardized syllabus template, conversion of 40 existing syllabi into online-ready formats, a learning experience design evaluation of a representative course sample, and a working LMS pilot module to model best practices in action.
- Standardized course structure and expectations across 40 syllabi
- Identified what translated directly, what needed modification, and what was missing
- Delivered a working LMS pilot module as a concrete model for online instruction
- Established a scalable framework for evaluating and improving future course readiness
"SRM is consistent and diligent in pushing a project forward to excellence."
Dr. Barron Harvey
Associate Provost of Academic Innovation and Strategic Initiatives, Howard University
Looking Ahead
Our Commitment to HBCU Partners
Our work with HBCU partners isn't a portfolio entry. It's the foundation for a deeper and more sustained commitment. We are not simply looking to add institutions to a client list. We aim to become a trusted, long-term partner to HBCUs seeking thoughtful course design, strong execution, and genuine collaboration.
Whether the priority is expanding online program capacity, improving course quality at scale, or building more effective student-centered digital experiences, we bring the expertise, the process, and the partnership mindset to do it well.
We welcome conversations with institutional leaders, faculty, and program teams who are ready to explore what that partnership could look like.
Let's Build Something Great Together
Learn more about SRM's higher education work and insights, or reach out to start a conversation.
