August 24, 2026
Back-to-school season often brings to mind classrooms, textbooks, and students preparing for the next stage of their education. But learning isn’t confined to the classroom. In packaging, one of the most dynamic and interdisciplinary industries in the world, continuous learning is not optional—it’s essential.
Whether you’re a packaging engineer, designer, sustainability specialist, supply chain manager, or educator, the industry is constantly progressing. New materials enter the market. Regulations change. Consumer expectations shift. Technologies emerge. Sustainability targets become more ambitious. What was considered best practice five years ago may no longer be sufficient today.
In many ways, we are all works in progress.
That mindset has guided The Packaging School since its inception. Our mission has always been to provide accessible, relevant, and industry-aligned education through a professional packaging curriculum developed at Clemson University and licensed by the South Carolina Commission on Higher Education (#5400). But remaining relevant requires more than simply creating courses—it requires continuously improving them.
In 2025 alone, our team refreshed more than 50 lessons across our curriculum while also developing entirely new learning experiences to address emerging industry needs.
One example is our new elective course, reDesign Your Package. This hands-on, project-based course guides learners through a structured packaging design and redesign process using one of our case studies or a package from their own organization. The course represents a significant investment in experiential learning, featuring 180 lessons—
including 85 video and voice-over lessons—and totaling approximately
60 hours of instruction.
The development of a course at this scale reflects an important truth about education in technical fields: Learning is most effective when theory and practice work together. Professionals don’t just need information; they need opportunities to apply it.
That same philosophy shaped many of our course enhancements throughout the year. And these updates were not just cosmetic fixes. Each revision was informed by current industry standards, peer-reviewed research, regulatory developments, and feedback from learners and industry professionals. The goal was simple: to ensure that what students learn today reflects the realities they will encounter tomorrow.
Across multiple curriculum areas, traditional text-heavy lessons were transformed into more engaging and accessible learning experiences. In our Paperboard Cartons course, lessons such as “Paper vs. Paperboard,” “Finishes,” and “Printing on Paperboard” were redesigned into infographic-based and long-form visual formats that improve comprehension and retention. These resources were also made downloadable, allowing learners to build a library of reference materials they can revisit long after completing the course.
Meanwhile, rapidly changing regulatory requirements demanded substantial updates within our Packaging Laws and Regulations curriculum. New lessons and resources covering topics such as extended producer responsibility, the European Union Deforestation Regulation, tariffs, and the Single-Use Plastics Directive were developed to help learners understand how global policy changes are shaping packaging decisions.
These updates reflect a broader industry reality. Packaging professionals today must understand far more than package specifications and manufacturing processes. They must navigate a landscape that increasingly intersects with environmental policy, global trade, corporate sustainability goals, and consumer expectations.
Technology is also reshaping how professionals in the packaging industry learn and work. Several course updates incorporated emerging topics such as AI, digital workflows, and modern design tools. Lessons in areas such as structural design software and packaging development workflows were expanded to reflect current industry practices and innovations. Rather than treating these developments as future trends, we believe they should be integrated into today’s educational experience.
Continuous improvement also extends beyond content itself. Throughout 2025, lessons were redesigned to support different learning preferences through downloadable PDFs, interactive infographics, click-through learning experiences, enhanced video content, and improved accessibility features. Glossaries across multiple courses were standardized and redesigned, discussions were migrated into more effective learning environments, and visual branding was updated to create a more consistent learner experience.
While these changes may seem small individually, together they represent something larger: a commitment to meeting learners where they are and equipping them with the knowledge and skills they need to succeed.
The packaging industry often focuses on innovation in products, materials, machinery, and processes. Yet innovation in education is equally important. Preparing the next generation of professionals—and helping current professionals remain competitive—requires an ongoing willingness to adapt, evaluate, and improve. That responsibility belongs to individuals and organizations alike—and it’s one we take very seriously.
For professionals, continuous learning means remaining curious and investing in personal growth even after years in the field. For employers, it means supporting workforce development and encouraging skill advancement. For educational institutions, it means constantly evaluating whether the curriculum reflects the current state of the industry.
No course is ever truly finished. No professional ever knows everything. No organization reaches a point where improvement is no longer necessary. Perhaps that’s the most valuable lesson of all.
As another school year begins, it’s worth remembering that education is not a destination but a process. The most successful professionals are not those who have completed their learning journey; they are those who recognize that the journey never ends.
In packaging, as in life, we are all works in progress. And that’s exactly what allows us to keep moving forward.
Julie Rice Suggs, Ph.D., is academic director at The Packaging School. She can be reached at 330-774-8542 or julie@packagingschool.com.
Alli Keigley is production coordinator at The Packaging School. She can be reached at alli@packagingschool.com.
