The rapid digital transformation of higher education has challenged public universities to ensure quality in virtual learning environments through sustainable institutional strategies. This study aimed to analyze the impact of continuous teacher professional development on educational quality in public universities and to propose an institutional model for consolidating best practices in virtual education. A mixed-methods sequential explanatory design (QUAN → QUAL) was employed. The quantitative phase included 312 faculty members and 1,248 students from six public universities. Data were analyzed using descriptive statistics, Pearson correlations, multiple regression, ANOVA, and mediation analysis with bootstrap procedures. The qualitative phase involved semi-structured interviews with academic leaders and focus groups with faculty members, analyzed through thematic coding and triangulation.

Results indicated that continuous professional development significantly predicted digital teaching competencies (r = .62, p < .01). Digital competencies mediated the relationship between training and implementation of best practices, which emerged as the strongest predictor of academic performance (β = .37, p < .001) and student satisfaction (r = .74). The structural model explained 58% of the variance in academic achievement (R² = .58). Universities with institutionalized professional development policies showed significantly higher approval rates (up to 14 percentage points) compared to those with non-systematic programs.

Findings highlight that sustainable educational quality in virtual higher education depends not only on technological access but on the institutionalization of continuous teacher training, structured pedagogical innovation, and organizational governance aligned with digital transformation. A five-pillar institutional model is proposed to support systemic quality improvement.