Member Matters April 2024

Accelerating Adult Learning
Noting that awarding credit based on work and military experience streamlines completion pathways by saving adult learners time and money, the University of Akron is promoting CPL opportunities available at the university. They include a "concierge team" dedicated to helping students document prior learning sources (University of Akron).

MassReconnect, a statewide credential-completion program for adult learners, has helped Mount Wachusett Community College outpace peer enrollment trends (The Gardner News via AOL).

Wilmington University is now awarding up to 18 credits for completion of courses offered by Code Differently, which provides software training designed for adult learners (WDEL).

According to students including the recipient of the university's Outstanding Adult Student Award, the Adult Learners at Penn State club provides a welcoming space that supports them both academically and socially (Daily Collegian).

A new Lewis University campaign to "revolutionize higher ed" supports the university's focus on "... broaden[ing] our horizons beyond the approaches focused primarily on traditional aged undergraduates" (Lewis University).

Rewarding Links Between Learning and Work 
Scottsdale Community College has announced the Workforce and Community Connection hub, which will be dedicated to providing work-relevant programming that meets the needs of rapidly evolving industries, incumbent workers who need to upskill or reskill, and new entrants to the workforce (Phoenix Business Journal).

In the midst of a systemwide listening tour, the Colorado Community College System recently heard from representatives of workforce programs, schools, nonprofits, and apprenticeship programs. During the gathering, held at Arapahoe Community College, participants praised the college for offering programs tailored to industry needs (Littleton Independent). 

In Their Own Words
The associate dean of online leadership studies at Trevecca Nazarene University has distilled years of experience and expertise serving adult learners into "seven needs of adult learners and how to meet them" (Trevecca Nazarene University).

The chancellor of Indiana University Northwest described the pivotal role the university and the general higher ed sector play in the regional collaboration necessary to drive economic development (IU Northwest).

The president of Clayton State University discussed how nontraditional programs, including stackable credentials, are advancing the university's strategic plan and supporting student success (Capital Analytics Associates).

The president of Georgia State University wrote of the central role experiential learning played in his own education and how it is benefiting the students at his university today (Association of Governing Boards of Universities and Colleges).

Creative Credentials
Certificates and other short-term credentials are an increasingly familiar resource in the journey of lifelong learning. Now, lifelong learning itself, along with other topics, is a subject of a certificate program at the University of Wisconsin-Green Bay. The new training and development certificate courses "are designed to inspire excellence and are effective for HR professionals, development specialists, educators or trainers, consultants or presenters and anybody interested in talent management" (UW-Green Bay).

Tiffin University will be offering tech-focused microcredentials at no cost to learners after being one of only two four-year institutions in Ohio to receive funding under the Individual Microcredential Assistance Program. Eligibility to enroll in IMAP, which is offered in person and online, was recently expanded to cover any Ohio resident (Tiffin University).

East Carolina University is using a new microcredential to launch its 21st century Leadership Series, a progression of non-curricular workshops (ECU).

Proactive Partnerships
Fueled by a $1.2 million grant from the city of Boston, a partnership between Bunker Hill Community College and Mass General Brigham is supporting efforts to create multilevel access to laboratory-related education-employment pathways, including certificates, associate degrees, and bachelor's degrees (Mass General Brigham).

Edmonds College has joined the Manufacturing Imperative - Workforce Pipeline Challenge, the only West Coast college selected to participate. The nonprofit Society of Manufacturing Engineers launched the challenge to foster collaboration between itself and participating colleges (Edmonds College).

Texas A&M University-Texarkana and the Texarkana Chamber of Commerce are partnering around the ACT WorkKeys program, which focuses on imparting skills vital in the workplace (Texas A&M University-Texarkana).

In another chamber of commerce-involved partnership, Athens State University is extending a tuition discount to Albertville Chamber of Commerce members and their families (Sand Mountain Reporter).

Awards and Other Achievements
The Chamber of Commerce for Greater Philadelphia awarded the 2024 Paradigm Scholarship for Working Women to two Peirce College students. The chamber awards the merit-based scholarship to undergraduate women employed by member companies (Peirce College).

Two CAEL members, Louisiana Tech University and Grambling State University, figured in the 2024 Inspiring Programs in Business Award, presented by Insight Into Diversity, the "largest and oldest diversity and inclusion publication in higher education." Louisiana Tech University's College of Business was recognized for its work enabling Grambling accounting undergraduates to concurrently enroll in Louisiana Tech's master of accountancy program (Louisiana Tech University).

In academic year 2023, Rowan University delivered an economic impact of $2.9 billion for New Jersey, twice the amount reported in a similar study completed in 2019 (Rowan University). 

NextFlex, "a consortium of companies, academic institutions, nonprofits and state, local and federal governments with a shared goal of advancing the U.S. hybrid electronics manufacturing ecosystem," has named Lorain County Community College as an Education & Workforce Development Innovation Center, its first such designation. The status recognizes NextFlex members "who demonstrate leadership while making an extraordinary contribution to NextFlex's education and workforce development program" (NextFlex).

UNC Pembroke, the third-oldest public university in North Carolina, is celebrating its 137th anniversary (UNC Pembroke).

National University's senior vice president for administration and finance has been honored by the San Diego Business Journal's 2024 Women of Influence in Accounting and Finance (National University).

The Art of Articulation
Penn State has adopted a template that will result in the creation or renewal of articulation agreements among Penn State Commonwealth Campuses and the state's community colleges (Penn State).

Students of all 16 colleges within the Kentucky Community and Technical College System now have seamless pathways to select bachelor's degrees at Ohio University, thanks to a new transfer process linking applicable associate degrees to qualifying four-year degrees at the university (Northern Kentucky Tribune).

Abraham Baldwin Agricultural College and Albany State University have implemented an agreement to guarantee application fee-free admission for ABAC criminal justice graduates enrolling in ASU's master of science in the same discipline (The Albany Herald).