STLCC Plus 50 Initiative Offers Programs for Baby Boomers to Transition into New Careers

Getting baby boomers re-trained for new careers is a growing focus for America’s community colleges – but it’s not as simple as announcing a program and inviting adults age 50 and over to register for courses. 

To learn how to improve their efforts to help adults age 50 and over come back to campus for community college, St. Louis Community College staff attended the recent “Plus 50 Conference: From Credentials to Careers” session at the American Association of Community Colleges (AACC) Convention. STLCC representatives included Heather Ellison, manager of continuing education programs, and Tim Gallo, manager of continuing education communications.

More than 100 representatives from 82 community colleges attended the session.

AACC recently launched a nationwide initiative to train 10,000 baby boomers for professions in health care, education and social services. Attending the conference were seven experienced and 63 recently involved community colleges in this initiative, as well as representatives from 18 community colleges that also are involved in helping baby boomers complete degrees or certificates that are in-demand.

STLCC staff are reaching out to baby boomers with a variety of programs and methods of support. They include a Plus 50 concierge on each campus, which provides a single point of contact; adult learner information nights; math refresher courses; and workforce training programs in healthcare and technology that can lead to industry-accepted certificates and ultimately a degree.

“One issue we discussed at the conference was the need for Plus 50 coordinators to consistently gather and apply data to make sure that programs were meeting students’ needs,” Ellison said. “We hope to work closely with our mentee colleges to provide them the support they need in designing and launching their programs, as well as learning new tricks.”

“Training for a new career can be challenging, especially for those who are returning to the classroom after spending decades in the workforce,” said Mary Sue Vickers, director of the AACC Plus 50 Initiative. “It’s critical for colleges to have supports in place to help baby boomers acclimate to college successfully, so they can successfully complete training programs in these high-demand fields and get back to work.”

All of the colleges at the conference are focused on helping baby boomers complete degrees or certificates – a key focus for community colleges nationally, noted Vickers. 

“More colleges are measuring their success through the number of degrees and certificates students earn, and are working to eliminate barriers that hold students back from successfully completing their education goals,” said Vickers.

Baby boomers, like traditionally-aged students, can face challenges that slow or stop their progress toward degrees or certificates. Applying for admission with non-digital transcripts, navigating an online registration system, and determining which courses to take for a degree or certificate are just the start of a plus-50 student’s journey into higher education. Finding time to study, facing fears about math or computers, updating skills and going to classes with younger students, often while working full-time and caring for other family responsibilities, can slow the momentum from a plus-50 student’s career aspirations. Many of these issues can be mitigated through better academic advising, refresher courses and support programs tailored to baby boomer needs. 

During the conference, the attendees learned how to identify resources, apply best practices for helping Plus 50 students and mobilize support. They also learned how the initiative will be monitored and evaluated, so other colleges throughout the country can learn from it and replicate it.

The programs are funded by Deerbrook Charitable Trust and Lumina Foundation, and they build on the successful Plus 50 Initiative launched by AACC in 2008. The Plus 50 Initiative at AACC has focused its efforts during the last five years on workforce training programs to get adults age 50 and over back on the job.

To learn more about the Plus 50 Encore Completion Program, visit plus50.aacc.nche.edu.

Established in 1962, St. Louis Community College is the largest community college district in Missouri and one of the largest in the United States.  STLCC has four campuses – Florissant Valley, Forest Park, Meramec and Wildwood – and annually serves nearly 80,000 students through credit courses, continuing education and workforce development programs.  For more information about STLCC, visit www.stlcc.edu.