Ep 18: Serving Adult Learners

With adult learners accounting for more than a half of community college students, their experiences and considerations must be more thoughtfully recognized. On this episode of Spotlight on Community Colleges, guests Dr. Emily VanZoest (Visiting Research Scholar at the Belk Center for Community College Leadership and President of Reframed Strategies Inc, a higher education research and evaluation firm) and Ellen Flowers-Field (Vice President of Continuing Education and Workforce Development at the College of Southern Maryland) center the roles of adult students and their unique needs while pursuing their academic goals.  Spotlight on Community Colleges debuts new episodes on the third Wednesday of every month to hear topical exchanges between researchers and practitioners, learn about emerging scholarship paired with practical solutions, and consider critical analyses of possibilities for future practice. The podcast is hosted by Drs. Erin Doran, Carrie B. Kisker, and Brett Ranon Nachman. More information at: https://spotlightonccs.podbean.com/.   We have a number of resources to share associated with this episode, including: Dr. VanZoest's lead-authored article on adult learners in Innovative Higher Education.  Info on the Belk Center Adult Learner Lab The Belk Center Adult Learner Guidebook Spotlight on Community Colleges is the official podcast of the Council for the Study of Community Colleges (https://www.cscc.pitt.edu/).   We would like to thank the Lumina Foundation, our Season Three Sponsor. The Lumina Foundation is committed to making opportunities for learning beyond high school available for all.   Learn more about the Community College Data Hub via this website. The Community College Data Hub is a publicly available repository of nearly 60 datasets and data-related publications associated with community colleges and their students, faculty, staff, and communities. The Data Hub is currently offering $5,000 Research Grants and $15,000 Research-to-Practice Stipends for any scholars, students, or college-based personnel wishing to utilize data from the Hub for secondary analysis or institutional improvement. Learn more about the grants here. Stay Connected With Us: Email: [email protected] Instagram: @spotlightonccs BlueSky: @SpotlightonCCs.bksy.social LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/carriekisker/, https://www.linkedin.com/in/erin-doran-7545a67a/, and https://www.linkedin.com/in/brettnachman/   Be sure to rate, review, and subscribe to Spotlight on Community Colleges wherever you listen to podcasts! You can also now find our episodes as video podcasts on YouTube!