This issue of Update looks at the challenges adult learners face as they attempt to enter community college, persist to completing a certificate or degree, and successfully transition to employment. The reports shares detailed examples of these challenges including how some adult learners struggle with financial aid and registration processes, inadequate career counseling, insufficient support services and a lack of professional networks they need to get a job after college among others. The report also offers numerous examples of strategies nonprofit-community college partnerships use to help adult learners overcome hurdles such as these. The publication draws on findings from Courses to Employment, a three year demonstration project funded by the Charles Steward Mott Foundation that AspenWSI conducted to investigate how six community college-nonprofit partnerships work together to support the success of low-income adults.
