Older students at Westchester Community College have had the opportunity for many years to take non-credit courses for the sheer enjoyment of learning or to take courses for credit with students of all types.
But this fall, for the first time, mature students, those defined as 50 and over, will have the chance to take courses for credit with their peers ”“ either at the campus in Valhalla or online.
The American Association of Community Colleges (AACC) has chosen 11 colleges nationwide ”“ including Westchester ”“ to help older students earn college credit, get job training to help them start a career or change careers and to earn certificates or degrees in the areas of health care, education or social services. WCC received a grant of $5,000 a year for three years for the program. Lumina Foundation is funding the participation of community colleges in what is known as the Plus 50 Completion Strategy, which is helping baby boomers complete degrees or certificates. The initiative began with support from The Atlantic Philanthropies. Then the Deerbrook Charitable Trust gave $3 million to the AACC to expand the program.
“We were selected for our experience in working with an older population,” said Patrick Hennessey, director of college-community relations for WCC. “This is different than taking courses for fun. The current trend is people working longer. And they”™re comfortable taking classes with their peers.” The economy is also playing a part, with many baby boomers looking for career training and retraining at community colleges after losing jobs. The goal of what is known as the AACC”™s Plus 50 Encore Completion Program is to reach 100 colleges and 10,000 students over 50 by 2015.
“People are living longer, more vibrant lives,” said Judith Kelson, director of the Mainstream program at WCC, which for more than 20 years has offered enrichment classes and career retooling programs for older adults. “This helps get them into jobs and get them the training they might need.” Both Kelson and Hennessey stressed that the college already has the support programs in place to help those over 50 re-enter school and the workforce. “Some people over 50 are apprehensive about going back to school. We want to make sure they have what they need to be successful,” Kelson said. “Especially when it comes to math skills. We want to make sure their math skills are in place.”
Both say computer skills are not as much of a problem for those returning to school as they used to be. “In the mainstream classes, we are finding that a lot more mature adults come to college with computer skills,” Kelson said. Once in the program, students will have preparatory courses to help them succeed. “There will be a college success class,” Hennessey said. “A lot of colleges offer that now for those just out of high school or returning to school. It”™s been around for about 10 years. It teaches people how to study, how to use different resources. And how to take notes.”
One of the first classes in which students will take notes will be anthropology. Why anthropology? “It”™s a class that”™s challenging but approachable,” Hennessey said. “Also, this was a part of many programs, it satisfied a requirement of many programs. And we wanted to think of something a 50-plus student could bring their life experience to. Sciences and math, we”™ll give them a little time to get back into the academic setting before they tackle those.”
WCC refers to this as an “incubator project,” meaning it will start small and hopefully grow. “We”™re not looking for 500 people out of the gate,” Hennessey said. “Probably less than 100. But the important thing is for them to get relevant training in the growth areas like health care, education, social services.”
And the fact, he said, that WCC is not a research institution is an advantage for students at this stage. “Our teachers are here to teach, not do research. They”™re here to connect with the student no matter the age or the background. They”™re pretty excited about being on the cutting edge yet again.”
