By
Paul
Briand
The nationwide effort to help train
Baby Boomers in new careers through a consortium of community colleges is
growing.
The American Association of
Community Colleges (AACC) announced recently that 17 additional community
colleges have joined the roster of colleges whose mission is to train 10,000
baby boomers over the next three years for new jobs in healthcare, education
and social service.
The 17 newly-selected colleges are:
Blue Ridge Community and Technical College (Martinsburg, W. Va.), Elgin
Community College (Elgin, Ill.), Guam Community College (Mangilao, Guam),
Halifax Community College (Weldon, N.C.), Ivy Tech Community College of
Indiana, Northwest (Valparaiso), Lake Region State College (Devils Lake, N.D.),
Lenoir Community College (Kingston, N.C.), Montgomery County Community College
(Blue Bell, Pa.), Northern Wyoming Community College District (Sheridan, Wyo.),
Norwalk Community College (Norwalk, Conn.), Salt Lake Community College (Salt
Lake City, Utah), Seminole State College of Florida (Sanford, Fla.),
Tallahassee Community College (Tallahassee, Fla.), Tarrant County College District
(Fort Worth, Texas), Tri-County Technical College (Pendleton, S.C.), Wayne
County Community College District (Detroit, Mich.), and Zane State College
(Zanesville, Ohio).
They join the 11 community colleges
that were named in August 2012 to participate in the Plus 50 Encore Completion Program.
Those 11 include: Arapahoe
Community College (Littleton, Colo.), Black River Technical College
(Pocahontas, Ark.), Broome Community College (Binghamton, N.Y.), John Wood
Community College (Quincy, Ill.), Lansing Community College (Lansing, Mich.),
Owens State Community College (Perrysburg, Ohio), Pitt Community College
(Winterville, N.C.), San Jacinto Community College District (Pasadena, Texas),
Southside Virginia Community College (Alberta, Va.), Waubonsee Community
College (Aurora, Ill.) and West Virginia University at Parkersburg (W.Va.).
“Many adults age 50 and over want
to train for new jobs that help others and are hiring, but they need to update
their skills. Community colleges offer a supportive environment where baby
boomers can train for new jobs quickly and affordably,” Mary Sue Vickers,
director for the Plus 50 Initiative at AACC, said in a statement.
For many Baby Boomers, these are
encore careers, often jobs that appeal to a person's passion. These second
careers come after job loss or even retirement from a long-standing career in
another field.
Vickers added that the program
hopes to add additional colleges in 2013 that will help it reach 10,000 Baby
Boomer students. The next round of grant funding applications for AACC member
colleges will be accepted until Feb. 15 and are available now at www.aacc.nche.edu/plus50rfp.
In addition to grant funds to augment training programs, participating colleges gain access to toolkits and extensive marketing resources tailored to reach Baby Boomers. AACC said they’ll also benefit from the advice and support of staff at other community colleges that have successfully implemented programs for older learners and understand the needs of the plus 50 student population.
The Plus 50 Encore Completion Program is funded with a $3.2 million grant to AACC provided by Deerbrook Charitable Trust.
In addition to grant funds to augment training programs, participating colleges gain access to toolkits and extensive marketing resources tailored to reach Baby Boomers. AACC said they’ll also benefit from the advice and support of staff at other community colleges that have successfully implemented programs for older learners and understand the needs of the plus 50 student population.
The Plus 50 Encore Completion Program is funded with a $3.2 million grant to AACC provided by Deerbrook Charitable Trust.
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