Introduction
Funded by the Lumina Foundation for Education, “The Adult Learner and the Applied Baccalaureate” is designed to provide federal, state, and local leaders and policy makers with up-to-date, detailed information about the applied baccalaureate phenomenon in the United States, including the extent to which it currently targets adult learners’ educational needs and the potential it shows for meeting adult learners’ needs in the future. There are two variations of the applied baccalaureate: the four-year college applied baccalaureate and the community college baccalaureate. Recognizing the vital link between a healthy economy and a well educated adult workforce, this project will document education and training opportunities as well as public policy and policy-oriented initiatives associated with them that culminate in applied baccalaureate degrees. The project will also identify factors that influence the development and sustenance of these degree options for adult learners, and forecast the likelihood that these degrees will continue to meet the needs of adult learners for baccalaureate-level employment.

Advisory Board:

Davis Jenkins, Chair, Senior Research Associate, Community College Research Center, Teachers College
George Boggs, President, American Association of Community Colleges
Deborah Floyd, Professor of Higher Education, Florida Atlantic University
Kimberly Green, Executive Director, National Association of State Directors of Career and Technical Education
Paul Lingenfelter, President, State Higher Education Executive Officers
Loretta Seppanen, Assistant Director of Education Services, Washington State Board for Community and Technical Colleges
Kenneth Walker, President, Community College Baccalaureate Association
Judy Wertheim, Vice President for Higher Education Services, Council for Adult and Experiential Learning
Peter Ewell, Vice President, National Center for Higher Education Management Systems
Holly Zanville, Lumina Foundation (ex officio)

Participating staff:

Barbara Townsend, University of Missouri, Principal Investigator
Debra D. Bragg, OCCRL, Co-Principal Investigator
Collin Ruud, OCCRL, Research Assistant

Funded by: