The Plus 50 Initiative: What’s in it for You?

1. The Plus 50 Initiative: What’s in it for You? American Association of Community Colleges Funded with a grant from The Atlantic Philanthropies

2. Attendee List Presentation Slide Area Chat Room

3. Submitting Questions • To submit a question or comment, type the question in the text field and click the arrow button. • Please enter the name to whom the question is directed. • Your name, the text “Submitted Question,” and your question will appear in red on your screen, indicating successful submission. • Questions are directly transmitted to presenters—no other participants will see your questions. Text Field Gary, where can I find today’s PPT? Arrow Button

4. Practice: Attendance In the chat room, please type your name, the name of your organization, your location, and the number of people attending with you today.

5. Access to Webinar Materials Today’s session will be recorded and made available on the Plus 50 website: http://plus50.aacc.nche.edu/

6. Presenters • Mary Sue Vickers Director, Plus 50 Initiative American Association of Community Colleges • Norma Kent Vice President of Communications American Association of Community Colleges

7. Welcome!

8. Learning Objectives By the end of today’s webinar, you will be able to: • Discuss the Plus 50 Initiative and its benefits to community colleges, plus 50 learners, the workforce, and the community at large. • Distinguish the Plus 50 Initiative from existing senior programs. • Describe the Plus 50 capacity-building webinar schedule and the benefits of participating.

9. What is the Plus 50 Initiative?

10. What is the Demand? • 78 million Baby Boomers are nearing retirement age • 4 out of 5 plan to work either full-time or part-time in their retirement

11. Plus 50 Learning Focused around three core areas: • Workforce Training &Career Development • Personal Enrichment • Volunteering

12. The Role of Community Colleges • Structured to help baby boomers chart their next steps during the “third phase” of life. • Experienced in meeting the needs of non-traditional students. • Provide flexible, short- term programs, aconnection to work andvolunteer opportunities.

13. Participating Community Colleges

14. Expansion Program

15. The American Association of Community Colleges The Atlantic Philanthropieswww.atlanticphilanthropies.org Who Sponsors the Plus 50 Initiative?

16. Poll: Which of the following best describes your level of engagement with the Plus 50 Initiative? • I barely know how to spell Plus 50. • I’m somewhat engaged. • I am well immersed. • I’ve mastered the Plus 50 Initiative. What do you need to know?

17. What is Your Community College Doing? In the chat room, please enter a brief description of your institution’s current involvement with plus 50 learners.

18. The Plus 50 Initiative National Survey

19. Pilot tested with 13 participants from 12 community colleges. Participants included individuals from Academic Affairs, Continuing Education, the Office of the President, and existing adult programs. Online survey was sent tothe President 1,081 additionalcommunity colleges. Additional outreach performedby AACC. Our Methodology

20. What Have We Learned?

21. For More Information... A complete report of the National Survey can be downloaded from the Plus 50 website at: http://plus50.aacc.nche.edu/publications.html.

22. Implementing Plus 50 Programming Internal Challenges External Challenges

23. Promising Practices Lower Barriers for Plus 50 Students Fund & Support Plus 50 Programs Tailor Offerings to Needs & Interests Plan & Conduct Needs Assessments

24. Planning and Conducting Needs Assessments • Know your customer! • Put a formal plan in place.

25. Factors Drawing Plus 50 Students to Community Colleges • Tailored programs meet the needs of Plus 50 students. • Credit for workplace experience. • Condensed, flexible,and convenient course offerings. • Location, location, location!

26. Becoming a Plus 50-Friendly School: The Top 10 Things You Can Do • Conduct a needs assessment of the local plus 50 population. • Tailor admission requirements and financial aid programs to plus 50 adults. • Provide a dedicated, point-of-contact faculty member for plus 50 students. • Avoid words like senior, old, and elder. • Prepare counselors to deal with plus 50 student needs.

27. Becoming a Plus 50-Friendly School: The Top 10 Things You Can Do, cont. • Offer short-term courses in condensed blocks of time. • Coach faculty about teaching plus 50 learners; adapt classrooms to adult learning styles. • Develop a targeted marketing plan, including specialized publications and websites. • Partner with organizations that serve and reach out to plus 50 adults. • Cultivate support from the CEO and across academic divisions.

28. Plus 50 Benefits to Your Community College Financial & Volunteer Sources Campus Diversity & Mentoring Programs Companies Value Plus 50 Training

29. Future Events • Tools to Assess the Needs of Your Plus 50 Population (10/08/2009; 3:00 pm) • The Importance of Stakeholders (10/22/2009; 3:00 pm) • If You Build It: Promoting Your Program for Adult Learners (11/05/2009; 3:00 pm) • Understanding the Particular Needs of the Adult Learner (11/19/2009; 3:00 pm) • Creating and Sustaining Your Program for Adult Learners (12/03/2009; 3:00 pm)

30. Question & Answer Please enter any questions you have about the content covered in today’s session in the chat room.

31. For More Information http://Plus50.aacc.nche.edu

32. To View a Recording of this Webinar Today’s session has been recorded and is available on the Plus 50 website: http://plus50.aacc.nche.edu/

33. Thank You!