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African American men have among the worst high school completion rates of any population in the United States. The consequences of dropping out of school are serious and include high levels of unemployment and incarceration. Attempts at recruiting these men to return to complete a high school credential have not been broadly successful, and the current study was designed to identify the best ideas and practices of recruiting African American men into high-school equivalency completion programs. Using a snowball-generated sample of eight adult education program directors, interviews were conducted to identify strategies and approaches for recruiting African American men. Ultimately, program directors comments resulted in three broad categories of successful recruitment: using personal relationships that connect with men where they are, strategically using social media and online resources that are directly targeted toward these men, and utilizing the relationships and support networks of African American church communities. Responding program directors also stressed the need to meet these men at the physical and psychological places where they are, recognizing that these points of contact can and will change as the men age and face different personal circumstances. The findings provide key information for high-school equivalency program directors as they construct purposeful recruitment plans that also include measures for assessing the effectiveness of their recruitment campaigns.

Communities continue to establish, promote, and monitor the educational outcomes of their citizenry through both explicit and implied norms. Community attributes influence the pursuit of education and level of education completed by individual citizens. The influencers within communities can be attributed to common constructs of communities including formal education bodies, civic agencies, informal associations, religious affiliations, and home life as identified by the Model of Community Expectancy. Although the influence of these common constructs is more understood through recent empirical research, one cannot help but wonder in what ways Critical Theory can be leveraged with this model to further understand community college students' growth and developmental needs. This manuscript explores how the two can be leveraged to address the norms of community that support or negate education among community college students.

Research has consistently suggested that colleges and universities should review academic programs and support services in order to make modifications to meet the needs of adult learners. However, one could argue that colleges and universities cannot be successful in meeting adult learners' needs without understanding the barriers they experience. This study utilized phenomenology to examine the perceived barriers of adult learners in an accelerated undergraduate degree program in the mid-South. Analysis of data collected from adult learners identified three types of barriers: (a). intrapersonal, (b). career and job-related barriers, and (c). academic-related. The results of this study suggested that barriers are never extinct for adult learners and they must work to overcome or manage barriers which emerge from their multiple life roles. (Contains 1 table.)

Urban community colleges fulfill a critical role in metropolitan areas. These institutions are often large by design, with campuses in various communities and neighborhoods so that the institution may fulfill its open access mission across a metropolitan area. This article addresses three emerging initiatives that enable the urban community college to fulfill its open‐access mission—modern workforce development, dual enrollment, and non‐degree credential programs. While these programs or initiatives may seem separately unique and even siloed, they are essential pieces of a comprehensive strategy that the modern urban community college should implement to ensure open access to a diverse population of students while simultaneously addressing critical business and industry needs. Careful design and management of these programs are essential to fulfilling the urban community college's evolving mission in modern society. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The study utilized the Beginning Postsecondary Students Longitudinal Study (BPS:04/06) data set to examine persistence outcomes over a 3-year period across the national sample of students from low socioeconomic backgrounds at public 2-year institutions in the United States. More specifically, the purpose of our study was to investigate how demographic characteristics, in-college attributes, environmental factors, and personal goals of low-income students who enrolled in public 2-year institutions with the intentions of degree attainment or transfer affected their decisions to persist to degree completion, transfer to another institution, or leave. The results from multinomial logistic regression analysis revealed that different sets of factors predicted persistence and transfer for low-income students in our study. Early identification of who will be more likely to leave, transfer, or persist to degree completion will help community colleges better serve the needs of their students.

A level of consistency between community college leaders and community leaders is necessary to demonstrate behaviors, actions, and beliefs that shape, represent, and support expected community values. Likewise, communities, which are collectives of suborganizations, play an important role in aiding individual development, especially related to educational attainment. This study sought to understand ways in which community college leaders and community leaders demonstrate behaviors, actions, and beliefs that shape, represent, and support community values, particularly the influence on an individual's acceptance of formalized education and continued education beyond compulsory schooling. Data were collected from 113 mayors and community college presidents/deans around the United States. Analysis of the data indicated five types of actions consistent among the two groups including the promotion of civic involvement, community growth and development, economic development, well-being of citizens, and value of education. (Contains 1 table.)

Although there is a growing interest in mobile learning, there are limited studies that focus on student knowledge acquisition. As applications and usages of mobile technology have become more and more accepted, it is important and meaningful that researchers and practitioners of mobile learning understand the potential factors that could influence learning outcomes. Accordingly, the primary purpose of this study was to investigate the roles of mobile technology playfulness, users' resistance to change and self-management of learning in mobile English learning outcomes (MELOs). A case study approach was utilized in this study mainly because the questions of interests were closely related to the usage of electronic dictionaries and their effects on mobile learning outcomes. The participants of this study were all undergraduate students from 10 undergraduate programs of the center for general education at one university in Southern Taiwan. A total of n = 167 undergraduate students with experience using an electronic dictionary to learn English participated in this study. The study results indicated that perceived playfulness and self-management of learning had positive influences on MELO and that users' resistance to change was negatively associated with MELO. (Contains 1 figure and 4 tables.)

The importance of mentoring has been consistently emphasized in American higher education especially at the graduate level. Increased emphasis on research and teaching for faculty as well as migration to distance education delivery formats has affected the amount of time that faculty can devote to mentoring graduate students. Some graduate program faculty have therefore relied upon informal associations through graduate student organizations to provide support and mentoring to students. This study replicates the work of an exploratory study of mentoring in adult education graduate programs which occurred nearly 20 years ago through graduate student organizations while accounting for the technology-driven changes which have occurred. The results of this study indicated that current graduate adult education programs seem to be less focused on professional socialization and mentoring due in part to distance education delivery formats and changes in program structure.

Rural community colleges have an often understated impact on the communities they serve, especially in regard to their role in developing the identity of individuals. The ability of the rural community college to influence individual identity development is often exasperated due to the challenges associated with rural American life. The role of the rural community college in meeting individual needs can be guided by the five components of the Model of Community Expectancy (Deggs & Miller, 2011). Drawing upon this model, rural community colleges influence the development, creation, and sustaining of community expectations by developing the individual through labor, nonformal education, liberating education, and sports and recreation programs. Focusing on these and related program areas can enable rural community college leaders in developing the next generation of community leaders. (Contains 1 figure.)

Discussions at the local, state, and national level have been focused on the importance of providing access and opportunity for college attendance. While these discussions are important to raising public interest in higher education attainment, they often negate how community values influence the college attendance decision process. This study sought to examine the beliefs and values of citizens in a rural mid-South county in order to understand how those beliefs and values might affect the decision to attend college. Data were collected from community members in a rural county with assistance from the chamber of commerce. A total of N = 220 citizens completed the instrument, which measured their beliefs and values associated with having a high regard for educational attainment. Exploratory factor analysis (EFA) was utilized to analyze the responses to the items contained in the instrument. Six factors emerged through the analysis of data, including value for education and quality of life, community identity and loyalty, social consciousness, value for religion and health, entertainment and leisure activities, and information access. (Contains 1 table.)

The quality of life in a community is directly tied to the capital available to its citizenry. The idea of capital refers to the resources related to the population--the wealth, the open-minded nature of individuals, the potential for jobs, and putting skills and talents to use to earn a living. There have been a wide range of studies and efforts to understand how capital affects individuals, ranging from educational choice to how individuals interact socially. The result has been an accepted understanding that the social interactions and the nature of developing these interactions among individuals, both formally and informally, greatly aid in the formation of an individual's identity and ultimately influence life choices. The implication of this understanding is that community organizations, including adult education providers and their agents alike, must understand and learn to appreciate the unintended consequences of their actions that affect the development and expansion of social capital among citizens within communities. The role of the adult educator can become more uncertain when attempting to address individual needs that are fundamentally representative of the complex issues within communities. The scarcity of resources in communities further contributes to the challenges that adult educators face in attempting to meet individual and community needs. Therefore, one cannot help but question the degree to which adult education programs can be successful given the forces within communities that negate educational attainment through obstructing the formation of social capital. In this article, the authors discuss the role of an adult educator as a change agent of any given type of learning organization. They stress that quintessentially contributing to the value of education among all individual citizens in any given community is the job of all adult educators. (Contains 1 figure.)

This study was conducted to examine the expectations of adult graduate students enrolled in an online degree program at a research university in the mid-South United States. Students who were pursuing their master of education degree were invited to participate in an e-Focus group regarding their expectations of the degree program. Focus groups were conducted through an online message board which was password-protected. Analysis of e-Focus group transcripts yielded three primary themes related to adult graduate student expectations. Those themes included expectations about learning outcomes, expectations of faculty related to teaching, and expectations related to support systems offered by the university.

Student feedback is essential to improving the quality of instruction in higher education. This article chronicles the process by which an end-of-course reflection exercise was used to gather additional feedback from students and to determine learning outcomes in online course for adult learners. Students were given guiding questions for the reflection activity and student responses were analyzed using categorizing strategies. Four themes emerged from the student responses (qualitative data) including academic planning, earlier exposure to the Kolb model, application of Kolb model to career and professional lives, ability to organize and present information, and student satisfaction.

This study examined the teaching perspectives among faculty from a research extensive university in the southern United States. A simple random sample was drawn from the institution's faculty, and a total of n = 131 responded to the survey. Respondents were asked to complete the Teaching Perspectives Inventory via the Internet and complete a demographic survey. The Analysis of Variance procedure was used to determine if dominant teaching perspectives were discipline-specific. The results of this analysis concluded that a significant difference existed among respondents, with Apprenticeship as a dominant teaching perspective [F(12, 118) = 2.036, p = 0.027]. (Contains 3 tables.)

Although there is a plethora of online learning studies, relatively few studies have probed into teachers' online technology adoption. It is suggested that faculty resistance to technology be one of the key hindrances to the future development of distance learning. Several studies have argued that teachers' resistance to technology, one of the key issues and challenges, could remain a difficult problem in educational field. Thus, the primary purpose of this study is to understand the key factors that influence teachers' intention to adopt online technology. (Contains 4 tables and 2 figures.)

Community colleges play a critical role in offering adult education programs, and have historically been instrumental in offering GED and other high school equivalency programs. The current study was designed to explore the changing nature of community college adult education from the perspective of state leaders. Using the population of state community college directors, a survey revealed that GED programs are not a major political agenda item and that they had only moderate optimism regarding adults returning to community colleges and training. Further, they perceive little alignment between high school equivalency programs, their own offerings, and job readiness programs. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Although there is a plethora of online learning studies, relatively few studies have probed into teachers' online technology adoption. It is suggested that faculty resistance to technology be one of the key hindrances to the future development of distance learning. Several studies have argued that teachers' resistance to technology, one of the key issues and challenges, could remain a difficult problem in educational field. Thus, the primary purpose of this study is to understand the key factors that influence teachers' intention to adopt online technology. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Citizens of rural America are typically less educated than urban citizens although civic pride and sense of satisfaction with quality of life often seem stronger in rural communities. This study examined attributes of six rural counties in the Arkansas Delta in order to determine if those attributes were related to educational attainment among the citizenry. The study utilizes the researchers' Model of Community Expectancy as a theoretical framework and included variables which corresponded to the components of the model. Data points which were consistent with the model were analyzed to determine which elements were associated with educational attainment, specifically completion of high school and a baccalaureate degree. Data analysis indicated that there was a very strong association between adults 25 years of age and older who were high school graduates and number of schools in school improvement. Data analysis also indicated that there was a very strong association between adults 25 years of age and older who held a baccalaureate degree and percentage of the population who are religious adherents. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Geographic dispersion of research subjects can make traditional face-to-face focus groups difficult if not impractical to conduct. Online focus groups have many advantages such as enabling researchers to save costs, allowing for more efficient collection of data, and allowing researchers to accommodate research subjects' schedules. However, online focus groups require greater skill on the part of the researcher and research subjects alike. This manuscript chronicles the process that we recently used to conduct an online focus group using a message board system with graduate students enrolled in an online degree program. We explain the processes that were followed in conducting our study and the rationale behind the decisions that we made as qualitative researchers. Finally, we offer guidance and insight for other qualitative researchers who wish to utilize message boards to conduct online focus groups. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper is the result of a voluntary service-learning component in a qualitative research methods course. For this course, the service-learning project was the evaluation of the benefits to volunteers whom work a crisis hotline for a local crisis intervention center. The service-learning course model used in this paper most closely resembles the "problem-based service-learning" course model where students work as consultants. This paper focuses on the processes involved and the benefits to students in improving their qualitative research skills through the service-learning project. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]