Madison College's New Center for Adult Education

Innovative academies help older students retrain, get back to work
DEBORAH ZIF
WISCONSIN STATE JOURNAL

| dziff[at] madison [dot] com | 608-252-6234 | Posted: Saturday, January 30, 2010 11:45 pm |

In September, Jeff Watson had reason to celebrate when his first child was born, a daughter named Cecelia.

But the good news was followed by bad. Two months later, Watson, 34, was laid off from his job at Wick Buildings in Mazomanie.

With the extra expenses of diapers and day care, and uncertain of his future in the construction industry, Watson did something he never thought he would. The 1999 UW-Platteville graduate went back to college.

He enrolled in an innovative program at Madison Area Technical College: an academy for adults.

These aren’t 18-year-olds straight out of high school. The average age of the students is nearly 43. Most of them have recently lost their jobs, and some haven’t been in a classroom in 20 or 30 years.

There are students who don’t know how to turn on a computer. Others need tips on how to juggle day care with homework just as much as they need a refresher on the Pythagorean theorem. A few are emotionally broken.

“A lot of these folks have never been to college,” said Marjorie Cook, an academic adviser for the program. “And it’s not just that, but they graduated from high school 30 years ago. And they are scared and overwhelmed.”

The idea behind the Center for Adult Education is to get unemployed people trained quickly in areas where there are jobs available.

“I think it’s pretty cutting-edge,” said Sara Goldrick-Rab, an assistant professor at UW-Madison who studies community colleges. “A fast-track approach is consistent with what a lot of people think is necessary to get adults in the door.”

In 2009, more than 5,000 people were laid off in south-central Wisconsin, according to figures from the Workforce Development Board, which serves Dane, Columbia, Sauk, Marquette, Dodge, and Jefferson counties. The board is a partner with MATC in the Center for Adult Education.

In Dane County, unemployment hit 5.4 percent in December, up from 3.8 percent a year ago.

Lula Powell, 58, of Sun Prairie, lost her entry-level job with Accountemps last year. She got a bachelor’s degree from UW-Milwaukee in 1979. But at an age she jokingly describes as “ancient,” she found her skills were outdated and it was difficult to compete with younger job candidates.

“The economy was extremely scary for me being an older worker,” Powell said. “OK, I’m without a job, but I’m not ready to retire. I’m nowhere near ready to retire. I’d like to work maybe another seven, eight, maybe 10 years.”

So Powell enrolled in an academy to get a job in health care — a flourishing field — as a medical receptionist.

To help with the students’ needs, the Center for Adult Education has not only the usual college staff — financial aid advisers and career counselors — but also a specialist who can direct them to food, child care or clothing resources.

“Our focus is on their training,” said Nancy Woodward, director of the center. “But in order for somebody to be successful in training, we don’t want those other barriers to get in the way.”

Although right now they’re scattered all over the college, the center’s staff will move into a new home, 2125 Commercial Ave., next month.

Students are directed to MATC from the Dane County Job Center. Most of them get unemployment benefits from the state and tuition paid by a federal program.

At the Job Center, they meet with advisers to determine whether they should join one of the academies. There are about a dozen academies in fields such as accounting, welding and computer training, all of which end in a certificate.

The program has some unique qualities. Because most people don’t lose their jobs in step with the academic calendar, the academies’ start dates are staggered through the year.

Students stick with the same group of people through the courses in an academy, which can last from about six weeks to four months. Courses are structured so that students are in class for big chunks of the day, mirroring the sense that they’re going to work, Woodward said.

Once they’re enrolled in one of the academies, they’ll meet with Cook, who serves as part academic adviser and part support group leader.

She conducts what she calls “intrusive advising” — contacting students whether they think they need help or not.

Cook reassures people by sharing her own story. She arrived at MATC 12 years ago with a GED. No one in her family had finished high school.

“It’s very scary,” Cook said. “They think, ‘I’m going to be older than everyone. I’m not going to know as much. I didn’t take the right classes when I was in high school, and even if they did, it’s been so long.’ I think a lot of people, they’re afraid to fail. In part because they already feel like they’ve failed, you know, because they’ve lost their job.”

At a recent group advising session, Cook announced exciting news.

One of the students, April Day, 38, had “jobbed out” of her medical reception academy, finding a job before completing the classes.

Some students will use the academy to springboard into an associate’s degree program at MATC, but others are just looking for a few skills to get a new job quickly.

Watson, who lives in Mount Horeb, is in a manufacturing academy. He’s hoping to get a job in that industry using his drafting skills.

Watson lost his job after Wick Buildings filed for bankruptcy in November, laying off more than 350 workers in Mazomanie.

He said one benefit of losing his job was that he got to spend December at home watching his newborn daughter develop. His wife, Tanya, has a steady job at UW-Madison.

Despite initial trepidation about returning to school, he said he’s getting used to college life.

“I’m enjoying this class so much and learning so much that even if I were to find a job, I think I would still like to finish up these classes that I’m in,” Watson said.