Too often, life gets in the way of adult students, forcing them to delay or abandon their studies. On top of losing valuable time and money, they have nothing to show for their hard work. By stacking short-term credentials in a sequence that leads to an associate degree, students can start to make faster academic and career gains, allowing them to apply for higher-wage jobs more quickly while continuing to grow their skills and work toward their larger goals. To be most effective, these pathways should be built to progress toward high-wage, high-demand careers available in the same region as the college. Their speed and stackability are a necessary and practical response to the expensive stops and restarts adult learners of color have faced for far too long.

Shared Experiences

Hear from adult learners of color who are in these pathways and the leaders and staff supporting them. Hear more practitioner perspectives »

Delenthia Harrison

Forsyth Technical Community College

Emily Green

Virginia's Community Colleges

Christine Barrow

Education Strategy Group

Take Action

Everyone has a role to play. What’s yours?

Recruitment and Enrollment

Do your recruitment materials clearly outline stackable credentials that adult students of color can earn while working toward a degree?
Are you using targeted messaging in materials to highlight skills that could count as credit toward credentials? Are you broadly promoting this opportunity during interactions with potential students?
Are efforts to market pathways considering underrepresentation in aligned fields and sectors?

Advisors and Career Staff

Is the process for receiving credit for prior learning being clearly and consistently communicated to newly enrolled adult students of color?
Are students informed of potential career paths, labor market demand, and wages aligning with credential pathways?
Are students being informed of how each credential in the pathway aligns with job responsibilities and earning potential?

Faculty

Are you supporting the college’s efforts to offer classes at times that will work for adult students of color who may also be balancing full- or part-time work and dependent care?
Are you ensuring the coursework aligns with employer and industry demands? Will it prepare students for any potential licensure requirements?
Are there opportunities to incorporate diverse guest speakers into the classroom experience who could help adult students of color see themselves in careers that their academic pathway prepares them for?

Student Support Staff

Are challenges or barriers that adult students of color identify within their pathways being communicated to colleagues who can support them?
Are you proactively offering support that aligns with pathway milestones, ensuring services are provided at the right time?
Are you respecting students’ cultural norms and preferences when they identify barriers?
Are you making sure those barriers are addressed?

Credential to Degree Pathways Resources

Wondering where to start? Check out these resources to get guidance for designing and implementing effective pathways for adult learners of color.

Today's Students

Black Learners in IT Associate Degree and Credential College Programs

REACH COLLABORATIVE WEBINAR

Equity and Inclusion in Credit for Prior Learning

Watch a recorded presentation from Nan Travers, Ph.D. and a panel discussion with five faculty and professional staff members at SUNY Empire State College on applying an equity lens to Credit for Prior Learning.

REACH COLLABORATIVE WEBINAR

Integrating Credit for Prior Learning Into Credit

Watch a recorded presentation from Nan Travers, Ph.D., Director of the Center for Leadership in Credentialing Learning at SUNY Empire State College, on how to recognize and verify learning and integrate credit for that learning into curriculum using a common language of competencies.