Adult Education in Practice by Group 4 by Cynthia, Donovan, Julianne, Shelbe and Nicole

                                                              Adult Education in Practice          

EDAC 631: Adult and Community Education 

Dr. Bo Chang 

 

Blog Comment Log
Cynthia Harter	Commented on xxx’s blog
Donovan Mann	Commented on Group 7: Roussell and Hadi’s blog
Julianne Harter	Commented on Sandra Roussel, Hadi ur Rahman Hadi’s blog
Shelbe Mann	Commented on xxx’s blog
Nicole Fischer	Commented on Janet Shindler's blog

 

 

Group Members and Roles
Cynthia Harter	Introduction/Interview
Donovan Mann	Introduction/Interview
Julianne Harter	Conclusions and Discussion
Shelbe Mann	Implications
Nicole Fischer	Summary Table, Coordinating, Editing, Posting to Blog and Canvas

 

  

 

Introduction and Interview (Cynthia) 

 

Rebecca Wolfe: Branch Manager of the Allen County Public Library-Grabill Branch  

 

The Allen County Public Library (ACPL) offers various adult programs across their 14 locations in Allen County, Indiana. They offer book clubs; programs that teach skills such as sewing, painting, gardening, or computer/technology; programs involving hobbies such as model trains and board games; genealogy programs; life and social skills information sessions; programs for adults with disabilities; and more. These programs are led by librarians, other library staff, or in collaboration with individuals and organizations that specialize in those areas. 

The programming mission of the ACPL is to provide enriching, enlightening, and educational opportunities for people from all backgrounds (Allen County Public Library).  Wolfe’s primary programming focus is working with adults with intellectual and developmental disabilities (IDD). She visits several local agencies serving adults with IDD. Her outreach programs take on two basic formats. The first is a modified “story time” with lots of music and movement, along with a literacy element. These activities may include having a book read to the group, leading the group in reading poems together, or a reader’s theater. A reader’s theater has members of the group participating in the activity read the various parts of the story. 

The second format of outreach programming utilized is a book club. There are two different book clubs which take place depending on the needs of the members attending; however, both clubs involve the members taking turns to read aloud. The one book club has members with fewer support needs and will have a group discussion after reading from a chapter book together. The other club has members with more support needs, so discussions are not as robust; instead, after reading a simple book, they often color or do a craft together.  

 After several years of serving adults with IDD via outreach, Wolfe proposed the idea of doing programs in their libraries for adults with IDD. In March of 2022, they started All Abilities Club, and it is currently being offered at four ACPL locations. All Abilities Club is a monthly program focused on arts, crafts, and guest speakers. Books and songs to supplement the identified themes in All Abilities Club. Each of the ACPL locations with the All Abilities Club program is led by librarians who do adult programming and sometimes they engage the help of community volunteers.  

Examples of the activities and themes that have been done at All Abilities Club include scrape painting with squeegees, a tealight snowman ornament craft with snowman stories, and a Frida Kahlo day where they read about Frida and did a couple of related art projects (paper flowers and a parrot craft). 

Collaborating with other agencies is crucial to the success of this kind of program. ACPL librarians visit local agencies serving adults with disabilities engaged in various activities. Additionally, most of the attendance at their in-house programming is from groups from these local area agencies. Due to limited resources, the ACPL can only justify the funding and staffing of programs which greatly impact the community. Program attendance numbers are one key way program viability is determined. Collaborating with other organizations, particularly in this case, ensures that there are plenty of participants. Many adults with IDD have significant supportive needs and it would be beyond the capabilities of the ACPL alone to provide adequate support during the programs; collaborating with the agencies enables the ACPL to provide meaningful, fun programming for adults with IDD! 

The biggest challenges of programming for adults with IDD are transportation and availability. Some individuals who want to participate in the All Abilities Club cannot find transportation. Agency groups may have other activities at the same time the library offers programming. Wolfe works to coordinate with agencies, to accommodate their schedules with her availability. She also will let them know when programs will be offered in which the community agencies have expressed interest. Staffing shortages are present within the agencies. These staffing shortages coupled with client behaviors and needs, may prevent groups from visiting the library’s branches. There can be fewer challenges involved with outreach programming, as it is generally easier to coordinate, but staffing shortages within the library can also make it difficult for librarians to have enough time to visit. 

Wolfe has received much praise from the local community for her work with individuals with IDD. For example, a local newspaper article highlighting the program (Wilkins, 2023), Jess Koehneke, service coordinator for a local agency, Maple Seed Farms, who utilizes the program, expressed her appreciation for Wolfe and the program, “It’s just fun, and it keeps everybody engaged. And then when our individuals come back, they’re hyped and talking about what they just experienced. It’s just a big part of their day…We just love her [Wolfe], she recognizes our individuals, and she’s been such a positive support. She’s always friendly to our individuals, which is really important.” This kind of feedback highlights how impactful adult and community education can be. 

 

Introduction and Interview (Donovan) 

 

Eilis Wasserman: Program Manager at the Shafer Leadership Academy  

 

The Shafer Leadership Academy (SLA) in Muncie, Indiana offers various leadership development programming. Most of the programs offered come “in the form of LIVE interactive workshops” that can range from a one-hour long program to an eight to ten weeklong offering according to Wasserman. One-on-one coaching is also offered through the SLA. 

 The second interview for this assignment was with Eilis Wasserman, who works with the Shafer Leadership Academy. Wasserman’s full-time position is Program Manager where she plays a significant role in the organization's development and planning of leadership and professional development programs offered to the community. Additionally, she does career coaching and leads adult education programs at SLA, where her mission is “cultivating confidence and inspiring self-discovery.” 

Wasserman identifies three main types of programming offered at the organization. The first is “custom programming” where the Shafer Leadership Academy’s programming team works “internally with specific employers” to develop a program tailored to the needs of that employer. The second programming type is “membership programming.” Wasserman says these workshops are exclusively offered to members of the SLA. The final programming type is “community programming” which is open to the local community to attend, regardless of membership status. 

The Shafer Leadership Academy was founded upon their “Emergence Program.” Wasserman calls this workshop their “signature community leader program for emerging leaders in the local area.” It is one of many signature programs the organization has developed over the years to provide regularly to the community and their members. 

Most of the signature programs at the SLA focus on “inclusive leadership” according to the program manager. Such topics include self-awareness, team building, and DEI (diversity, equity, and inclusion). “Every workshop focuses on applied and actionable learning” according to Wasserman. The programs are participation focused where attendees might work in groups to engage in discussions and activities or participate in reflective exercises. Wasserman says one good example for the nature of their sessions is “Fusion - a multi-generational session with a gameboard” where participants engage in an interactive board game activity while learning how to lead a multi-generational team. 

The Shafer Leadership Academy works closely with some of the area’s top employers to help develop local leaders. Wasserman states that the SLA has “strong relationships with local organizations with similar mission and passions - it’s all about building sustainable relationships and partnerships.” Such collaborations include co-programming, sponsorship opportunities, marketing and promotions, and “sharing each other’s messages.” Some examples include a co-hosted program called “Off the Shelf” in collaboration with the Muncie Public Libraries. Ball State University is a very active collaborating partner with the Shafer Leadership Academy. 

The program manager says there is a “diverse variety of challenges” when it comes to providing adult education to the community. The first challenge is that the SLA specializes in “live deep learning opportunities” but a lot of individuals these days do not have time to engage in such programs. The organization has begun offering shorter one-hour sessions and more virtual programs. Lastly the SLA provides offerings at different points of the day, such as “early riser,” “coffee talk,” and “lunch & learn” sessions.  

Wasserman states a second challenge she sees not just at her organization but overall is a lack of male participation in their programming. She says she sees “this in every sector of society/adult education and it’s getting worse” from where it was twenty years ago. To combat this challenge, SLA has taken a deeper look into their marketing strategies to ensure they are properly reaching all people.  

Other challenges faced by the SLA include funding development, competition, and politics of the local area. The Shafer Leadership Academy uses a Sales and Development Team that focuses “on working with the local employers and selling is often a long-term game” according to Wasserman.

Conclusions and Discussion 

 

The two organizations featured are the Allen County Library (ACPL) and the Shafer Leadership Academy (SLA); both provide adult education programs to their local community. 

The ACPL’s programming mission is to provide enriching, enlightening, and educational opportunities for people from all backgrounds. An educator must consider its population and the needs of the community. Rebecca Wolfe, a Branch Manager at ACPL, is working with adults with intellectual and developmental disabilities (IDD). Miller (2011) suggests, “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.” Wolfe identified the importance of making use of local community resources and collaborating with related organizations to promote lifelong learning. Wolfe then implemented programs for adults with IDD via the All Abilities Club offered at four ACPL locations. 

The SLA educates adults who endeavor to become leaders and reach their full potential (Boyd & Schrock, 2024). Eilis Wasserman, in her role as Program Manager, offers three main types of adult and community educational programming at the organization. The first is to tailor programs to the employer. The second is workshops exclusively offered to members of the SLA. The final programming type is for the local community. The SLA’s goal is as Caruso (2014) suggested, “Leadership has high level skills, depending on reaching potential or diminishing, creating a vision, establishing a culture, creating conditions facilitating the journey.”  

Wasserman identified many challenges for providing adult education to the community. The first challenge is individuals do not have time to engage in programs. Wasserman’s challenges require, as McPheat (2022) suggested, “Make learning a collaborative process between facilitator and learner …working as coaches, in a mentor setting, or as a trainer in a workshop. Provides an environment that makes it easy for learners to embrace information, collaborate, and apply it in the real world.” Additional challenges identified by Wasserman include limited resources, program funding, program attendance, challenges of transportation, availability, and collaboration with other organizations. 

The ACPL programs for adults are very wide ranging. One of the challenges Wolfe discussed was the shortage of staff available to facilitate programming. When accessing the ACPL website using search words related to the programs in their libraries for adults with IDD and the All Abilities Club, it was difficult to access a link to those educational programs; perhaps efforts should be made to increase visibility of programming via marketing techniques. 

The SLA’s three main types of programming offered are programs tailored to the needs of the employer, workshops exclusively offered to members, and programs offered to the community. The SLA collaborates with local organizations to provide co-programming, sponsorship opportunities, marketing, and promotions. Challenges of the SLA are conflicts in scheduling, absence of male participants, funding development, competition, and political public policies. 

Both the ACPL and the SLA are similar and may be explained by Monaghan (2010), “Program development…requires playing many roles including negotiator with adult learner, resource agent to instructor, and intermediary between the adult education units, individuals in decision-making positions within the parent organization, and community groups.” It is evident the ACPL, and the SLA rely on community collaboration for the success of their adult education programming, and have challenges of scheduling, meeting the ever-evolving needs of the learner, and funding.  

Implications

The idea we have gained knowledge about in the interviews conducted with the ACPL and the SLA is that adult education is adaptable to what is needed by the communities they serve. It can inform the practice of adult education by using real world experiences. The ACPL offers courses in basic life skills and group learning for literacy programs with people of varying intellectual needs. The skills gained by the participants in these programs immediately affect their lives as they implement them. The SLA focuses on customs, membership, and community programming. These programs cater to each group's needs and vary in content. It is pivotal that each of these programs exist within the ACPL and SLA. They inform the practice of adult education in that they show the continuous need for education beyond the formal education people have received. That training and the knowledge gained can help the individual. The ability to gain more comprehension also can benefit the organization in which a person is employed, volunteering, or learning.  

The ACPL struggles with transportation needed for patrons to participate in various program offerings in Allen County. This struggle may be lessened if the leaders worked with the local bus and/or ride sharing company to provide transportation to patrons in need. However, this may not be an option for all patrons if they may have specific travel needs due to their respective physical and/or mental health limitations. The other major concern for the ACPL is staffing shortages to facilitate and organize their programs. This concern could be addressed by creating a program with local colleges/universities. This collaboration with local colleges/universities would engage students to volunteer to gain experience in working with the various populations within the local community. The ACPL could also partner with local companies to teach basic skills, such as financial education. Three Rivers Federal Credit Union offers financial wellness courses and is just one such organization within the local community. These additional collaborations would require more staffing within the ACPL as the coordination and implementation could be cumbersome. The staffing shortage within the ACPL cannot be remedied solely by the engagement of more volunteers. Community outreach and engagement is essential for the ACPL to continue its successful implementation and facilitation of adult educational programming, such as the All Abilities Club. By increasing community awareness, the goal is to increase participation and engagement with the ACPL.  

Investments in adult education and training programs can yield significant economic
benefits, including increased productivity and reduced social costs. One of the most
important roles of adult education is to address low social mobility. By offering people
the opportunity to acquire  new skills and qualifications, adult education can improve their job prospects and break the cycle of poverty. (Tan, 2023)      

          The SLA grapples with the availability of time that people must dedicate to master their “live deep learning opportunities.” To work with adult learners, they have facilitated flexible scheduling and ways to procure the knowledge. The SLA could pre-record seminars and make them available to the adult education learner to access at any time. It could be beneficial to set the teachings up as an online course with a weekly one-hour Zoom meeting and/or a discussion board. SLA has done a wonderful job in attempting to adapt to their learners' needs, if the information being taught is not lost through this new programming offering. The lack of male participation within the various programs could be addressed by making the training mandatory within the companies they partner with locally. The SLA could also offer some type of certificate that could be a positive addition to an employee's resume. However, this suggestion may not garner the results the SLA is trying to accomplish. The SLA struggles with funding and local politics. These struggles have been addressed by having a dedicated group of people working to provide added support in those areas. The SLA has been adaptable to the needs of the people and companies they serve.  

Adult education is also important when it comes to keeping up with changes in your

professional life. Continuing education courses, conferences, and workshops

provide opportunities for individuals to learn about new developments and trends in their

industry, acquire new skills, and improve their job performance. This aspect of adult

education helps individuals stay competitive and advance in their careers. (Tan, 2023) 

Adaptability is the focus of the ACPL and the SLA as they continue offering their programs. Adult education programs offered by these organizations use prior knowledge and foster learning environments to help people succeed. A lifelong learner serves not just the individual, but the community. The ACPL in their adult program offerings can help improve an individual's self-esteem, social relationships, and self-confidence. The SLA offers training and programming that can improve workplace/community productivity and communication. The ability of these organizations to adapt to the needs of the learners is what makes these places adaptable to the adult learner.  

 

Table 1: Summary of the Assignment 

Main ideas/themes from the interview	Discussions:	Implications:
Theme 1:	Wolfe’s work to expand the ACPLs programming to un-served populations in the community is a notable example of how important continued evaluation of a program is vital.	It is imperative to be aware of the populations currently being served as well as the unmet needs of populations who are not represented. Members of organizations within the adult and community education community must be willing to regularly assess their organization for continued growth and accessibility to members.
Wolfe realized the lack of educational and engagement opportunities for adults with intellectual and developmental disabilities.
Theme 2:	Both Wolfe and Wasserman emphasize the importance of having varied formats available for their respective populations they work with. This approach allows each respective agency to expand their access within the community. This also allows for greater participation in the programming which aligns best with the adult learner.	Adult education emphasizes the need for the formats of education and training to be varied. Adult education recognizes and values the unique differences between adult learners. Adult education also emphasis the ability for each learner to be in control of their learning experiences to best meet their individual needs.
It is important for opportunities offered by an agency to have various formats available to best meet the needs of their participants.
Theme 3	Both Wolfe and Wasserman discuss the importance of engaging with other community organizations. These relationships with organizations increase the reach of their respective programming. Collaborating with other community organizations can facilitate discussions regarding accessibility, education gaps, and potential engagement with new adult learners.	Leaders within the adult and community education agencies must be willing to engage with other community organizations to be successful. Engagement with these other community organizations can allow those in adult and community education to have varied viewpoints regarding their programming. These collaborations also can increase the visibility and accessibility of adult and community education.
Collaboration with other organizations is key.

 

References 

 

 

Allen County Public Library. (n.d.). Home. https://www.acpl.lib.in.us/mission-vision-core 

 

 

Belete, S., Duke, C., Hinzen, H., Owusu-Boampong, A., & Khau, H. P. (2022a). Community 

Learning Centres (CLCS) for Adult Learning and Education (ALE): Development in and by Communities. International Review of Education, 68(2), 259–290.  

https://doi.org/10.1007/s11159-022-09954-w 

 

 

Boyd, D., Berger, L., & Shrock, K. K. (2024, January 2). Shafer Leadership Academy. 

https://www.shaferleadership.com/  

 

 

Caruso, S. J. (2014, April 13). Administrators, managers, and leaders: What’s the difference? 

YouTube. https://youtu.be/HbGdpPB5Yko?si=RFd3fxHhfmHlpHvO 

 

 

Deggs, D., & Miller, M. (2011). Developing community expectations: The critical role of adult 

educators. Adult Learning, 22(3), 25–30. https://doi.org/10.1177/104515951102200304 

 

 

McPheat, S. (2022, December 10). What is pedagogy in Education and learning?: Skillshub. 

Skillshub.com. https://www.skillshub.com/what-is-pedagogy-in-education-and-learning/ 

 

 

Monaghan, C. (2010). Management and Leadership. In Kasworm, C., Rose, A., & Ross-Gordan, 

J. (Eds.) Handbook of Adult and Continuing Education. (pp. 177-186). Sage. 

 

 

Tan, N. (2023, September 4). Learn, adapt, succeed: Why adult learning is essential in today’s  

world. Adult Learner’s Guide. https://adultlearnerguide.com/learn-adapt-succeed-why- adult-learning-is-essential-in-todays-world/  

 

 

Wilkins, M. (2023, July 29). Allen county public library hosts club for adults with developmental disabilities. The Journal Gazette.