Adult Learning in Professional, Organizational, and Community Settings – serie

Building Sustainable Futures for Adult Learners is an edited and refereed collection of papers published in conjunction with the joint Adult Higher Educational Alliance (AHEA) and American Association of Adult and Continuing Education Conferences (AAACE). This book is the third in a series of scholarly publications associated with the annual AHEA conference. The book is arranged thematically according to the topics of submissions. Building Sustainable Futures is important because it fills a unique niche in the field of adult education, extends the scope of AHEA to a larger audience, and offers a current volume for scholars and practitioners based on both research and practice-based research.

Building Sustainable Futures for Adult Learners is an edited and refereed collection of papers published in conjunction with the joint Adult Higher Educational Alliance (AHEA) and American Association of Adult and Continuing Education Conferences (AAACE). This book is the third in a series of scholarly publications associated with the annual AHEA conference. The book is arranged thematically according to the topics of submissions. Building Sustainable Futures is important because it fills a unique niche in the field of adult education, extends the scope of AHEA to a larger audience, and offers a current volume for scholars and practitioners based on both research and practice-based research.

The purpose of this book is to assist post-traditional students to achieve success in the Occupational, Workforce, and Leadership Studies (OWLS) Department and develop their individualized pathway to earn the interdisciplinary Bachelor of Applied Arts and Sciences (BAAS) degree at Texas State University. Applied baccalaureate degrees incorporate higher-order thinking skills and advanced technical knowledge and skills with applied coursework. BAAS students may also earn college-level credits through prior learning assessment (PLA), evaluating and credentialing knowledge and skills gained outside the classroom. The organization and content of this book provides adult degree program faculty and leaders an example of how one required textbook develops and supports the outcomes and activities in all the core courses of an interdisciplinary degree program designed for post-traditional adult learners.The majority of the students earning the BAAS degree are post-traditional students. They are often defined with some or all of these characteristics: over age 25 years old when starting or returning to college, may not have a traditional high school diploma, enroll part-time, work full-time, are financially independent, have dependents other than a spouse and may be a single parent. These students juggle multiple roles and responsibilities in the family, workplace, and community. Post-traditional students bring rich work/life experiences, may be experiencing personal and/or professional transitions, have clear career goals, and often finance their education. They seek flexible programs including online education, PLA, and accelerated course formats. Thus, post-traditional students want active, collaborative, and interactive learning relevant to career and other roles and goals.

The purpose of this book is to assist post-traditional students to achieve success in the Occupational, Workforce, and Leadership Studies (OWLS) Department and develop their individualized pathway to earn the interdisciplinary Bachelor of Applied Arts and Sciences (BAAS) degree at Texas State University. Applied baccalaureate degrees incorporate higher-order thinking skills and advanced technical knowledge and skills with applied coursework. BAAS students may also earn college-level credits through prior learning assessment (PLA), evaluating and credentialing knowledge and skills gained outside the classroom. The organization and content of this book provides adult degree program faculty and leaders an example of how one required textbook develops and supports the outcomes and activities in all the core courses of an interdisciplinary degree program designed for post-traditional adult learners.The majority of the students earning the BAAS degree are post-traditional students. They are often defined with some or all of these characteristics: over age 25 years old when starting or returning to college, may not have a traditional high school diploma, enroll part-time, work full-time, are financially independent, have dependents other than a spouse and may be a single parent. These students juggle multiple roles and responsibilities in the family, workplace, and community. Post-traditional students bring rich work/life experiences, may be experiencing personal and/or professional transitions, have clear career goals, and often finance their education. They seek flexible programs including online education, PLA, and accelerated course formats. Thus, post-traditional students want active, collaborative, and interactive learning relevant to career and other roles and goals.

As discourses and programming to support diversity and inclusion across higher education are intensifying, Leaps of Faith: Stories from Working-Class Academics presents a collection of narratives that highlights the “on-the-ground” experiences of working-class students and scholars. These are stories of negotiation, transition, and challenge. These are stories of struggle. These are stories of beating the odds.The early works of Ryan and Sackrey (1984), Sennett and Cobb (1993), and Dews and Law (1996) raised the voices of working-class academics, and the subject of class in higher education has gained traction—especially with the increasing focus on the enrollment and persistence of first-generation college students. This project situates contributor stories in adult learning and development, with the goal of enhancing dialogue and increasing understanding of a still-hidden population in the academy. Leaps of Faith: Stories from Working-Class Academics is a compelling collection of reflections from working-class students and scholars from diverse demographic and geographic backgrounds who are currently navigating various transition points and career stages.Leaps of Faith: Stories from Working-Class Academics presents the strengths and gifts of the scholar-contributors and the opportunity to “turn the stories” through accessible and meaningful reflective “telling.” The collection concludes with a discussion of salient implications for working-class students and scholars, those who support their learning and development, and higher education institutions and programs.

As discourses and programming to support diversity and inclusion across higher education are intensifying, Leaps of Faith: Stories from Working-Class Academics presents a collection of narratives that highlights the “on-the-ground” experiences of working-class students and scholars. These are stories of negotiation, transition, and challenge. These are stories of struggle. These are stories of beating the odds.The early works of Ryan and Sackrey (1984), Sennett and Cobb (1993), and Dews and Law (1996) raised the voices of working-class academics, and the subject of class in higher education has gained traction—especially with the increasing focus on the enrollment and persistence of first-generation college students. This project situates contributor stories in adult learning and development, with the goal of enhancing dialogue and increasing understanding of a still-hidden population in the academy. Leaps of Faith: Stories from Working-Class Academics is a compelling collection of reflections from working-class students and scholars from diverse demographic and geographic backgrounds who are currently navigating various transition points and career stages.Leaps of Faith: Stories from Working-Class Academics presents the strengths and gifts of the scholar-contributors and the opportunity to “turn the stories” through accessible and meaningful reflective “telling.” The collection concludes with a discussion of salient implications for working-class students and scholars, those who support their learning and development, and higher education institutions and programs.

Transformative Learning in Healthcare and Helping Professions Education: Building Resilient Professional Identities is a co-edited book (Carter, Boden, and Peno) with invited chapters from educators who share our passion for learning in healthcare and the helping professions. The purpose of the book is to introduce professional learners (students, residents, and others in professional training) to transformative learning for building resilient professional identities amid practice environments that include widespread burnout and compassion fatigue. With a diverse set of authors engaged in clinical and educational practice in academic medicine, nursing, dentistry, physical therapy, mental health counseling, science education, psychology, social work, and inter-professional collaborative practice, we offer strategies for building resilience throughout the years of professional training and into professional practice. We do so through the experiences of authors involved in healthcare and the helping professions to illustrate how some are coping with the challenges of burnout and compassion fatigue through learning that can be transformative.This book explores the nature of professional identity formation by examining ways that professionals in training can thrive amid the challenges of today’s stressful practice environments. First-hand stories of resilience illustrate how learners, as well as educators in these professions, are addressing adversity, career decision-making, service to the underserved, and the self-care needed to provide excellent care for others. The prominence of transformative learning within adult learning theory is illustrated for its potential to revise the meaning that learners make of their experiences and open up new possibilities for renewed vitality in professional education and practice environments.The book has two primary audiences: professional learners in healthcare and helping professions education, and their educators who are often professional practitioners themselves. These educators have a significant role in influencing the next generation of professionals by serving as mentors, role models, and teachers. The importance of fostering learning that is transformative has never been more important than it is today for those who will work in these demanding professions. We invite readers to discover experiences and strategies for achieving individual wellbeing, as well as opportunities for building a culture within professional education and practice settings that will foster resilience.

Transformative Learning in Healthcare and Helping Professions Education: Building Resilient Professional Identities is a co-edited book (Carter, Boden, and Peno) with invited chapters from educators who share our passion for learning in healthcare and the helping professions. The purpose of the book is to introduce professional learners (students, residents, and others in professional training) to transformative learning for building resilient professional identities amid practice environments that include widespread burnout and compassion fatigue. With a diverse set of authors engaged in clinical and educational practice in academic medicine, nursing, dentistry, physical therapy, mental health counseling, science education, psychology, social work, and inter-professional collaborative practice, we offer strategies for building resilience throughout the years of professional training and into professional practice. We do so through the experiences of authors involved in healthcare and the helping professions to illustrate how some are coping with the challenges of burnout and compassion fatigue through learning that can be transformative.This book explores the nature of professional identity formation by examining ways that professionals in training can thrive amid the challenges of today’s stressful practice environments. First-hand stories of resilience illustrate how learners, as well as educators in these professions, are addressing adversity, career decision-making, service to the underserved, and the self-care needed to provide excellent care for others. The prominence of transformative learning within adult learning theory is illustrated for its potential to revise the meaning that learners make of their experiences and open up new possibilities for renewed vitality in professional education and practice environments.The book has two primary audiences: professional learners in healthcare and helping professions education, and their educators who are often professional practitioners themselves. These educators have a significant role in influencing the next generation of professionals by serving as mentors, role models, and teachers. The importance of fostering learning that is transformative has never been more important than it is today for those who will work in these demanding professions. We invite readers to discover experiences and strategies for achieving individual wellbeing, as well as opportunities for building a culture within professional education and practice settings that will foster resilience.

For at least the last 100 years, more than 40% of all students who enrolled in American colleges and universities have not persisted to graduation at four-year institutions. Their stories are varied, but in every case, something got in the way of that pursuit. Life happened. They became one of the nearly 36 million Americans who have some college but no degree.For many, the stigma of not finishing college is a closely held secret that weighs heavily as they discuss, engage, and compete to meet the challenges of the workforce in the 21st century. Some weren’t ready at age 18 for the focus and commitment that academic studies require. Others found opportunities to create income and meet immediate familial needs or requirements. Many have excelled despite their lack of a college credential. Contrary to the deficit mindset that often permeates the retention and persistence discourse, this book highlights the stories of those who successfully returned to what was left unfinished.The stories here may challenge your assumptions. These are high-quality students who demonstrated a compelling and inspiring commitment to their education, begun long ago and now completed—in some cases decades later. As you read, don’t miss the role that engaged advisors, supportive family members, and well-designed programs such as prior learning assessment played in helping students to the finish line. These narratives also demonstrate that it is time for institutions of higher education to imagine and embrace new ways of serving these students well.

For at least the last 100 years, more than 40% of all students who enrolled in American colleges and universities have not persisted to graduation at four-year institutions. Their stories are varied, but in every case, something got in the way of that pursuit. Life happened. They became one of the nearly 36 million Americans who have some college but no degree.For many, the stigma of not finishing college is a closely held secret that weighs heavily as they discuss, engage, and compete to meet the challenges of the workforce in the 21st century. Some weren’t ready at age 18 for the focus and commitment that academic studies require. Others found opportunities to create income and meet immediate familial needs or requirements. Many have excelled despite their lack of a college credential. Contrary to the deficit mindset that often permeates the retention and persistence discourse, this book highlights the stories of those who successfully returned to what was left unfinished.The stories here may challenge your assumptions. These are high-quality students who demonstrated a compelling and inspiring commitment to their education, begun long ago and now completed—in some cases decades later. As you read, don’t miss the role that engaged advisors, supportive family members, and well-designed programs such as prior learning assessment played in helping students to the finish line. These narratives also demonstrate that it is time for institutions of higher education to imagine and embrace new ways of serving these students well.

The book, Teaching and Learning for Adult Skill Acquisition: Applying the Dreyfus and Dreyfus Model in Different Fields, will fill a unique niche in the field of adult, higher, and workforce education. It offers a current volume for scholars and practitioners based on both empirical studies and practice-based research on adult skill acquisition and development. Dreyfus and Dreyfus (1980, 1988, 2004, 2008) developed the novice to expert model of skill acquisition that illustrates growth over the course of a person’s career in a particular domain. The skill model highlights a learner’s movement across six levels of skill development: novice, advanced beginner, competent, proficient, expert, and mastery.This book will present examples of the application of the Dreyfus and Dreyfus model in different fields (i.e., health care, education, law enforcement, business, serious gaming, military, ethics training, etc.) providing insight into how practitioners can develop their skills in their particular domains and how educators can promote this development. This collection will be appropriate for a wide variety of professors, researchers, practitioners, and students in the field of adult, higher, and workforce education.

The book, Teaching and Learning for Adult Skill Acquisition: Applying the Dreyfus and Dreyfus Model in Different Fields, will fill a unique niche in the field of adult, higher, and workforce education. It offers a current volume for scholars and practitioners based on both empirical studies and practice-based research on adult skill acquisition and development. Dreyfus and Dreyfus (1980, 1988, 2004, 2008) developed the novice to expert model of skill acquisition that illustrates growth over the course of a person’s career in a particular domain. The skill model highlights a learner’s movement across six levels of skill development: novice, advanced beginner, competent, proficient, expert, and mastery.This book will present examples of the application of the Dreyfus and Dreyfus model in different fields (i.e., health care, education, law enforcement, business, serious gaming, military, ethics training, etc.) providing insight into how practitioners can develop their skills in their particular domains and how educators can promote this development. This collection will be appropriate for a wide variety of professors, researchers, practitioners, and students in the field of adult, higher, and workforce education.

For over 70 years, the United Nations has worked to advance human conditions globally through its historic agenda for a more peaceful, prosperous, and just world. Through the work of the General Assembly and other programs like the UNESCO World Conferences on Adult Education, the organization has taken a leading role in bringing world leaders together to dialogue on world issues and to set agendas for advancing social and economic justice among and within the regions of the world. The underlying themes of the United Nations’ agenda over the years have been world peace, economic justice, addressing the needs of the world’s most vulnerable populations, and protecting the environment. We draw from the two last two declarations from which the Millennium Development Goals (September 2000) and the Sustainable Development Goals (September 2015) were adopted by world leaders with a focus on addressing the needs of the most vulnerable populations. In this declaration, world leaders committed to uphold the long-standing principles of the organization and to combat extreme poverty, hunger, disease, illiteracy, environmental degradation and discrimination and violence against women.The overall objective of the book is to highlight the conditions of vulnerable populations from various contexts globally, and the role adult and higher education can play (and is playing) in advancing the United Nations agenda of social and economic justice and environmental sustainability. Adult education, through research, teaching, and service engagements is contributing to this ongoing effort but as many scholars have noted, our work remains invisible and undocumented. Therefore, this book highlights adult education’s critical partnership in addressing these global issues. It will also begin to fill the void that exists in adult education literature on internationalization of the field.

For over 70 years, the United Nations has worked to advance human conditions globally through its historic agenda for a more peaceful, prosperous, and just world. Through the work of the General Assembly and other programs like the UNESCO World Conferences on Adult Education, the organization has taken a leading role in bringing world leaders together to dialogue on world issues and to set agendas for advancing social and economic justice among and within the regions of the world. The underlying themes of the United Nations’ agenda over the years have been world peace, economic justice, addressing the needs of the world’s most vulnerable populations, and protecting the environment. We draw from the two last two declarations from which the Millennium Development Goals (September 2000) and the Sustainable Development Goals (September 2015) were adopted by world leaders with a focus on addressing the needs of the most vulnerable populations. In this declaration, world leaders committed to uphold the long-standing principles of the organization and to combat extreme poverty, hunger, disease, illiteracy, environmental degradation and discrimination and violence against women.The overall objective of the book is to highlight the conditions of vulnerable populations from various contexts globally, and the role adult and higher education can play (and is playing) in advancing the United Nations agenda of social and economic justice and environmental sustainability. Adult education, through research, teaching, and service engagements is contributing to this ongoing effort but as many scholars have noted, our work remains invisible and undocumented. Therefore, this book highlights adult education’s critical partnership in addressing these global issues. It will also begin to fill the void that exists in adult education literature on internationalization of the field.

Trauma in Adult and Higher Education: Conversations and Critical Reflections invites readers to think deeply about the experiences of trauma they witness in and outside of the classroom, because trauma alters adult learners' experience by disrupting identity, and interfering with memory, relationships and creativity. Through essays, narratives, and cultural critiques, the reader is invited to rethink education as more than upskilling and content mastery; education is a space where dialogue has the potential to unlock an individual’s sense of power and self-mastery that enables them to make sense of violence, tragedy and trauma.Trauma in Adult and Higher Education: Conversations and Critical Reflections reveals the lived experiences of educators struggling to integrate those who have experienced trauma into their classrooms - whether this is in prison, a yoga class, or higher education. As discourses and programming to support diversity intensifies, it is central that educators acknowledge and respond to the realities of the students before them. Advocates of traumasensitive curriculum acknowledge that trauma shows up as a result of the disproportionate amount of violence and persistent insecurity that specific groups face. Race, gender, sexual orientation, ability, and immigration are all factors that expose individuals to higher levels of potential trauma.Trauma has changed the conversations about what education is, and how it should happen. These conversations are resulting in new approaches to teaching and learning that address the lived experiences of pain and trauma that our adult learners bring into the classroom, and the workforce. This collection includes a discussion of salient implications and practices for adult and higher education administrators and faculty who desire to create an environment that includes individuals who have experienced trauma, and perhaps prevents the cycle of violence.

Trauma in Adult and Higher Education: Conversations and Critical Reflections invites readers to think deeply about the experiences of trauma they witness in and outside of the classroom, because trauma alters adult learners' experience by disrupting identity, and interfering with memory, relationships and creativity. Through essays, narratives, and cultural critiques, the reader is invited to rethink education as more than upskilling and content mastery; education is a space where dialogue has the potential to unlock an individual’s sense of power and self-mastery that enables them to make sense of violence, tragedy and trauma.Trauma in Adult and Higher Education: Conversations and Critical Reflections reveals the lived experiences of educators struggling to integrate those who have experienced trauma into their classrooms - whether this is in prison, a yoga class, or higher education. As discourses and programming to support diversity intensifies, it is central that educators acknowledge and respond to the realities of the students before them. Advocates of traumasensitive curriculum acknowledge that trauma shows up as a result of the disproportionate amount of violence and persistent insecurity that specific groups face. Race, gender, sexual orientation, ability, and immigration are all factors that expose individuals to higher levels of potential trauma.Trauma has changed the conversations about what education is, and how it should happen. These conversations are resulting in new approaches to teaching and learning that address the lived experiences of pain and trauma that our adult learners bring into the classroom, and the workforce. This collection includes a discussion of salient implications and practices for adult and higher education administrators and faculty who desire to create an environment that includes individuals who have experienced trauma, and perhaps prevents the cycle of violence.

Enhancing Writing Skills includes conference presentation papers from the Carnegie Writers, Inc. 1st Annual Conference. The anthology provides published and aspiring writers resources for sustaining, enhancing and evaluating their writing skills. The chapter themes focus on genre-based writing, creativity in writing, mechanics of writing, academic writing, and writing as a business. Enhancing writing skills is beneficial to diverse writers as it impacts the community, working, and educational environments. Anthology goals and ojbjectives:- Enable writers to learn from other writers for the development of networking relationships and professional development.- Assist writers with techniques on sustaining their writing talents in their chosen genre or various genres. - Provide meaningful publishing resources related to non-traditional and traditional publication venues. - Enhance writers understanding for marketing strategies in the 21st century.

Enhancing Writing Skills includes conference presentation papers from the Carnegie Writers, Inc. 1st Annual Conference. The anthology provides published and aspiring writers resources for sustaining, enhancing and evaluating their writing skills. The chapter themes focus on genre-based writing, creativity in writing, mechanics of writing, academic writing, and writing as a business. Enhancing writing skills is beneficial to diverse writers as it impacts the community, working, and educational environments. Anthology goals and ojbjectives:- Enable writers to learn from other writers for the development of networking relationships and professional development.- Assist writers with techniques on sustaining their writing talents in their chosen genre or various genres. - Provide meaningful publishing resources related to non-traditional and traditional publication venues. - Enhance writers understanding for marketing strategies in the 21st century.

Mentoring in Formal and Informal Contexts is a collection of invited works on mentoring in the many contexts in which it exists. Working with AHEA, the editors identified authors that have demonstrated experience and/or have published in this area. The book is arranged thematically (health care, education, the workplace, etc.) and further sub-themed as appropriate. Mentoring in Formal and Informal Contexts is important because it fills a unique niche in the field of adult education, extends the scope of AHEA to a larger audience, and offers a current volume for scholars and practitioners based on both research and practice-based research. The audience: This collection is appropriate for a wide variety of professors, researchers, practitioners, and students in the field of adult education.

Mentoring in Formal and Informal Contexts is a collection of invited works on mentoring in the many contexts in which it exists. Working with AHEA, the editors identified authors that have demonstrated experience and/or have published in this area. The book is arranged thematically (health care, education, the workplace, etc.) and further sub-themed as appropriate. Mentoring in Formal and Informal Contexts is important because it fills a unique niche in the field of adult education, extends the scope of AHEA to a larger audience, and offers a current volume for scholars and practitioners based on both research and practice-based research. The audience: This collection is appropriate for a wide variety of professors, researchers, practitioners, and students in the field of adult education.

Mentoring in Formal and Informal Contexts was intended to meet a gap in the academic literature that addressed mentoring practice in different contexts. The book highlights practice and research in higher education of both faculty and students, K-12 teacher education (both general and special education), healthcare education and practice, and business. This new edition provides potential readers with four new chapters that enhance the book by providing research and practice on mentoring: junior tenure track university faculty, a collaborative community of learners, k-12 educators engaged in new methods of science teaching, and pharmacy education faculty charged with utilizing new assessment methods for their students. These chapters provide a fresh, updated look at how mentoring can be applied in both formal and informal settings in new and different ways. New models have emerged from the mentoring research and are applied in contexts new to the book. Additionally, a new Introduction is provided to update readers as to the book’s changes.

Mentoring in Formal and Informal Contexts was intended to meet a gap in the academic literature that addressed mentoring practice in different contexts. The book highlights practice and research in higher education of both faculty and students, K-12 teacher education (both general and special education), healthcare education and practice, and business. This new edition provides potential readers with four new chapters that enhance the book by providing research and practice on mentoring: junior tenure track university faculty, a collaborative community of learners, k-12 educators engaged in new methods of science teaching, and pharmacy education faculty charged with utilizing new assessment methods for their students. These chapters provide a fresh, updated look at how mentoring can be applied in both formal and informal settings in new and different ways. New models have emerged from the mentoring research and are applied in contexts new to the book. Additionally, a new Introduction is provided to update readers as to the book’s changes.

Military Veterans Transitioning to Higher Education and the Civilian Workforce: Challenges, Opportunities, Supports, and Resources offers a thorough exploration of how veterans navigate academic and professional transitions after leaving military service. Drawing on adult education theory, human resource development, and transition frameworks, the book frames reintegration as an ongoing learning process rather than a single moment of change. It examines how military learning cultures—defined by hierarchy, structure, and collective purpose—often clash with the autonomy and self-direction expected in higher education, creating notable adjustment challenges for student veterans. Through lenses such as andragogy, transformative learning, experiential learning, and self-directed learning, the authors position veterans as non‑traditional adult learners whose experiences shape their motivation, identity, and readiness to learn.The text also highlights institutional responsibilities, emphasizing the value of veteran‑focused orientations, peer mentorship, cultural competency training, and inclusive policies. It explores veterans’ sense of belonging, identity negotiation, and the “third space” they occupy between military and civilian life. Beyond the academic sphere, the book addresses workforce transition issues including skill translation, new authority structures, and civilian perceptions of military expertise. It underscores the need for veteran‑ready organizations and the role of human resource development professionals in supporting effective training transfer and long‑term career integration. Overall, the volume provides research‑based strategies and practical guidance for educators, employers, and policymakers committed to creating environments where veterans are not only supported but positioned to thrive.