Posted 09/30/2011 - 05:03:55pm by Diane Piktialis
Research confirms that there’s a strong desire on the part of adults over 50 for encore careers – paid work with social purpose and personal meaning. And there’s also a real need for their talent in the social sector. The big challenge is bridging the gap – connecting encore talent with employers who need it.
Many people won’t be able to shift directly into encore roles. Some need more education, training or credentials to achieve their encore career goals. Within driving distance of nearly every American, community colleges are an important educational pathway to encore careers because they bring a commitment to workforce development, have strong community and employer connections, offer a variety learning options and have strong track records in innovation.
Successful encore programs take into account three important stakeholders: encore students, the college administration, and social sector employers. As you consider how you might launch your own encore program at your college, be sure you give adequate planning time to learn the needs of your own local stakeholders and design programs to meet those needs.
Check out the tips below, gleaned from the lessons of Civic Ventures encore colleges, to help you as your build your encore program.
- Understand encore students
- Elicit college support
- Get employers involved
- Make the best of this economy
Many people interested in encore careers need to go back to school. Here are a few facts about encore students.
Encore students are in a unique stage of life characterized by the desire to be more personally fulfilled as well as to create a positive social impact. Jan Abushakrah, director of the gerontology program at Portland Community College, has found through years of enrolling encore students that most are motivated to help people in need. “The people who come to our program say, with remarkable consistency, ‘My whole life I’ve been working in terms of other people’s priorities. But now I’m at the point where I want to be more personally fulfilled as well as make a difference in other people’s lives.’”
Encore students are not homogeneous. The educational level of encore students and their work history varies widely. Encore students are also interested in many different fields and job levels. As one college administrator said, “We have a number of people who have been family caregivers and have never been active in the professional workforce, while others have had professional careers for 25 to 30 years. Many come to us with a prior bachelor’s degree or even graduate or postgraduate degrees but want to develop new areas of expertise. They’re tremendously varied. And there’s an equalizing component to starting a new program. For example, a waitress with a degree in psychology is on the same learning curve as a medical doctor, now that they both want to be teachers and are learning the language of public education.”
Encore students want flexibility and streamlining. Older students seeking encore careers have little patience for bureaucracy and red tape. A typical encore student told one college administrator that she would not have switched to a teaching career if she had to follow a traditional route because of the time it would take. Successful encore programs emphasize flexibility and accessibility in their training and education, including short-term certificates that encore students can complete in a couple of terms, night and weekend courses, online learning, internships, and specialized training that fits into their busy and complex lives.
Encore students need a variety of supports. Encore learners are balancing midlife stresses with college demands, often taking care of children and parents while working full-time. They must become more proficient in learning online as well as in the classroom and often must upgrade their computer, math, job, and networking skills. They must manage their career and encore transition. And many, especially the unemployed, need to build self-confidence. Many encore and plus-50 college programs add encore mentors, coaches and “navigators,” along with additional skills courses to help meet these needs.
Many need financial assistance. In recent years, more and more plus-50 students have decided to seek training for encore jobs because they are either unemployed or worked in an industry that has downsized or disappeared. Most of these potential encore students cannot enroll in college programs without significant financial assistance. Be sure your college’s financial aid advisors are available to encore students. Veteran encore program designers shared this important lesson: Make sure whatever certificate or credential you offer for encore students meets the rules for financial training assistance provided by the state offices that channel state and federal funds through vocational rehabilitation, unemployment and other programs.
Here are suggestions for ways to “make the case” for a new encore program to others at your college.
Inform administrators about what’s happening in the area of encore careers. Investment in older workers pursuing encore careers pays off. Society meets its greatest challenges by making full use of experience. One of the most untapped pools of experience is the encore worker – in health care, education, other kinds of social services and the emerging green economy. Says Dr. Eugene Giovannini, president of Gateway Community College in Phoenix: “This is a rare opportunity to attract a brand new demographic to community colleges. That doesn’t happen often in the community college world.”
Connect encore programs with the college’s mission. Community colleges have a tradition of serving the needs of all community members in an open-access environment. Employers rely on community colleges to train prospective employees with the right job skills. Social sector employers are no exception. Successful encore colleges recognize that trained older learners are a rich talent resource for the community and help the college meet its mission to address the community’s workforce and social needs.
Tap into a new and growing market: baby boomers. Research indicates that tens of millions of the 78 million boomers currently in their 40s, 50s, and 60s are interested in encore careers. They are looking to combine aspects of work – income and benefits – with elements of service in their next phase of life. Between 5.3 million and 8.4 million Americans have already launched encore careers. Of workers age 44 to 70 not already in encore careers, half are interested in them, specifically in jobs in education, health care and the nonprofit sector. But making the switch to an encore career isn’t easy. Many will need job training and additional education to prepare for their new roles. Pioneering community colleges are creating innovative educational pathways for encore seekers by adapting existing education and support programs to meet their needs.
Meet local workforce needs. Research by a leading labor economist shows that there will be more jobs than people to fill them by 2018, making encore workers an increasingly crucial part of the workforce. And thousands of social and public sector employers face severe labor shortages in the fields of education, health care, government and nonprofit organizations, including green jobs. Engaging workers over 55 in encore careers in the social sector will be vital to meeting these workforce shortages. Exploring an encore program can help establish or strengthen relations with local employers in need of qualified human talent to solve social problems in your community.
Demonstrate leadership and strengthen relationships with community partners. Encore programs can establish or strengthen partnerships with community organizations. Reaching out to various local agencies and career centers can expand your reach to potential students. Often these are organizations such as workforce development organizations, local AARP chapters, Area Agencies on Aging (AAAs) that serve the plus-55 population, the local Senior Community Service Employment Program (SCSEP), the local One Stop Career Center, and organizations geared to meet the needs of local boomers.
Seek out and listen to employers to identify critical talent shortages in your area. Assess your local environment and make decisions based on that assessment. Jan Davie, director of the Center for Workforce Transition at Gateway Community College, set up employer advisory boards from local health and human services employers to learn where job opportunities are in her area. After meeting with these employers, Davie was better able to plan her caregiving training program, which boasts high job placement rates with area health and human services organizations.
Target local employers with job openings. Knowing there are jobs that encore students can apply for at the completion of training helps with marketing and student retention and can produce positive, measurable results. Conduct local labor market research before you begin your program design and be sure you know current hiring trends. And make sure to ask employers about specific skills for available jobs.
Be prepared to make the case with employers for how encore talent helps meet their bottom lines. People in encore careers bring tangible skills from prior work experience and the less tangible attributes that come from life experience – patience, empathy, passion, problem-solving skills, and more. With new training and updated skills in technology and content areas, encore learners become a very valuable source of experienced talent.
Employers can and often want to partner with colleges on encore programs. In many encore programs, local employers have partnered to:
- Help colleges develop appropriate curricula
- Accept encore students as interns (and sometimes pay a stipend) or provide required field placements
- Provide employment opportunities for encore completers
- Approach the college to train in additional developing areas
Having an early understanding and engagement of major stakeholders helps to create programs that align with job market needs and increase students chances of finding jobs – thereby improving program outcomes and increasing the chances of continued funding and word-of-mouth enrollments. One encore program director summed up the importance of stakeholders to program success this way: “In a nutshell, we listen to the community, we listen to the employers, we listen to the participants, and then we respond to their needs.”
4. Make the best of this economy
Many community colleges are facing level funding or serious budget cuts, despite their recognized role in job training. The experience of two veteran encore program directors suggests that encore programs are still viable.
“A short while ago, I was in a real siege mentality, expecting dire prospects for next year’s budget for our program, but then I was unexpectedly informed that we are getting another full-time faculty in our program and the college is also guaranteeing the peer mentor program funding on a permanent level. So the lesson I think we can take from this great news is that encore careers are hot. And if you frame what you are doing in the right way and keep your conversations going with administrators, opportunities can really develop. Why? Because many encore programs have high enrollment and there is energy and excitement around what is happening in the workforce and how older workers can fill the talent gap.”
Another administrator shares this positive view: “In this economy, everything is unpredictable. But encore programs are not. They’re here to stay. With the number of baby boomers across the country, the 50-plus population is going to continue to need programs and support services as pathways to encore careers.”
To learn more about encore careers and encore colleges, check out the following links:
- Diane Piktialis's blog
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