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NEW Class Counseling 100: Success Strategies for the Re-entry Adult
Newsletter Article by Carolyn Powell

Counseling 100 is a brand new class being offered for the first time in Spring semester as part of our new Re-entry program (see article by C. Perez in this issue). Reentry adult students are those students who are age 25 or older and are trying to either come back to school after taking time off to raise a family or to work, or are coming for the first time in order to pursue a college degree. With the downturn of the economy, it is becoming increasingly likely that many people will find themselves either having to come back to school for re-training in the job market, or having a spouse get a degree in order to help out with finances, or perhaps finding that now that the children are older, that there is a little extra time available for the pursuit of a college degree. Now is the time to do it! A recent study done by the Economic Policy Institute (2008) found that college graduates earned 77% more per hour than non-grads.

Whatever the reasons for returning to school, these students often find themselves overwhelmed by the many challenges they face. In the four information sessions we held this past fall, many of them spoke of the fear of balancing home, school, parenting, and work. Or they fear that they won’t be able to keep up with the work, that their brains are “rusty”, or they won’t be able to handle math at all. This class will help them address all of these issues and more.

Counseling 100 was developed to offer students not only the tools and skills offered in most Freshman Success Skills classes, but also the opportunity to develop confidence that comes with learning HOW to learn in addition to what to learn and to experience a support group of their peers with whom they can share and exchange ideas, study with (two heads are better than one goes the saying), and to grow not only intellectually but emotionally, spiritually and socially as well. By using 3 main strategies, Discovery Statements, Statements of Intention, and Journaling, the course will take them on a journey of self-discovery and self-development that will serve them not only in school but more importantly in life. Science is now showing that we our cellular structure changes when we develop insights into ourselves and brain studies show that there are actual differences in brain structure of elderly people who live in an enriched environment and those who don’t. The results have been the same in lab rat studies. The formation of neuronal connections in the brain is much more complex in people and in rats raised in an enriched environment. I like to think of it as learning builds “brain muscle” just like pumping iron at the gym builds body muscle. And who wouldn’t want a “buff” brain?

In this class, I hope to help students find what works for them from the variety of materials that will be offered and to have, in their personal portfolio, a list of “best practices” which can be used and shared with other students so that learning truly becomes the collaborative process I think it was meant to be. And a fun one at that!