
Curbing Declining Adult College Enrollment
Kentucky is enacting the 60x30 initiative to curb the declining enrollment in postsecondary education among adult learners. These adult learners are classified as those who are 25 to 64 years of age. They pursue higher education later in life to improve their chances of finding employment, increase their income, and develop in-demand skills and knowledge. The average yearly income difference between households with one or more college graduates and those without graduates is approximately $40,000. Despite these advantages, adult learners face many difficulties that set them apart from traditional students entering college immediately out of high school. Striking a balance between family, job, and school obligations is very difficult for adult learners. Almost 50% of this population are also parents, which makes sticking to a regular class schedule challenging. Childcare…