The UTC Graduate School is pleased to announce that Marci Reiter will present Doctoral research titled, “The Impact of an Adult-Focused First-Year Seminar Course on Tennessee Reconnect Students” on 10/09/2025 at 10:00 am ET in Zoom Meeting ID: https://tennessee.zoom.us/j/86842529572. Everyone is invited to attend.
Leadership and Decision-Making
Chair: Dr. David W. Rausch
Co-Chair:
Abstract:
The state of Tennessee launched a promise program entitled Tennessee Reconnect (TnR) in the Fall of 2018, which was aimed at the state’s adult learner population and offered a solution for affordable education. With this introduction came pressure for institutions, specifically community colleges in the state, to increase the retention and completion rates of this population of students. One small, rural community college approached this challenge by offering both first- time and returning adult learners an adult-focused First-Year Seminar (FYS) course. The course, entitled Work-Based Learning Seminar (WBLS), looked to assist with not only the retention and completion issues of the population, but also introduced course learning outcomes that addressed common characteristics and barriers to success for this population of students. Using a quasi-experimental design, the study evaluated whether there was a difference between year one to year two retention rates, and 3-year graduation rates, of adult learners at Cleveland State Community College (CLSCC) who were funded by TnR and completed (a) a WBLS course, (b) a FYS course, or (c) no college-readiness course. The data proved a positive association between year one to year two retention rates and completing WBLS for TnR-funded adult learners. Additionally, the narrative case-study design explored the human experience of this same population through virtual, personal interviews. The results supplemented the decades of previous research surrounding adult learners regarding common characteristics of this population, motivators for these students, and barriers to success for adult learners. Ultimately, this type of research could assist community colleges in Tennessee, as well as other states across the nation, in understanding the needs of their adult learner populations. The characteristics, motivators, and barriers could be predicted more effectively with this type of study, while also assisting institutions with increasing the retention and completion rates of their adult learners. Additionally, the ever-increasing affordability of college can be addressed by studies such as this, which analyze the impact of TnR on this population of students. Moreover, the problem of transitioning to college for adult learners can be intentionally solved with access to adult-focused FYS courses such as WBLS.