This document provides information on several topics related to adult education, including prominent adult educators Margaret Sanger and Sharan Merriam, unique adult education programs like Goodwill Industries and the Maine College Transition Initiative, important adult education organizations like Tennessee Technology Centers and the Coalition of Lifelong Learning Organizations, and reflections from four students on what they learned.

1. SPRING 2013
Project Summary EDAC 631

2. Leading Adult Educators

3. Margaret Sanger
1879-1966
 In a time when birth control was relatively
absent, Sanger spoke out for women.
 She attended nursing school and it was there
she realized the need for men and women to be
educated.
 She advocated for women’s health and birth
control.
 She founded Planned Parenthood
 She wrote many books and articles on birth
control, sex, VD, and abortion.
 Her actions helped to fuel the feminist
movement and she is still a prominent figure in
feminism and in women’s healthcare programs.
 She not only spoke out, she persevered and was
innovation in the area of social reform.

4. Sharan B. Merriam
1942-present
 Has an Ed.D. in Adult and Continuing
Education.
 She has written, co-written, and is used as a
reference for many articles in the Adult
Education field.
 She has received many awards for her
research and her contributions.
 Dr. Merriam serves as a touchstone for many
adult educators and their associated
programs.
 Her research and the incorporation of theories
she has developed has helped to improve
countless programs in quality and quantity.

5. G O O D W I L L I N D U S T R I E S
M A I N E C O L L E G E T R A N S I T I O N
P R O G R A M
Unique Adult Education
Programs

6. Goodwill Industries
Goodwill has
locations
thousands of
cities across
the world that
help millions
of people.
Goodwill’s purpose is
to provide educational
service and trainings
skills to adult with
physical, social, and
economic barriers.
“A hand
up is not a
hand out!”
Goodwill’s’
pupils are all ages
and come from all
walks of life:
displaced workers,
under-employed,
convicted felons,
have a disability,
etc.
Adult education can occur in all
individuals regardless of race, creed,
gender, age, or ability. Every person
has some form of ability and what one
does with their ability determines
their success in life.

7. Maine College Transition Initiative
Over 1,300 students
receive education
through this program
every year. Students
further their careers and
find meaningful
employment outside of
the factory industry.
The purpose of this
program is to help adult
students across Maine
make the transition from
community college to a
four-year university.
Adults without the
necessary education
to become employed
within the state of
Maine.
By individuals looking
to improve employment
rates for former factory
workers.

8. Important Adult Education
Organizations

9. Tennessee Technology Centers
 Founded in 1963 by the Tennessee General Assembly
 Part of the state’s higher education system
 27 regional centers
 Completely adult-focused in 1993
 Purpose is to train adults for jobs
 Healthy balance of cohort and Montessori style
 Programs are based on clock hours, but typically last
20 months at roughly 20 hours per week
 Very high graduation and placement rates
 Considered a national model

10. Coalition of Lifelong Learning Organizations
 Established in 1973
 National organization for groups with a common interest
in lifelong learning
 Gives several awards to to those who contribute to the
cause
 Purpose is to develop, maintain, and improve lifelong
learning education
 Public educator on adult education and lifelong learning
 Assisted Joint Commission of Community Colleges with
Tech Prep legislation
 Worked with National Coalition for Literacy to
strengthen the continuum of adult education
 Very involved in influencing many key pieces of adult
education legislation

11. The Future of Adult Education
• In the future we can predict that adult education will
continue to grow in the areas of forms, on-the-job-
training, workshops, and community-based training.
• The providers of adult education programs will have
a more in-depth understanding of trends and other
learning designs that will help the progression of
adult education.
• These progressions will help improve the overall
learning experience that participants of adult
education programs will have.
• In the future, we all can make adult education more
visible by sharing the great experiences we
have had with adult education programs.
• Each one. Teach one.

12. Individual Reflection – Christy Blanch
 I always thought of adult education as either supplemental learning or
adults going back to school, but always as formal education.
 I had very little knowledge of adult learning.
 Reflecting on what we have learned, I realize the field is broad – adult
learning can be:
 By learning more about how adults learn and about what should be
considered adult education, I can better understand my adult students
and reach out to them. I have already done this in the MOOC I teach.

13. Individual Reflection – Kristin Walsh
 I personally didn’t realize how much organizations like Goodwill do
to help adults get back into school, and I hope I have the opportunity
to continue to support them in the future.
 I think programs like the Maine College Transition Initiative are a
perfect way to help people master the problems facing them with
support from people around them. If programs like MCT were more
prevalent, I think more people would be interested/less intimidated
by the idea of going back to school.
 Working with this particular group has really broadened my own
perspective, and hopefully I’ve been a help to them as well!

14. Individual Reflection – Rob Mathews
 I had no idea adult education was such a broad topic area.
 I now see adult education as virtually any setting where adults can
learn and grow.
 I have found learning about key adult educators and organizations in
our history to be very interesting and enlightening.
 By understanding that virtually any adult engagement can be adult
learning, I have grown to appreciate each and every situation where
this is the case.
 By gaining a better understanding of the impacts of adult education on
our society, I am now better equipped to understand the unique needs
and learning styles of adults.

15. Individual Reflection –Kandace Hoosier
• This course has given me a broader perceptive on the field of
adult education.
• Learning about the various adult education programs has
shown me that there are many others in the community setting
that are trying to make a difference in others lives not only in
Indiana but all over the world.
• This course has also showed me that in the field of adult
education, at times it takes a team to get the goals of an adult
education program accomplished. I am very appreciative to
have had the pleasure of working in an amazing group on this
semester’s group projects.