Adult Learner Strategy 

Aligning Education, Work, and the Adult Learner Journey

Adult learner success does not hinge on a single program or policy. It requires coordinated strategy across enrollment, academic affairs, student support, workforce alignment, and institutional culture.

The Center for Academic Innovation helps institutions and systems design, implement, and sustain adult learner strategies that remove barriers to completion, acknowledge lived experience, and improve persistence and credential attainment at scale.

Adult Learner Readiness & Diagnostic Assessments

CAI-developed diagnostic tools assess institutional readiness to serve adult learners. Institutions receive a clear, evidence-based picture of strengths, gaps, and priority actions to guide improvement and investment. We assess across key dimensions: 

  • Enrollment and re-engagement practices

  • Academic flexibility and program design

  • Advising, navigation, and learner support

  • Credit mobility and transfer alignment

  • Culture, communications, and learner experience

Adult Learner Strategy & Action Planning

CAI partners with institutions and systems to develop comprehensive adult learner strategies that align mission, enrollment goals, equity priorities, and workforce needs. These strategies provide the foundation for coherent decision-making across CPL, advising, enrollment, academic programs, and support services.

  • Institution-level or systemwide adult learner strategies

  • Clearly defined goals, success metrics, and timelines

  • Governance and accountability structures

  • Sequenced implementation roadmaps

Enrollment Strategy & Adult Learner Re-Engagement

CAI works with enrollment leaders to strengthen adult learner recruitment and re-engagement strategies, particularly for adults with some college and no degree. This work helps institutions move beyond generic outreach to intentional, learner-centered enrollment strategies.

  • Adult learner enrollment strategy alignment

  • Messaging and value-proposition refinement

  • Re-engagement pathway design

  • Integration of academic and workforce signals into enrollment efforts

Program & Pathway Design for Adult Learners

CAI supports the design and refinement of adult-learner-friendly academic pathways that balance flexibility with rigor. Our focus is on helping institutions create pathways that are transparent, navigable, and completion-oriented for working adults.

  • Degree completion and interdisciplinary program design

  • Stackable credential and pathway alignment

  • Accelerated and hybrid program models

  • Clear mapping of learning outcomes to workforce relevance

Professional Development & Leadership Engagement

Adult learner success requires shared understanding and commitment across the institution. CAI provides customized professional learning that builds capacity, alignment, and momentum.

  • Executive and cabinet-level strategy sessions

  • Cross-functional adult learner task force facilitation

  • Faculty and staff professional development

  • Change leadership and implementation support

Industry Partnerships & Workforce Pathways

CAI helps institutions expand and deepen industry partnerships by designing clear, credential-aligned pathways for working learners—connecting academic programs to workforce needs while improving enrollment, persistence, and employer engagement.

Advising, Navigation & Learner Experience Design

Adult learners are often highly motivated, but time constrained and system weary. CAI helps institutions design advising and navigation models that reduce friction and improve persistence. The goal is a learner experience that is respectful, efficient, and supportive from first contact to graduation.

  • Review of advising structures and caseload models

  • Adult-learner-specific onboarding and orientation strategies

  • Clear intake and referral workflows

  • Experience mapping from inquiry through completion

Institutional Culture & Change Management

Sustainable adult learner success requires cultural alignment, not just structural change. CAI supports institutions in fostering a culture that:

  • Understands the “why” of serving adult learners

  • Values prior learning and lived experience

  • Embraces adaptability and continuous improvement

Systemwide & Statewide Adult Learner Initiatives

CAI supports multi-campus systems and statewide bodies in aligning adult learner strategies across institutions to improve coherence, equity, and scale.

  • Framework and policy alignment

  • Shared tools and implementation supports

  • Cross-institution learning communities

  • Strategy integration with workforce and economic development goals

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