Life in the Class Lane : Education: Older students are finding that it's never too late to earn a degree, and many companies are encouraging their workers to take courses.

By ROBYN LOEWENTHAL

April 5, 1990 12 AM PT

Attention, children. It is now 10 p.m. Do you know where your parents are? If they live and work in Ventura County, chances are that Mom or Dad is at an evening college class, along with many other adults, who are pursuing four-year degrees in their present fields.

The profile of the adult or “non-traditional” student (defined as 25 and older) has changed over the past 15 years. Although still primarily female, the average age of the student is now mid-30s instead of mid-40s. Before, women often returned to school as the result of divorce, widowhood or an “empty nest.” They sought to prepare themselves to enter the job market or thought they would “take a few classes.”

Today’s student, of either gender, rather than taking random courses, is more likely to be working full time during the day and enrolled in a degree program.

Audrey Schultze was a student at Moorpark College in 1970 when her studies were interrupted by divorce and she had to go to work.

“For years I was doing the same work as people who had degrees, but I couldn’t get ahead without one,” said Schultze, 54.

Within one year of enrolling in California Lutheran University’s Adult Degree Evening program, she received a promotion and raise. Last spring she received the “Corporate Scholar Award” and departmental honors as the student with the highest grades in business administration.

In John Barker’s case his wife suggested that he return to school. Barker, 35, of Camarillo is self-employed in bookkeeping and property management.

“I worked in the oil field in Ventura and other parts of California and the hours were not conducive to family life,” he said.

Evening classes at the Ventura satellite campus of Cal State Northridge allow him to baby-sit between 3 and 5 p.m. while his wife takes two of their three children, who are actors, to commercial and theatrical casting calls. When they return, he goes to school.

Michael Doyle, director of curriculum/assessment at Cal Lutheran’s Adult Degree Program, says adults are returning to school for one of three reasons.

Many find that their careers have plateaued, making additional education necessary for career advancement. A second group consists of the underemployed, often clerical or administrative workers, who are usually female. The third and smallest group, for whom education is not related to occupation or career, are those with a lifelong commitment to learning.

“The growth in post-secondary education in Ventura County has been phenomenal since the 1980s,” said Paul Siegel, of the Census Bureau in Maryland. Siegel attributes much of this growth to the many employer-based training opportunities in the county, which did not exist 15 years ago.

Motivated job-seekers are attending college to improve their skills while many employers are encouraging and supporting their workers’ participation in educational programs.

Sue and Chris Van Buren, 40 and 45 respectively, have senior positions at GTE in Thousand Oaks. With no children at home, they chose to complete the University of Redlands program at GTE together. Classes are held where the couple work and, along with tuition reimbursement, there is the promise of career advancement once they earn bachelor of science degrees in business and management.

Six institutions in Ventura County now offer four-year degree programs in addition to teaching credentials, professional certificates or graduate study. Each has a different delivery style, a particular emphasis on majors, an individual academic calendar and costs.

A private liberal arts university, California Lutheran provides the county’s only residential adult program where classes can be taken on the main campus. The University of La Verne Point Mugu Residence Center, established in 1969, is a private institution and the oldest extension campus in Ventura County. The Ventura extensions of Cal State Northridge and UC Santa Barbara provide degree course work at a lower cost. Employers can even bring college to their workers, such as GTE’s on-site program with the University of Redlands.

The programs are designed to meet the needs of working adults by offering classes at night or on Saturdays, some via satellite or on the employers’ premises. On the other hand, students who can live on campus and participate full time in a four-year program based on the great books of Western Civilization, can attend Thomas Aquinas College, a private, independent Catholic college near Santa Paula.

The community colleges of Oxnard, Ventura and Moorpark play an important role in the county’s adult education. Besides re-entry guidance, mostly for women, they provide career enhancement counseling and a variety of other services. The community colleges are steppingstones to higher education. Students can obtain two-year associate of arts degrees in several areas, or they can transfer course work and apply the credits earned toward a four-year degree.

Siegel said the latest national enrollment figures available (“Current Population Survey,” October, 1988), show that 2.2 million of the 13.1 million people enrolled in two- and four-year colleges are students age 35 or older. Below age 35, both genders were about equally represented, with women making up the slightly larger group. But the gap widens among students over 35. Men accounted for only 700,000 of the older undergraduate students.

Joseph Meisenheimer, an economist with the Bureau of Labor Statistics in Washington, D.C., said most school enrollment data normally tracks students between ages 16 and 24. Figures are rare, he said, for the 25-and-over group although adult learners are concentrated in the 25-34 year range.

“By the time someone gets to be 25, it is often assumed that they have ended their formal education,” he said. In fact, statistics show it should be otherwise.

The need for adult education ranging from remedial and literacy programs through graduate courses is undeniable. Ventura County has about 237,700 jobs, some held by non-residents.

“Six hundred openings with the county of Ventura can’t be filled due to lack of qualified people in the labor force,” said Philip Bohan, economic development manager of the Ventura County Private Industry Council.

“One of the biggest needs that employers are expressing to me is need for a literate work force equipped with the basic skills of reading, math, ability to learn, comprehend and communicate,” Bohan said. “The county of Ventura is one of the most visible employers in encouraging their employees to advance their education and training.”

Kim Voyle, manager of career development with Ventura County, said, “we’re having a difficult time filling our present positions, typically in the professional and technical areas.” He indicated that this is not only a countywide problem.

“By the year 2000, the Department of Labor data projects that nationwide employers will have difficulty filling positions at all levels.”

Less than three weeks ago, on March 18, Voyle said, the county, which employs 6,000 people, decided on a move that it hopes will end the problem. It formed a program designed to help their employees obtain basic skills, high school graduate equivalency degrees and college degrees.

Using guidelines formulated through a joint labor-management committee, Voyle said, “we’re now doing career strategy and planning workshops in order to determine the employee’s likelihood of success in a chosen career field.”

Voyle said that about 600 people, or one-tenth of the work force, has already expressed interest. Her department will help employees to focus on a specific career in an attempt to fill the county’s present needs.

The county will pay for tuition up to a limit, textbooks and fees. In exchange, for each $2,500 spent on his education, the employee agrees to one year of county employment once he attains a degree or diploma.

As another incentive to attract people to county work, it will reward people who pursue degrees, even outside their job descriptions.

College may not be for everyone, yet the many untrained and unskilled adults in California “puts the entire state at risk,” said Dr. Mike Hernandez, director of the Oxnard Union High School District Adult School, which last year served 28,000 adult students.

Among the other programs available through adult school are: GED (high school equivalency diplomas), high school diplomas, remedial and literacy classes.

Once adults have experienced the satisfaction of learning, many continue their studies. Staff members at four-year degree programs say that adult learners are motivated, disciplined students who generally raise the academic standards of a program because of their high performance.

“For a long time we stereotyped students, thinking if it doesn’t happen at the age of 18, it’s not going to happen,” said Dr. Hoda Mahmoudi, associate professor and chairman of California Lutheran University’s department of sociology and administration of justice.

“We have learned that we can’t draw a line at when learning stops,” Mahmoudi said. “The work that adult students produce is magnificent. There is a richness--they blossom in the classroom.”

SAMPLING THE FIRST COURSE

The schools listed below offer some or all of the following: teaching credentials, four-year degrees and master’s degrees.

* CAL STATE NORTHRIDGE (CSUN VENTURA)

University Center

2151 Alessandro Drive

Ventura, CA

(805) 644-7262

Calendar system: semester

Cost: One-time registration fee of $55. 0-6 course credits, $300. 7-15 course credits, $450. Classes generally from 7 to 10 p.m.

It is the largest of the off-campus extension centers in Ventura County and offers approximately 24 degree-oriented programs including bachelor’s and master’s of arts and elementary teaching credentials. The programs are in demand, with about 700 students on a waiting list for the master’s in business administration and 1,000 for computer science.

UCSB VENTURA

3585 Maple

Ventura, CA 93003

(805) 656-3612

Calendar system: quarter.

Cost: Approximately $514 per quarter for a full load between 10 and 12 units, an average being 12 to 16. Tuition is reduced to $379 per quarter if student takes two classes or less. A “concurrent education” plan allows a student to pay $70 to register for quarter and $55 per unit if he chooses to take classes now and then. Classes are generally in the evening.

“Off Campus Studies” concentrates mostly on the social sciences and allows students to combine three areas of emphasis. For example, many criminal justice professional choose the bachelor of arts in law and society. Nine types of bachelor’s degrees are available.

Master’s degrees in electrical and computer engineering science or computer science are offered with course work taught via satellite from the main campus.

The University Extension Program offers 15 professional certificates in Ventura County, such as the paralegal program and hazardous materials management.

* U. of LA VERNE

Point Mugu Residence Center

PO Box 42264

Point Mugu, CA 93041

(805) 986-1783

Calendar system: accelerated semester, 10 weeks long.

Cost: Undergraduate courses, $135 per unit; graduate courses, $145 per unit; bachelor’s degree in health care management in Ventura $165 per unit. Established in 1969 by a retired naval officer who was frustrated because frequent moves kept him from finishing his degree, it was the first off-campus program ULV started. Enrollment is 310 students on base and 12 in Ventura programs. Thirty-five instructors have master’s degrees in the area in which they teach, and nine have doctorates. A student may transfer in with credits and finish a four-year degree on the Point Mugu campus. Two classes is considered a full course load.

Classes meet two nights a week from 4:30 to 7 or from 7:30 to 10. The 10-week schedule is designed to accommodate military personnel who are frequently assigned to a base for a short time. The program is open to all military and civilian adult students. About 39% of the students in the military. Women make up 40% of students enrolled this term. Business programs are popular.

* CALIFORNIA LUTHERAN

Adult Degree Evening Program

Alumni Hall

60 Olsen Road

Thousand Oaks, CA 91360

(805) 493-3325

Calendar system: 10- to 11-week accelerated terms.

Cost: Bachelor’s degrees in arts or science, $265 per credit; master’s $225 per credit. CLU began an adult program in 1979 and the adult evening program was created in the fall of 1985. Every year its instructors participate in a workshop on teaching techniques and strategies for adults.

ADEP students are eligible for departmental honors and often receive a large proportion of them. A student representative elected in each class attends a student breakfast where they have a voice in issues of curriculum, instructors and facilities. About 80% of the students are receiving at least some employer tuition reimbursement. CLU’s adult program offers a bachelor’s degree in accounting and business administration and a master’s degree in business administration.

* U. OF REDLANDS

On-Site Adult Education Program:

For details call the main campus (714) 793-2121. The university will arrange a program at a company or business for 10 or more students pursuing a degree to take classes together.

* AQUINAS COLLEGE

10000 N. Ojai Road

Santa Paula, CA 93060

(800) 634-9797

Calendar: Semester.

Program: Offers only one degree, a bachelor of arts in liberal arts. The academic program is based on a set four-year integrated curriculum centered on the great books of Western Civilization. There are no electives.

Enrollment: 176 (class size of 15 to 20 students).

Faculty: 18.

Cost: 1989-90 Tuition, $9,500. Room and board $4,050, books, approximately $200., Total: $13,750.

Established in 1971, Thomas Aquinas College is a private, independent Catholic school that is not affiliated with any religious order or diocese.

TWO-YEAR PROGRAMS

For information about community college programs or career counseling, call:

VENTURA COLLEGE

4667 Telegraph Road

Ventura, CA 93003

(805) 654-6499

MOORPARK COLLEGE

7075 Campus Road