Introduction

Approximately 36.8 million Americans aged 18–64 have some college experience but no credential.¹ Community colleges, which have faced the sharpest enrollment declines among institutions of higher education since the COVID-19 pandemic, play a critical role in re-engaging adult learners.² They serve as a primary access point to higher education for many students facing barriers to continuing their education, including students of color and those from low-income backgrounds.³

At the same time, states are facing an urgent need to train and upskill their workforce to meet current and future labor market demands. More states and community colleges are prioritizing strategies to re-enroll, retain, and credential adult learners seeking to upskill or reskill.

In 2021, New America launched the Bringing Adults Back project, partnering with six community colleges across the country to design and implement re-enrollment strategies. This work culminated in the creation of the Bringing Adults Back to Community College Playbook: Strategies and Recommendations to Increase Adult Enrollment, a practical guide for colleges undertaking similar work.⁴

States and institutions are implementing targeted strategies to help adult students re-enroll. However, adult enrollment has yet to rebound to pre-pandemic levels.⁵ Community colleges face challenges that disproportionately affect adult learners who are balancing work, family, and other responsibilities. For example, Haywood Community College in North Carolina has experienced a series of disruptions in recent years—including the closure of a major local employer, a flood, and Hurricane Helene—that have made it even more difficult for their adult students to re-enroll or persist.

New America has documented growing interest in re-enrolling adult learners; however, the adult re-enrollment field remains fragmented and complex. Community colleges are critical to educating adult learners, but can face limited resources, diverse student needs, and difficulty identifying effective strategies or implementation partners for re-enrolling adult learners.

To help address these challenges, the Center on Education & Labor at New America undertook a year-long landscape analysis, documenting efforts to reengage adult learners at the institutional, state, nonprofit, and business levels. This report surveys the current adult re-enrollment landscape and presents questions to guide future research on what strategies are most effective in inviting adults back to school.