Administering Adult Education--A Community Based Approach.

Overview & Synopsis

After introductory material warning that the unique circumstances surrounding a college may prohibit it from replicating the administrative tactics of another institution, this paper describes the management and administrative organization of Austin Community College's (ACC's) decentralized adult education program. A brief description of ACC is presented first, which examines ACC's utilization of dispersed governmental and private facilities in lieu of a college-owned campus; the organization of ACC's administrative staff; and the characteristics of ACC's largely adult student population. The remainder of the paper then discusses the management of ACC's Community Campus, which, under the central leadership of an Executive Dean, provides vocational and adult continuing education at 56 locations through three administrative units. These three units are: (1) the Adult Basic Education Program, which offers courses in citizenship, high school equivalency, and English as a Second Language; (2) the Continuing Education Program, which provides instruction in the areas of vocational skills, licensure, and avocational interests; and (3) Business, Industrial, and Government Training Programs, which oversee cooperative education. For each of these units, the paper describes funding sources, responsibilities of unit administrators, provisions for site supervision, and techniques used to publicize and market the unit's courses. (JP)