Posted: Friday, August 19, 2011 11:55 am

The Messenger 08.18.11

The needs of adult students are different.
“They approach the whole college experience differently from students who attend fresh out of high school,” said Lloyd “Bubba” Smith, program coordinator for the West Tennessee Consortia for Adult Students.
To address these needs, the newly-formed Council for Adult Students Organization (CASO) will be presenting a free orientation seminar for all new, current and future adult students who plan to attend Dyersburg State Community College, the University of Tennessee at Martin or the Tennessee Technology Institutes at Jackson, Newbern or Ripley.
The event will be held in the Student Center on the DSCC Dyersburg campus Saturday from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m.
Throughout the day, there will be workshops and speakers to help students those interested in working toward a degree or certificate get started or re-started. There will be drawing for door prizes and a presentation of a scholarship to DSCC for an adult student. In addition, each of the consortia members will have representatives available to assist students and answer questions, whether it is a student’s first time to attend or if they are returning to school.
“We have plans to make this a fun and informative day. We hope to take away the fears or concerns adult students may have about coming to school. CASO is here to help adult students from the beginning to the end of their college experience,” Smith said.
In addition to providing the seminar, CASO offers peer mentoring, tutoring opportunities and special programs tailored for adult students.
DSCC, UTM and TTC-Jackson comprise The West Tennessee Consortia for Adult Students.
Through the consortium, DSCC, the University of Tennessee at Martin and the TTC-Jackson are working together to put in place strategies for removing attendance barriers. The lessons learned will help institutions across the state and nation identify areas where program and policy changes will be most effective and the process for making needed changes on campus.
For more information about the seminar or CASO, contact Smith at lsmith32@dscc.edu or (731) 286-3275.