Learning Resources

Abstract: Chronic disease is rapidly diminishing the health of our nation as rates of serious physical and psychological conditions such as cancer, heart disease, diabetes, depression, and emotional stress continue to rise. The urban agricultural movement is one strategy that has demonstrated promise in combating the increasing costs of chronic disease related to poor health behaviors. A half-acre urban farm is developed on a medical university campus and thrives in spite of an uncertain economic climate and skepticism among some stakeholders. Details related to planning, programming, and sustainability are described and successes as well as challenges are highlighted in this case study that might serve as a template for others seeking to develop campus gardens.

Abstract: So, what’s happening ‘down under’ in campus sustainability? Providing an international context, our authors use Australian examples to describe planning for campus greening, learning for sustainability (curriculum), institutional learning, and competency-based training initiatives.

Abstract: This case study analyzes the impact of Indiana’s Twenty-First Century Scholars college tuition discount program on the academic self-efficacy of high-risk, low-income students. The program is designed to increase the number of high-risk individuals attending college. The self-efficacy “training” of the program helps instill and reinforce the idea that success or failure coincides with internal effort and not external factors. Surveys were completed by 55 program participants and 42 institutional representatives at different colleges in Indiana. The program increased students’ understanding of the feasibility of attaining a college degree, heightened students’ academic confidence, and improved their overall self-esteem. The article concludes with a discussion of the implications of this program for academic planners developing programs to help high-risk students succeed in college.

Abstract: Among the many reforms currently sweeping higher education is the growing demand that formal educational opportunity be opened to adults. The result has been expansion of traditional continuing education and extension programs as well as a plethora of new and experimental programs aimed at the adult student. In an attempt to bring some order out of the resulting chaos, Jane Lord, a researcher for Educational Facilities Laboratories, and Ronald H. Miller, project coordinator for the New York City Regional Center for Life-Long Learning at Pace College, have reviewed the literature on adult education to produce this article, discussing the trends and the options open to institutions of higher education. An extensive bibliography is included.