Adult Learners & Next Steps Coaching: A Qualitative Study Exploring Adult Learners' Experiences with Next Steps Coaching at Tennessee Community Colleges
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| Title: | Adult Learners & Next Steps Coaching: A Qualitative Study Exploring Adult Learners' Experiences with Next Steps Coaching at Tennessee Community Colleges |
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| Language: | English |
| Authors: | Tennessee Board of Regents (TBR) |
| Source: | Tennessee Board of Regents - The College System of Tennessee. 2026. |
| Availability: | Tennessee Board of Regents - The College System of Tennessee. 1 Bridgestone Park, Third Floor, Nashville, TN 37214. Tel: 615-366-4400; Fax: 615-366-3903; Web site: https://www.tbr.edu |
| Peer Reviewed: | N |
| Page Count: | 19 |
| Publication Date: | 2026 |
| Document Type: | Reports - Research |
| Education Level: | Higher Education Postsecondary Education Two Year Colleges Adult Education |
| Descriptors: | Academic Advising, Coaching (Performance), Community College Students, Faculty Advisers, Information Seeking, Holistic Approach, Student Attitudes, Student Experience, School Registration, Scheduling, Barriers, College Enrollment, Adult Students, Teacher Student Relationship |
| Geographic Terms: | Tennessee |
| Abstract: | Over the past decade, Tennessee has made major investments in supporting adult learners through the establishment of the Tennessee Reconnect grant, which makes attending a community or technical college in the state tuition-free for adult learners. However, adult learners still struggle to persist. Among adult learners who returned to a Tennessee community college after earning college credit in the past, only 58% persisted to the next semester, and just 20% graduated within three years (TBR, 2021). To address this problem, the Tennessee Coaching Project launched the Next Steps coaching model at two partner community colleges (Jackson and Northeast State Community Colleges) to provide high-touch, holistic, and relational advising for adult learners. TBR, in partnership with Jackson and Northeast, has rigorously evaluated the effectiveness of coaching for adult learners through a randomized control trial. Preliminary quantitative results show modest, but generally positive, impacts of coaching on adult learners' success (TBR, 2025). However, questions lingered about how adult learners experience Next Steps coaching. This is the second report in a series focused on adult learners and advising. This second report focuses on the following research question: "How did students experience coaching from their Next Steps coaches?" |
| Abstractor: | ERIC |
| Entry Date: | 2026 |
| Accession Number: | ED680518 |
| Database: | ERIC |
| Abstract: | Over the past decade, Tennessee has made major investments in supporting adult learners through the establishment of the Tennessee Reconnect grant, which makes attending a community or technical college in the state tuition-free for adult learners. However, adult learners still struggle to persist. Among adult learners who returned to a Tennessee community college after earning college credit in the past, only 58% persisted to the next semester, and just 20% graduated within three years (TBR, 2021). To address this problem, the Tennessee Coaching Project launched the Next Steps coaching model at two partner community colleges (Jackson and Northeast State Community Colleges) to provide high-touch, holistic, and relational advising for adult learners. TBR, in partnership with Jackson and Northeast, has rigorously evaluated the effectiveness of coaching for adult learners through a randomized control trial. Preliminary quantitative results show modest, but generally positive, impacts of coaching on adult learners' success (TBR, 2025). However, questions lingered about how adult learners experience Next Steps coaching. This is the second report in a series focused on adult learners and advising. This second report focuses on the following research question: "How did students experience coaching from their Next Steps coaches?" |
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