March is a time to celebrate University milestones. Earlier this month, UNC Charlotte observed its 50th anniversary in the UNC system. This week, marks the 20th year of the Office of Adult Students and Evening Services (OASES).
Janet Daniel, founding director of the office, stated OASES’s existence resulted from the vision of then-Provost Philip L. Dubois.
“UNC Charlotte, as the Charlotte Center, can trace its existence to serving adult students who were returning home following World War II,” said Daniel. “Dr. Dubois recognized the need for the University to again focus on these adult learners through a dedicated office. Nontraditional students often face challenges beyond those of regular college-aged students, and we provide an array of services to assist them.”
Daniel and Kay Starnes, who served as an academic advisor, were the original full-time staff members for OASES. In 1995, the duo worked with about 500 students.
“We’ve come a long way since our grand opening March 20, 1995,” Daniel noted. “Last year, our offices in Barnard Building were renovated with additional space allocated. Our staff now includes two academic advisors, an associate director/director of advising, an office manager and a director. In the past 20 years, two members of the OASES staff have been named Employees of the Year.”
Today, OASES advises roughly 1,500 new, transfer or re-entry adult students with more than 400 of them receiving services in the evening. Throughout the years, the office has implemented new initiatives for nontraditional students. It has a successful mentoring program, and OASES personnel work with two national honor societies exclusively for adult students, Pinnacle and Alpha Sigma Lambda, to garner recognition for nontraditional students’ academic scholarship and commitment to community service.
In 2005, OASES began the planning for a new offering – the 49er Finish Program. The goal was to increase retention and graduation rates of returning adult students.
The first semester, the program encouraged 47 former UNC Charlotte students to return to complete their degrees. As of December 2014, there have been 642 49er Finishers. In 2012, the 49er Finish Program received the Malcolm Knowles Award from the American Association for Adult and Continuing Education.
Most recently, OASES developed the course UCOL 1010: College Transition for Transfers to assist with the “intellectual and social transition to UNC Charlotte for transfer students by increasing the involvement of students in the intellectual life of campus.”
During her tenure as director, Daniel has increased her involvement with community and nonprofit organizations to generate more private scholarship funding. In its first year, OASES awarded about $7,500 in scholarships. Now that amount is closer to $90,000 annually, in part due to endowments of $1 million from the Osher Foundation and a nearly $500,000 gift from the late Carol Douglas.
The Robert and Jan-Rae Hall Scholarship is the newest endowed scholarship OASES will administer. Alumnus Robert Hall (’08) earned a bachelor’s degree in mechanical engineering from the University as a nontraditional student. A third-shift forklift driver working 75 hours a week, Hall made the commitment to finish his undergraduate degree. Currently, the director of innovation for DAK Americas, Hall also completed a Master of Business Administration from the University of Dallas.
Daniel explained that the office’s accomplishments in its first 20 years have been a collaborative effort.
“Our growth in programs and services speaks to the strong commitment of the UNC Charlotte administration to support the needs of the adult student population on our campus,” said Daniel. “As a department within the Enrollment Management Office, OASES assists the overall enrollment goals of the campus. We want to expand the educational experiences of nontraditional students and support them in their endeavors and assist them toward degree completion.”
Picture: OASES full-time staff members Jinny Bradley, Debbie Smith, Janet Daniel, Jillian Stubbs and Kimberly Rodgers (left to right).