Learn About Options for Continuing Education

Whether you’re an adult who wants to complete your high school equivalency, earn a credential in a specific field or finish a college degree that was never completed, the Ohio Department of Higher Education can assist you. 

Ohio adults who haven’t earned a high-school diploma, as well as those who want to brush up on a particular skill, can benefit from Ohio’s Aspire program, which is accessible via colleges, universities, career centers, community-based organizations, K-12 districts and public libraries throughout the state. 

“All our classes and programs are 100% free,” says Stephanie Schab, Director of the state of Ohio’s Aspire program. “People think of adult basic education, and it’s ‘Oh, so you prep students for the GED.’ Yes, we do want to lower the number of adults who don’t have a high school diploma or equivalent, but Aspire is so much more.” 

She explains that it’s a holistic program, not just adult education. Aspire helps students focus on and improve skills that will help them be successful. 

For instance, someone who has a high school diploma or equivalent and now wants to enter a welding program but needs more math skills can learn them by way of Aspire. 

Another big component of Aspire’s clientele includes adults for whom English is not their first language. English for Speakers of Other Languages (ESOL) programs help students with reading, writing, speaking, listening and civics. 

When it comes to earning a GED, Aspire also operates as a workforce program that integrates education and training. That means that instruction in a particular skill comes along with an adult general-education component. Credentials are available in fields ranging from phlebotomy to entrepreneurship. 

“We might hire an expert with a skill to deliver that training, and the adult education instructor will be co-teaching so that the two pieces are integrated,” Schab says. “So, it’s not just technical skills but recognition that without the educational component, those occupational skills won’t make much sense.”

***

Students who have a high school diploma or equivalent and are ready for post-high-school training can benefit greatly from an education at Ohio Technical Centers. Career technical centers offer certifications in a variety of fields and enable graduates to go directly into the workforce and start earning good salaries right way. 

“Of those who complete a program, 96% are employed,” says Bill Bussey, Executive Director for Ohio Technical Centers. 

Often, a certification is all the education needed for a career, Bussey says. He adds that a state-certified dental assistant with a license to use nitrous oxide can have a job for life, and that power lineman technician jobs are both in demand and pay well.

Other times, Bussey says, a certificate from an Ohio Technical Center is a first step on a career path, with many students choosing to further their education. 

“It’s a career ladder starting with us,” he explains.” [A Licensed Practical Nursing certificate] is life sustaining but not family sustaining, wage-wise, so that’s why we want those students to go on to get their RN or BSN.”

Another benefit of Ohio Technical Centers is that they are an affordable way to gain more education. 

“There’s very little debt,” Bussey explains. “Students are eligible for Pell Grants on courses over 600 hours, and they’re eligible for student loans if they qualify. Our programs are normally less than a year, so students develop skills in a shorter period of time, which means less money to start with, [and that’s appealing], especially when they know they’re going to be placed in an in-demand job.”

***

For those who have taken some college classes but not yet earned a degree and want to return, there are two programs that provide financial help while also furthering one’s education.

College Comeback — the first program in the nation of its kind — provides debt relief to students in exchange for new tuition, explains Chris Kacir, Associate Vice Chancellor for Student Success at the Ohio Department of Higher Education.  

“Eight public universities and community colleges in northeast Ohio agreed to enter into a compact with one another: If a student stopped out and owes up to $5,000 to any of the colleges in the compact, [that student] can return to any of the other colleges in the compact,” he explains. 

Each of those schools agrees to release the transcript to a student’s new school, and as the debt holder, agrees to forgive up to $5,000. In turn, the receiving institution agrees to pay a small fee to the former college that is forgiving the debt. The BOLD Compact, similar to College Comeback, has also been established between eight colleges and universities in southwestern Ohio.

Another program, the Second Chance Grant, offers a one-time grant of up to $3,000 to students who have stopped out of a qualifying postsecondary institution (including a technical center, community college or career college as well as four-year colleges and universities), have not faced disciplinary actions and meet grade requirements. The student needs to be re-enrolled in a qualifying institution, pursuing undergraduate credentials up to a bachelor’s degree and must be working toward a credential or degree greater than what they already possess, even if it’s in a different field. 

The grant can be used for tuition, food, room and board, books, supplies and even transportation and childcare, but there are time parameters. The student needs to have been out of school for at least two semesters (or eight months if the school is not on semesters) and can’t have been out of school for longer than five years. 

Those interested can apply through the financial aid office of their new school, which will in turn apply for the assistance on the student’s behalf. 

“It’s difficult to go back if you think about the trade-offs these individuals have to make. Money for household needs is now going to tuition, and there is reduced household income due to reduced hours working,” Kacir notes. “To the extent we can make it more manageable, it’s in the best interest of our state to have an educated, agile workforce.”

This story ran in the Summer-Fall 2024 issue of College 101.