With a good deal of pride and a high-level hope that we might catalyze something big, we’re happy to announce that our entry for winning ideas to scale and sustain adult learning has been selected by College Unbound and the Lumina Foundation.

It’s not a small challenge to tackle.

Nearly 75% of today’s college students are non-traditional – many work full-time while attending school part time and some have families to support. Nearly half these students are over the age of 25. Additionally, there are an additional 37 million adults out there who began degree programs, but did not finish. What do all these potential degree candidates have in common? A one-size fits all higher ed system seemingly designed to hinder access to higher education, persistence through higher education and attainment of a higher education degree.

Our idea to solve for this challenge is to shift the center of student gravity from traditional student service offerings of academic and financial aid toward a concept of holistic  “life aid.” Through the creation of an exemplar customer service experience enabled by technology yet mastered by human touch, we envision a new platform that re-thinks the “aid” packages that adult learners receive to include help with work and life obligations which ease the stress many students succumb to as they try to balance education and the circumstances of their lives.

It would also break the tyranny associated with individual institutions laying sole claim to a student’s ability to receive a degree. By shifting the lens from “bound students” toward “unbound degrees,” adult learners would find themselves in a position that maintains the philosophy of personalized learning while delivering greater access to a network of institutions, employers, experiences and situations.