Meet Diane Kearney, Director of Manchester Adult and Continuing Education

A few weeks ago I met former Manchester High School Principal Jim Spafford at a networking event. Jim described his new position with Manchester Adult and Continuing Education www.manchesteradulted.org and the work he was doing with local businesses. I was aware that Diane Kearney was working on a new adult education program for Manchester, but I didn't realize that the program was up and running. I contacted Diane and she agreed to talk about the great success of the Manchester Adult and Continuing Education program along with Jim.

Timothy Becker: Diane, how did the idea come about for Manchester to have it's own adult education program?

Diane Kearney: Vernon had run the program for the last 40 years. Our Superintendent commissioned a feasibility study in the 2009-2010 school year with the authorization of the Board of Education and it was done by CREC (Capitol Region Education Council). The study found that the program was feasible. The study also outlined the steps that were necessary for the start up. This required that we start up six programs at one time.

Timothy Becker: How did launching this new program land on your shoulders?

Diane Kearney: I was assigned the position of Director of Adult and Continuing Education as a result of a reorganization of central office administrators. I had done adult education and served as site principal from 2000 to 2004. I had the most experience in adult education.

Timothy Becker: What was the motivation for initiating the program?

Diane Kearney: The motivation was mostly about controlling the educational resources here in Manchester. Our school district is the 18th largest in the state serving over 7,000 students. The adult programs needed to be customized for the needs of Manchester residents.

Timothy Becker: Jim, what is your role with adult education?

Jim Spafford: As workforce education coordinator, I work with employers in Manchester to design customized education programs to help employees bring up their skills.

Timothy Becker: Jim, can you give me a couple of examples of courses that you designed for a Manchester employer?

Jim Spafford: One example is a English as a second language course that we brought to an employer. The employees are highly skilled in their own language, but needed help with their communications. Another course we brought in was training on Excel for engineers.

Timothy Becker: What else are you working on Jim?

Jim Spafford: I also do the statewide training under CREC. There are 27 education programs throughout the state that offer this service. We meet online every month to share best practices nationwide. The partnership part of my job is to link profit and non-profit organizations to share resources and leverage grant funds.

Timothy Becker: Diane, how will the the new Manchester based Adult and Continuing Education program benefit Manchester residents?

Diane Kearney: We will be able to tap into resources and apply for our own grants. We have received our first grant of over $190,000 to help High School graduates transition into college called REACT. We are also able to attract and educate more students. We have gone from 600 students to 750 students in the General Education Development (GED), Adult High School Credit Diploma Program (AHSCDP) and the National External Diploma Program (NEDP) and we are only half way through the year.

Timothy Becker: What is happening with the adult enrichment courses?

Diane Kearney: In the past we offered 11 courses, now we offer almost 70. Our catalog is available in print or online, and we are still enrolling for the current sessions.

Timothy Becker: What new things are you planning for the 2012-13 year?

Diane Kearney: Online learning will be huge. We are purchasing Odysseyware for High School level courses and we are joining the Ed2Go online network for continuing education and certificate programs. There also are online courses that can be used for workplace education at the employer’s site.

Timothy Becker: Do you have any additional thoughts that you would like to share about your program?

Diane Kearney: This is a great opportunity for Manchester. We have grown in less than one year. No other school district would have taken this risk. We will have many more graduates. The outcome is priceless.