Recently, Elizabethtown College was awarded $978,285 from the Pennsylvania Department of Labor & Industry (L&I) as part of a nearly $2.2M grant to the Lancaster County Workforce Development Board (LCWDB). The grant was awarded for the Near Completer project: ACHIEVE, which provides opportunities for Pa. residents to complete an unfinished certificate or undergraduate degree program in a high-demand, family-sustaining wage occupation.
“Elizabethtown College is thrilled to be a part of this collaborative project and is looking forward to seeing the direct and positive impact the success of this program will have on our region’s economic viability,” Elizabethtown College President Betty Rider said. “We recognize the need within our community for providing today’s employees with the skills, knowledge, and credentials needed to remain competitive in a global market. We are confident that through innovative practices within Etown’s School of Graduate and Professional Studies and with the help of this grant, we can ensure students achieve their educational goals.”
ACHIEVE is a collaborative project led by LCWDB in partnership with Elizabethtown College, Millersville University, Pennsylvania College of Art and Design, Lancaster Chamber, and PA CareerLink® Lancaster County. The initiative aims to enable learners to gain employment in high-priority occupations through a variety of educational options and provide support services for the challenges that adult learners face while pursuing higher education. Programs are offered in an online format to accommodate work, life, and school balance.
For over 70 years, Elizabethtown College’s School of Graduate and Professional Studies (SGPS) has had a direct and positive impact on the workforce and economy of both Lancaster County and throughout the South-Central Pennsylvania region by offering convenient and flexible undergraduate and graduate degrees as well as micro-credential options for students to fit their educational goals into their daily routines.
“We offer adults relevant, high-demand, and affordable programs to further their education on their own timeline,” Elizabethtown College Vice President for Enrollment Management John F. Champoli said. “This grant will assist our efforts to ensure pursuing undergraduate coursework is accessible and attainable for all who desire.”
Etown SGPS strives to reward a student’s educational efforts by accepting and applying credits earned from past institutions, including Prior Learning Assessment (PLA) credits based on past professional and military experience, making it achievable for a student to complete a degree at Etown within a one-year period.
The ACHIEVE project incorporates innovative practices that apply rapid credentialing strategies including credit transfers, prior learning credit/experience, military credit, stackable credential attainment, online and asynchronous accessibility, as well as deployment of a network of support including case management, peer support, career guidance, and employment support services.
Through ACHIEVE, learners have a variety of options that meet a wide range of occupations that inspire individual selection based on strengths, skills, and personalized career path goals. The program offers adult learners who have credits and are near graduation a full scholarship if they complete their degree by the end of June 2024. The Pennsylvania Department of Labor & Industry (L&I) awarded more than $6 million in grant funding to four local workforce development boards (LWDBs) through the Near Completer grant program. The grant program, funded by the Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act (WIOA), will begin on June 1, 2023, and run until June 30, 2024. Discover more about the School of Graduate Professional Studies at Elizabethtown College.