Laurel Bretz, assistant vice president of continuing, corporate and professional education, and Nancy Sweet, dean of the Workforce Institute, recently earned the degrees of Doctor of Education with a focus on higher education administration from Bradley University. Their research methodology employed action research on the LLCC campus to complete their doctoral projects. Laurel’s research work was titled “Older Adult Learning: Persistence, Barriers and Value,” which examined organizational effectiveness by identifying factors contributing to third age learners’ persistence, preferences and satisfaction with the Academy of Lifelong Learning. Her degree was conferred May 14, 2022. Nancy’s research work was titled “Improving Career and Technical Education Through Early Support Programs” and focused on how to minimize community college career and technical education students’ motivational barriers to help increase persistence and completion rates.  Her degree was conferred Aug. 15, 2022.

Congratulations!