Effort supported by $7.5 million in state grants, incentives by colleges and employers

Indianapolis – Governor Mike Pence and Commissioner for Higher Education Teresa Lubbers joined Indiana business and local government leaders today to kick off “You Can. Go Back.”— a coordinated campaign to help 750,000 Hoosier adults who have some college credit but no degree finish what they started. The statewide effort is a key strategy in reaching Indiana’s goal to increase the percentage of Hoosiers with education beyond high school to 60 percent by 2025.

“There are 750,000 Hoosier adults who started working toward a degree or credential that will help them in their professional lives but for one reason or another, they had to put their education on hold,” said Governor Pence. “What we are doing here today is telling these Hoosiers, ‘We can help. And yes, you can go back.’ We want to improve the quality of our workforce, and help put Hoosiers on a path to even greater success. To achieve this goal, it is imperative that we look beyond our K-12 pipeline. Our ‘You Can. Go Back.’ campaign will encourage a continuing education that helps working Hoosiers meet the qualifications of the fastest growing, high-wage jobs that will provide opportunity and improve lives.”

With support from state lawmakers and Indiana colleges, the Commission for Higher Education (CHE) is reaching out directly to prospective returning adults and easing their transition back to college with a variety of special programs and incentives, including $1,000 scholarships through a $7.5 million state grant, flexible class schedules and online courses, college credit for work and military experience, grade- and debt-forgiveness programs, and tuition discounts.

“Many adults who started a degree or credential but didn’t finish have a strong desire to return to college, but they don’t know where to start,” CHE Commissioner Lubbers said. “You Can. Go Back. will guide students through the process of returning to school and give them the support they need to be successful.”

This month, thousands of former college students will receive messages in their mailboxes and email inboxes highlighting the benefits of completing their degree and directing them to resources designed to support their return to school. At YouCanGoBack.org, Hoosiers will be matched to college programs based on their interests and career goals before being connected to dedicated “You Can. Go Back.” campus ambassadors at well-matched colleges.

Indiana state leaders have called upon businesses and local communities as essential partners in the “You Can. Go Back.” campaign. Columbus Mayor Jim Lienhoop took part in today’s official campaign launch, highlighting the importance of postsecondary education to the economic vitality of cities and towns.

“Approximately 20 percent of adults—about 35,000 people ages 25-64 in our southeast Indiana workforce region—have some college but no degree. Employers in our community are in desperate need of highly skilled people to fill jobs, especially in the advanced manufacturing and health care sectors, which makes up nearly 50 percent of our workforce,” Lienhoop said. “The City of Columbus strongly supports “You Can. Go Back.” because of its potential to help meet this workforce need.”

As part of the “You Can. Go Back.” roll-out, CHE gathered input from Indiana businesses on what types of education benefits they currently offer employees and what challenges they face in providing or expanding those benefits. Comcast was the partnering business for the “You Can. Go Back.” announcement. The company already offers employees $5,750 in annual tuition reimbursement support, but Comcast is also working to expand education benefits.

“The state is stepping up to make sure this opportunity exists for Hoosiers, but it is incumbent upon the businesses in Indiana to make sure that we provide a path that leads directly to a better educated workforce,” said Mike Wilson, Comcast Indiana Public Relations Director.

As one of the largest employers in our state, Governor Pence has directed the State Personnel Department to share information about “You Can. Go Back.” with state employees. State agencies such as the Department of Workforce Development and the Family and Social Services Administration are helping publicize the effort across the state in local WorkOne and Division of Family Resources offices.

IL for www.theindianalawyer.com

A House committee voted 11-2 Monday in favor of passage of a bill that would provide thousands of adopted Hoosiers with access to their birth and adoption records.

The House Judiciary Committee moved Senate Bill 91, which passed the Senate last month. The bill would permit Hoosiers adopted between 1941 and 1993 to access birth records. Proponents have been asking lawmakers to ease those restrictions for eight years.

“We thank the House Judiciary Committee members for their commitment to providing equal access to personal information for all adoptees,” said Pam Kroskie, president of Hoosiers for Equal Access to Records, a nonprofit formed to push for adult adoptee access legislation in Indiana.

HEAR says people adopted during Indiana’s “closed records” period are forced to use a difficult and expensive intermediary system for getting their records, causing many to quit their search in frustration, or never start. The new law will equalize access to information for all adoptees.

“SB 91 will finally allow adoptees to find the closure they desperately seek, uncover vital answers about their medical history and cure administrative headaches that come from having an amended birth certificate,” Kroskie said.

Not all adoptee-rights groups support the bill, however. Spokane, Washington-based Bastard Nation opposes SB 91 because it would allow parents who placed their children for adoption during the years in question the ability to sign a non-release form that would block the release of birth and adoption records. The group supports unrestricted access for adoptees to their original birth certificates.