- Richland Library
- Wednesday, June 07, 2023
Recently, Dr. Howard Liebman was the keynote speaker at the latest COHS Graduation. We asked him a few questions about the program and its positive impact on local communities.
1. How did the COHS program come to be? What were the motivating factors on your part to create this online initiative?
The COHS program came to be through a combination of my education and clinical social work background. In my research, I noticed that approximately 35 million adults (25+ years old) in the United States had not completed their high school diploma. As I delved into the data, I was motivated by the fact that many of these adults wanted to re-engage into the educational system but very few adult education programs addressed their needs.
It was also evident that many of these adults had experienced educational trauma and were reluctant to go back to school. We at COHS believe adults respond to educational failure in much the same way that they respond to a traumatic event. Most people have a flight reaction to trauma. They run and do not come back. The students had developed a mindset that activated a flight response to school and associated feelings of helplessness and disempowerment.
Within COHS’ educational intervention methodology, our team directly identifies education and trauma as related phenomena. Secondly, our team addresses student educational needs with empathy and compassion through a comprehensive, supportive academic coaching model and a competency-based instructional design (i.e., no failure) program. These two interventions help students re-engage into the educational system and develop the necessary skills to work through their “flight” response and become successful as students. Upon graduation, approximately 75% of our students plan to matriculate into postsecondary training programs. We have found these types of adult education interventions to be very effective and powerful.
2. What are some of the challenges you faced starting/growing the Career Online High School?
The biggest challenges we faced in starting/growing COHS was the lack of funding and the lack of innovation in adult online education programs. This challenge made it difficult for COHS to gain traction and acceptance from local and state governments and municipalities. However, due to our high student engagement and postsecondary matriculation rates, COHS has overcome some of these challenges. We’ve also witnessed an increase in adult online education programs at the national, state, and local levels (i.e., through public libraries, non-profits, and correctional facilities). In addition, corporations have taken a big role in providing educational assistance for their employees to re-engage into the educational system. The adult online education landscape has evolved over the past 10 years.
3. COHS is a life-changing initiative. What has been the most rewarding aspect for you personally?
By far, the most rewarding aspect of this personally is knowing that our program has positively impacted thousands of people’s lives and their family lives around the United States. The stories range from a 74-year-old grandmother earning her high school diploma followed by her daughter and her grandchildren to a 33-year-old mother of four, who went from being unemployed to being a college graduate. Also, the ability to break the cycle of multi-generational poverty and illiteracy is very powerful. I always say that I have no problem “putting my head on the pillow at night” knowing that we are positively impacting so many people’s lives. Education is the great equalizer for all.
4. Any other COHS comments you would like to share?
Our team is humbled by Richland Library’s support of the COHS program and how many lives they have impacted in Richland County. It is quite remarkable!
Authors:
Phillip Windsor, Business and Careers Librarian
Janet Hatch, Business and Careers Librarian
Leighan Cazier, e-Content Strategist
Diane Luccy, Business and Careers Manager
