Editors Note: This story was edited to correct two name misspellings at 12:28 p.m. on June 30, 2025.
WKU has partnered with ReUp Education, a third-party organization that provides personalized support for students, to help expand opportunities for adult learners.
This partnership will allow for a faster and more efficient outreach to students who want to finish their education, said Jennifer Hammonds, WKU’s executive director for graduate studies and university registrar.
ReUp Education will act as an extension of WKU by contacting students and serving as a student success coach. They will work closely with both students and the university.
“ReUp Education is the industry leader in finding, enrolling, and supporting adult learners at scale,” the ReUp Education website states. “Driven by our mission to empower all adults to thrive in higher ed, we partner with institutions, state systems, state and regional governments, and member organizations to help adults navigate the journey to and through school.
Hammonds said, in 2021, WKU partnered with the Institute of Higher Education Policy and the Kentucky Council of Postsecondary Learning on a project called Degrees When Due, which helped those returning back to education to get their degree fill language requirements and substitute course requirements.
This project helped WKU to award 300 students with degrees who had originally stopped before completing their credentials. Hammonds said the work with Degrees When Due proved to be successful and they continued after the project concluded, but the volume of students who needed support exceeded the availability of those working on the project.
Hammonds and other staff working in the Student Success office learned about ReUp Education at the Kentucky Student Success conference. Hammonds became one of the leads for WKU’s partnership with ReUp Education.
“We worked with partners across campus to ensure returning students under the partnership had access to campus resources such as adult learner services, academic advising, financial aid, and billing support.” Hammonds said.
According to data from the National Center for Educational Statistics, as of 2021, 35% of learners were over the age of 25, but many of them have lower completion rates due to barriers such as time, poverty, child care and financial restraints.
“Adult learners often face additional challenges such as childcare responsibilities and financial obligations that make returning to school difficult,” Hammonds said. “In many cases, the issue isn’t a lack of ability or desire; it’s simply that adult learners don’t know where to begin or who to contact at the institution.”
Using a list provided by WKU, ReUp success coaches will reach out to former students who left the university before they were able to finish their education and help them explore their interest in returning to complete their degree.
Coaches will provide those interested in returning with guidance through the process of re-enrollment, completing the FAFSA and any other barriers they may face.
Hammonds said WKU will work with those who left the university in the last three years, while coaches at ReUp Education will engage with those who stopped prior to 2021. The division of effort allows for students to receive the best support during their return.
“While the partnership is still in its early stages, just two months in, we’ve already seen students reapply and enroll for both the summer and fall semesters,” Hammonds said. For those interested in finishing their education at WKU, they can visit the WKU Adult Learners Services website or contact [email protected].
