Adult Learners Driving New Degree Programs at Athens State

A push to serve adult learners has fueled an ambitious effort to add eight degree programs at Athens State University.

A push to help adult learners reach their career goals drove an expansion of degree programs at Athens State University in Alabama.

The university added six degree programs last fall and another one this spring, an ambitious “all-hands-on-deck” effort that flowed from a decline in the number of undergraduates, said Catherine Wehlburg, the institution’s interim president. The steady decline stretches back a full 10 years, according to state data.