The college admissions process can be confusing, cumbersome and at times overwhelming for some high school juniors and seniors.

College application processes vary widely, with many requiring essays, letters of recommendation and lengthy forms, not to mention multiple deadlines and course requirements. Many students don’t even bother to apply for financial aid for fear they won’t qualify (in the 2012-13 academic year, just 43 percent of public high school seniors in Florida completed the Free Application for Federal Student Aid).

Schools have College and Career Counselors, which are sometimes different than Guidance Counselors, to help students navigate this process. However, at some schools there is a critical shortage of these positions, leaving many students to fend for themselves.

“When students don’t have the resources to get into college and are left to their own devices, it doesn’t take much for them to get off track,” says Troy Miller, senior researcher and policy analyst for the Florida College Access Network (FCAN).

Introducing: The Cube

Parents at Robinson High School in South Tampa, which has one College and Career Counselor for 1,500 students, have stepped up to help fill this need.

“The Cube” (College Career Center, or C cubed), is a place where students can go for information such as career planning, college and financial aid applications and how to sign up for the SAT or ACT.

A group of 10 parents volunteer to work in the Cube in shifts of two or three hours, once per week. The trained volunteers have open-ended conversations, sometimes one-on-one but also in small groups. The focus is on impacting students based on their individual needs and goals. The volunteers served more than 150 students in 2012-13, the Cube’s first year of operation.

“It’s very rewarding,” says Meg Fernandez, Robinson High parent who helped start the initiative. “The kids are really receptive. They’re looking to do something great with their lives.”

Fernandez helped create the program at Robinson after starting a similar one at Plant High School in South Tampa a few years ago. Her inspiration came from her interest in vocational interests and background as a headhunter for 13 years. Having a daughter at Robinson also gave her access to the administration and other parents.

“I have a passion for this,” Fernandez says. “I really would love to see that people are able to self-actualize in their lives.”

Funding was provided by a parent-run foundation that raises funds for special projects within the school. Omnia Group donated furniture and supplies for the space. Employees from local construction companies Soleil and Sample Properties helped with the build out.

The Cube at Robinson is one program at just 10 schools statewide that recently won a Parent Involvement Award from the Florida Department of Education.

“We really just want to help those kids get there. It’s good for all of us when young people are successful,” says Fernandez.

There’s an unprecedented workforce shift taking place in our society. People nearing retirement age are redefining that stage in their lives. Rather than the old adage of retirement being freedom from work, Baby Boomers — the 78 million people born between 1946 and 1964 — are looking for freedom to work, in new and meaningful ways that have an impact on their lives and their communities.

Many are achieving this through an encore career. Commonly defined as a second or third act in life typically taking place after the age of 50, encore careers combine personal meaning, social impact and continued income.

According to research from Encore, a national grassroots movement that provides resources and support to those seeking encore careers, as many as nine million people ages 44 to 70 are in encore careers, and 31 million more are looking for them.

With Florida having the 4th-largest population of Baby Boomers in the U.S. and Tampa Bay seeing a growth in this population, the atmosphere is ripe to take advantage of this movement.

Enter Encore Tampa Bay. The fledgling startup aims to help local Baby Boomers find their next careers by helping them hone their skills while connecting them to organizations in need of their talents and experiences.

The movement, launched in January, is led by Bevan Rogel, who after 33 years of organization and leadership development decided there was something more she could do to meet her calling. Her passion is now creating pathways, programs and resources to help people over the age of 50 discover what’s next for them.

“My encore career is starting Encore Tampa Bay,” says Rogel.

Encore careers could take many forms, including assisting nonprofits or other socially focused organizations, mentoring or even starting a new business to serve a social need.

Rogel was recently one of 10 individuals across the nation selected to participate in the Encore Innovation Fellows Program through the national Encore organization. The program will allow her to manage the Encore Academy, which will focus on helping those over 50 who want to start a business. The Academy will be housed at the new Greenhouse in St. Petersburg, a business assistance center led by the City in partnership with the St. Petersburg Chamber of Commerce.

Rogel’s work also includes meeting with nonprofits to discuss how they can benefit from the experience and expertise of Baby Boomers.

“I’m really focused on helping boomers connect and identify their encore careers, but also on influencing community leaders and stakeholders to recognize this windfall of talent and experience that could be used in a different way,” says Rogel.

Other offerings include working with local colleges and universities to help them identify Baby Boomers as potential students and tailor their curriculum to better meet their needs.

The support from the community has been very positive, with many partners working together toward a concerted effort.

“I’m excited to see community leaders ready to do some things differently,” says Rogel. “I think if we help people find and discover those encore careers, they will plug right in to ways that can benefit our community.”

North Port resident Jodi Johnson overcame adversity and internal fears to take the first step toward earning a college degree, and now the 39-year old New College of Florida student says she’s glad she returned to school and hopes to encourage others to do the same.

Like many people, Johnson began her college studies directly after high school. But after getting pregnant her junior year, she dropped out, thinking college just wasn’t her priority.

Nearly three years later, her then-husband died of a drug overdose, leaving her suddenly widowed with a two-year old son. The experience left her feeling overwhelmed and somewhat smothered.

“I felt like I needed to sort of prove myself,” says Johnson. “I couldn’t be dependent on anyone else again.”

Four years later and remarried, she moved to Florida with her husband and son in 2000. They were attracted to the Tampa Bay area during a vacation in Sarasota, where they fell in love with the weather, culture and amenities.

A variety of part-time administrative jobs that followed just didn’t seem to give her the mental stimulation and satisfaction she needed. At the age of 35, it was ultimately her mom’s pushing that prompted her decision to return to school.

“I was on the phone with her and driving by State College of Florida, Manatee-Sarasota (SCF), and I decided to stop in and look.” Half an hour later, she was registered for classes.

At first, the experience was very scary for Johnson. She was apprehensive about being older than many of the other students. She also worried about brushing up on some of the required courses.

“I felt terrified to tears of math class,” she recalls. She had to take five math courses to obtain her associates degree, which turned out to be a big self esteem builder.

“I can’t say enough about State College,” says Johnson. “They have a great program that really encourages adult learners.”

Earning Her BA Degree

Once she became acclimated to being in school, she got involved with leadership organizations such as Phi Theta Kappa Honor Society. She also co-founded the Awareness Initiative Program at SCF, designed to raise awareness of drug and alcohol dependence. “That really showed me that I have leadership skills — that I wanted to push myself.”

In 2010, Johnson transferred to New College of Florida in Sarasota, another intimidating and uncertain step because of the school’s reputation for selecting only the best and brightest.

“School really taught me not to be scared of failure,” says Johnson. “I thought, ‘what’s the worst that can happen?’ ”

Now a year and a half into her studies at New College, Johnson plans to graduate in December 2013 with a BA in anthropology. “I’ve always had this interest in other cultures, and telling their story.”

Her school has been funded mainly through scholarships, as well as Pell Grants.

Johnson was recently appointed to the Sarasota Historic Board of Commissioners and is establishing the Ancient Waters Foundation to preserve and educate people about Florida’s historical and archaeological water-based resources. She is trying to raise awareness of the vast amount of culture in Tampa Bay. “I don’t think people realize all the Gulf coast offers.”

When asked what advice she would give to others thinking about returning to school, Johnson says she tells everyone she meets: “Don’t be scared of failure. Push yourself. You just have to jump in and go for it.”

Jeff Paleczny is an engineer, a designer and an innovator. His technology career includes contributions to the first color correct computer display, smart phone displays and ebook displays. It’s safe to say he has “been there, done that” in the technology world. After many setbacks, Jeff decided to put down roots in the Sarasota area and add a degree at Eckerd College in St. Petersburg to his credentials.

Paleczny graduated from an electronics technician program at a community college in Canada in 1977. His first job was a broadcast engineer at a TV station. He eventually made his way to Silicon Valley, where he worked on high-powered microwave devices at a company called Varian Associates. As a foreign national, he had trouble selling these devices because of the large number of military clients.

His next venture was at a company by the name of Conrac, where he was involved in the creation of the first color correct computer display, allowing desktop publishers to see the same thing on screen they could see on paper. This was a major innovation in the design world.

“Desktop publishers and ad execs in New York were screaming for this,” says Paleczny.

The increase in popularity of the Internet eventually led to the business becoming a commodity. Paleczny decided to re-engineer himself and create something new.

His next endeavor brought him to Philips Electronics, where he helped create the first smart phone displays for Hewlett Packard’s I-PAC (Compaq, at the time). Philips eventually decided to release the product line in favor of custom development, putting Paleczny out of a job again.

Now at the age of 50, Paleczny thought, “I better figure out how to do this on my own.” From his connections at Philips, he had the materials and technology that turned into today’s ebook displays. He tried to sell the technology to publishers like Barnes & Noble and Borders, but they weren’t interested. He decided to take the entrepreneur route and opened his own company, by the name of Ereaderoutfitters. He started out with 70,000 ebooks, selling for $600 each.

The business was tremendously successful for around 14 months. Then, the iPad was introduced. With a color product at a lower price point, there was no way he could compete.  Disappointed, Paleczny left the business.

“In retrospect I should have exited sooner,” he reflects. But he wanted his business to work so he stuck with it and was eventually forced to exit.

What brought him to Tampa Bay was a vacation with his family in Lido Beach. The natural beauty of the area convinced him and his wife to put down roots here.

While looking for jobs, he realized that prospective employers didn’t know what to do with all of his experience. He decided to go back to school.

He is currently pursuing a Bachelor of Arts in Management at Eckerd College. He chose Eckerd after reading that Steve Jobs went to a liberal arts college.

“That legitimized that maybe a technology guy needs a more rounded view of the world,” says Paleczny. He plans to graduate in December 2013 and is hoping to get involved in the corporate world again.

“I had to be productive and constructive in some way and felt like [going back to school] would help,” says Paleczny. “And it has. I’m learning, and I’m enjoying.”

With the latest research driving home the value of a college degree more than ever, national and local groups continue to make headway in increasing educational attainment.

“Talent is one of the most important commodities we have,” says Jamie Merisotis, president and CEO of the Lumina Foundation, as he kicked off a panel discussion titled “The College Advantage.” The discussion took place in August in Ybor City during the Republican National Convention. The panel was also present during the Democratic National Convention in September in Charlotte, with the purpose of drawing attention to the economic advantage of post-secondary degrees.

Panelists included Dr. Anthony Carnevale, director and research professor at Georgetown University’s Center on Education and the Workforce; Mick Fleming, president of American Chamber of Commerce Executives; Teresa Lubbers, Indiana Commissioner for Higher Education; Dr. Eduardo Padron, president of Miami Dade College; Jamie Merisotis, president and CEO of the Lumina Foundation; and Aaron Smith, co-founder and executive director of Young Invincibles (an advocacy group for young Americans).

The Lumina Foundation was established in 2000 with the purpose of increasing students’ access to and success in postsecondary education. Their mission, also known as Goal 2025, is to increase the percentage of Americans who hold high quality degrees and credentials to 60 percent by the year 2025. This would be a 50 percent increase from the current rate of 40 percent.

The foundation is also a sponsor of the national Talent Dividend competition hosted by CEOs for Cities, which has more than 50 metropolitan areas competing for a $1 million prize for the highest increase in educational attainment by 2013. Three metropolitan statistical areas (MSAs) in Tampa Bay are part of the competition, headed up by the Tampa Bay Partnership: Tampa-St. Petersburg-Clearwater; Bradenton-Sarasota-Venice; and Lakeland-Winter Haven.

Local Progress For Tampa Bay

According to data from the 2010 census, the overall average number of people in Tampa Bay with a post-secondary degree is 33.4 percent, which is just under the national average of 38.3 percent. Local groups are working to increase this statistic with the Graduate Tampa Bay campaign, which encourages those who have completed some college coursework to go back and complete their degrees.

Ken Atwater, Graduate Tampa Bay chair and Hillsborough Community College (HCC) president, has the goal of increasing HCC’s graduation rate by 50 percent by the year 2020. Progress is already being made, with the 2011-2012 graduating class of 5,464 being the largest in the institution’s history.

Local community colleges continue to work with four-year colleges and universities for a more seamless transfer process. HCC, along with Pasco-Hernando Community College and St. Petersburg College signed an agreement with the University of South Florida (USF) last year that guarantees graduates of Florida’s two-year institutions admission to USF.

Polk Vision, a community partnership of educational institutions, government, businesses and individuals hosted a meeting in August to discuss ways to increase graduation rates in Polk County. The group discussed potential fast track options for those who are interested in completing their degrees quickly. Actions steps are currently being developed to help companies encourage their employees to finish school.

The Florida College Access Network, a statewide network based in Tampa that works to improve educational preparation, access and completion, hosted the Florida Goal 2025 College Access & Success Summit in May at USF. The discussion focused on making education more accessible through the use of technology and online learning.

The Value Of A Degree

These efforts are fueled by research, such as a study released earlier in 2012 by Georgetown University. The study, titled “The College Advantage” looked at the effect the recession, and subsequent recovery, had on the value of college degrees.

The results were overwhelmingly positive, particularly at the bachelor’s degree level.

Nearly 200,000 jobs for workers with at least a bachelor’s degree were added to the economy during the recession. In fact, the number of jobs for bachelor’s degrees or higher was never negative. For those with associate’s degrees, 1.75 million jobs were lost. Jobs for those with a high school diploma or less fared far worse, losing 5.6 million jobs altogether during the recession.

Things started looking up during the recovery, with 2 million jobs gained for those with a bachelor’s degree or better. For people with associate’s degrees or some college, nearly all of the jobs lost were gained back. On the contrary, jobs for people with a high school diploma or less lost 230,000 jobs during the recovery (as of February 2012).

“The economy we’re moving into is different than the economy we left behind,” says Anthony Carnevale, director and research professor for the Georgetown University Center on Education and the Workforce.

The panel agreed, noting that credentials of value will be the currency of our future economy.

A 2010 report from the Institute of Medicine recommended that the number of nurses with a bachelor’s degree increase by 80 percent by the year 2020 in order to create a workforce to meet the demands of our increasingly diverse population.

Why? Research has shown nurses who hold bachelor’s degrees have better patient outcomes, increased job satisfaction and better communication and problem-solving skills.

The University of South Florida responded to this research with a customer stakeholder approach that included focus groups with more than 200 individuals — students, hospital administrators, educators and nurses — asking what would enhance their practice and what would make nurses more likely to return to school. The result was a brand new program.

“We’re really trying to prepare them for not only what they’re facing now, but what they’ll be facing in the next 20 years,” says Dr. Rita D’Aoust, associate dean for academic affairs at the USF College of Nursing.

Riverview resident Cheryl Combs agrees.

“I can tell I’m going to become a better nurse,” says Combs, a home health care nurse currently enrolled in the program. “A lot of the projects they’re having us do are making me better at my profession.”

Combs, now 35, entered the program in January after taking some time off after receiving her associate’s degree from Hillsborough Community College in 2006. While attending HCC, she was diagnosed with ovarian cancer. She underwent chemotherapy for four months and had to get permission from her oncologist to go back to school.

“I was really determined to graduate,” says Combs.

Now, Combs and other students enjoy the flexibility of the completely online bachelor’s degree program, allowing working students to study and learn at a time and place most convenient to them. The 30-credit program can be completed in five semesters if attending part-time (as little as three semesters with a full-time schedule), with a total cost of just under $6,000. Fifty students were enrolled this past spring; another 85 started this summer.

The program has three major focus areas: clinical practice, education and leadership.

Clinical Practice

Students complete projects that can be used immediately at their workplace and are also asked for ways they can improve their current practice. They conduct research on real-world health needs in the community. One student recently studied ways to help emotionally unstable patients during a disaster such as a hurricane. The goal is to take these projects back to the workplace for community impact.

“It’s all about what you can learn and what you can take back,” says Sandy Czerwinsky, director of the R.N. to B.S. Program.

Education

Knowing that nurses have the most interaction with patients, the program also looks at the educational role of the nurse. Students learn about health literacy, how people learn and how to make sure patients understand their health care instructions.

In a recent assignment, Combs created a PowerPoint presentation that described how to teach patients about their diseases. The project translated directly into a situation she had with a patient.

“The image of the PowerPoint popped into my head when I was assessing her,” she says. Combs plans to use the assignment, as well as others, in her future practice.

Leadership

Nurses are most visible in direct care positions, but they often work in leadership and administrative roles as well. The leadership component focuses on administrative tasks such as determining how many nurses are needed for a shift.

The community at-large is supportive of the program, with several local hospitals moving toward a requirement that newly hired nurses have a bachelor’s degree. Most offer tuition reimbursement programs and are willing to work with school schedules.

Combs likes the program’s flexibility.

“It’s manageable, even while you’re working.”

She plans to graduate in 2013 and then go straight into the master’s degree program. As a cancer survivor, she says she wants to dedicate her life to an oncology role. She’s also thinking about becoming a professor at a nursing college so she can help mentor new nurses.

“It’s kind of tough when you’re a newbie. I want to foster the new nurses and let them know not to give up.”

Growing up in New York with his mom and grandfather, Rich Mullin wasn’t someone who placed a high value on education. After his life took many unexpected twists and turns, he has come to appreciate the significance of a college degree, and is now using his story to convince others to take the plunge.

Mullin moved with friends to New Port Richey at the age of 16, looking for a change of pace. When his friends returned to New York the following year, he decided to stay. “After that, life basically took over,” says Mullin. He worked odd jobs here and there, staying with new friends just to scrape by.

One thing led to another, and eventually he found himself homeless, living out of his Nissan for several months. “I wasn’t working at all. I hit rock bottom,” he says. Just when he was able to get back on his feet, a motorcycle accident left him bedridden for three months and ultimately laid off from his job.

It was the injury and recovery experience that led to a transformation, causing him to take a long, hard look at where he was going. “I had some friends who were pretty successful — they seemed to have different lifestyles than I did,” says Mullin. The common denominator? They all went to college.

Mullin enrolled in Pasco-Hernando Community College in 2008 at the age of 32 and has not looked back. He applied for federal student aid online and received Pell grants as well as student loans. While also working fulltime at a local spine center, he maintained a full class load and recently graduated with an A.A. degree and a 3.95 GPA.

“It was tough, I’m not going to lie,” says Mullin. There was a time early in his studies when he started second-guessing what he was doing. He sought advice from Professor Connie Frankel at PHCC, who pushed him to keep going, saying he would be doing himself a disservice if he stopped. “It was what I needed to hear at the time, and I stuck it out.”

Mullin is now taking additional classes to obtain an economics degree. When asked what he wants to do with his life, he says he imagines working the front office in a sports franchise. But what he really wants, he says, is just to help others.

“Since I’ve been in school, I’ve taken the approach of trying to give back to people,” says Mullin. He has a strong passion for encouraging people to finish school, or to go back if they aren’t happy with what they’re doing. “When I see people kind of drifting around, I point out to them what I’ve been through, that I’ve been in their shoes.”

Mullin shared his story at his college commencement ceremony, and continues to inspire others in the community. As a volunteer basketball and football coach at Elfers Christian School, he has an opportunity to meet youth and convince them to enter dual enrollment or get a GED if they didn’t finish high school. “Just take it step by step, and get in there,” advises Mullin.