91ֿ’s Center for Adult and Veteran Services (CAVS) enhances the experiences of adult, military-connected and parenting students both in and out of the classroom. This June, Cassandra Pegg-Kirby became the associate director of adult and parenting student engagement for the center, leading to a renewed effort of support.
“We’re an office that meets people where they are; we look for the best options and opportunities for students,” Pegg-Kirby told 91ֿ Today. “The specific populations that we serve are veterans, adults and parents.”
Some of the center’s primary responsibilities are to maximize opportunities for each student. Opportunities and resources are not one size fits all; however, Pegg-Kirby values fairness and gives every student the same level of care.
Common characteristics defined by groups like the Institute of Education Sciences for nontraditional students include age, background, residence, employment status and caregiving responsibilities.
91ֿ’s center views adult students even more broadly. Parenting students clearly have children, but the office also considers students who are caregivers in other ways, such as ailing parents or siblings at home, or traditional-aged students working full-time jobs to be non-traditional students.
“It’s not just about meeting a need, it’s about getting to know people and building relationships. Many offices support these specific populations.” Pegg-Kirby said. “My role is to amplify what is already provided and work to fill the gaps to maximize what we can do for our students.”
This new position requires someone with deep experience. Fortunately, Pegg-Kirby is no stranger to 91ֿ. She has held various roles during her 20-year tenure on campus. She served as the director of 91ֿ Women’s Center for 10 years, was an academic advisor, worked in the admissions office, and was even a police dispatcher on campus.
“The heart of my work at 91ֿ has always been about equity of opportunity, resources and access, and that is still the case with my current role in CAVS,” Pegg-Kirby said.
Pegg-Kirby’s role is unique in that she looks at data across all Regional Campuses and all groups of students who may be deemed non-traditional. Since she has just stepped into the role of associate director, the bulk of her job thus far is data collection.
The center recently hosted a series of focus groups and an online survey to help identify and address the needs of adult students. In the upcoming semesters, Pegg-Kirby will be able to use research to create programs and initiatives for veteran, adult and parenting students.
“I think my role here is to make sure to capture data and information about these populations across not just the Kent campus, but the regional campuses as well,” Pegg-Kirby said. “We are also inclusive of international and graduate students, looking at the scope of who these students may be.”
It is not about guessing the needs of a population but hearing from them directly, she said.
She acts as a translator for 91ֿ to the students, helping them navigate all of the resources and programs available to them through the center. She helps students with academic advising, financial aid and childcare.
“This transition has really reminded me how important community is and how important our own awareness is,” she said.
Pegg-Kirby has heard many stories over the years, even though she has just stepped into her new role. This fall, in a public health class, she saw firsthand the impact of the challenges of parenting students and the effect a welcoming classroom can have. One of her fellow students was left without childcare for the day due to unforeseen circumstances. This student brought his daughter to class with him, and instead of other students judging him or being annoyed that there was a child in the classroom, they played and colored with his daughter while still being able to participate in a productive lecture.
“This person could have felt really alienated, but instead we embrace the opportunity,” Pegg-Kirby said.
Pegg-Kirby collaborates with other 91ֿ, city of Kent and Portage County organizations, such as the Financial Billing and Enrollment Office, Main Street Kent and Portage County’s Women, Infants and Children Program, in collaboration with the center.
“I’ve done outreach to Main Street Kent to say what things are geared toward families or adult student populations,” Pegg-Kirby said. “I’ve found things related to retirement planning or downtown related to Halloween.”
These efforts aim to connect veteran, adult and parenting students to a larger community, including 91ֿ. Students within the office provide real-time feedback to the center as well. Samm Ratkovec is a senior sports medicine major and a student worker at the center.
“I was so thrilled to be able to connect with military-connected, adult/parenting and other non-traditional students that we work with in the office,” Ratkovec said. “It was nice to be able to put names to faces and be able to look at the work that our office put into the open house event and see how wonderful it all turned out.”
Ratkovec’s work within the office goes beyond just a job for her. She is a military-connected student herself.
“Working with CAVS has helped me with files that are needed as well as learning to better navigate the VA [Veteran Affairs] website, which I use for my own benefits,” Ratkovec said.
Student workers help not only around the office, but also with study hours. These study hours are hosted for families on the sixth floor of the library. A 91ֿ student volunteer or student worker sits and plays with the children of parenting students while they study.