By Bonnie Miller Rubin, Tribune Reporter
Lucy Horton — just one of the millions of Americans out of work — rushes out of English class at Harper Community College, a requirement for the associate’s degree she is seeking in search of a better life.
As the 49-year-old leaves the Palatine campus, her 19-year-old daughter is just arriving — same subject, different generation.
“I’m fine with my mom being here,” said Anna Horton, who graduated last year from South Elgin High School. “But at the same time, it’s a little weird.”
Across the metropolitan area, enrollment at virtually every community college is at a record high. Within the surge, there is a boomlet of parents and children attending school together, experts say.
The phenomenon is a convergence of two market forces: A larger-than-usual crop of recent high school graduates diverted from pricier schools by the recession, and their elders who are back in the classroom, hoping that retraining is the path to more stable and lucrative employment.
It’s hard to imagine any adolescent willingly embracing this arrangement. Back in high school, the mere prospect of passing Mom or Dad in the hall would have been a profound source of humiliation.
But now, the cringe factor is greatly diminished because the post-secondary environment means fewer cliques, more age diversity and a better shot at anonymity, the progeny say.
“It’s OK as long as she doesn’t follow me around,” explained Marissa Gudowski, 19, who attends Prairie State College in Chicago Heights with her mother, Diana Gudowski, 52.
The daughter has only one iron-clad rule: “No moms in the same classroom,” cracked the teen, while her mother expressed mock indignation.
Although the number of such pairs is difficult to measure, no one disputes that demand at the nation’s 1,200 community colleges is strong and coming from across the age spectrum.
Illinois can count nearly 159,000 community college students age 40 and older — a group that accounts for about 23 percent of the state’s enrollment, according to the Illinois Community College Board.
Maria Coons, interim vice president at Harper Community College, said the challenging economy has attracted more adults who want to learn new skills or earn a degree. The school has seen the population of adult students jump by 17.5 percent this semester from spring 2009.
Simultaneously, 17- to 20-year-olds have flocked to these institutions as a way to stretch their tuition dollar.
“This has led to more parents and children from the same family attending classes here,” Coons said. “The number of duos like these has increased over the past year, and we anticipate it will continue to grow.”
In many cases, the stubborn economic downturn is behind the generational collision. Even with fledgling signs of a recovery, labor experts say it will take years to absorb the 15 million Americans currently out of work — especially older women with limited education, who have been among the hardest hit.
“I saw the handwriting on the wall,” said Lucy Horton, the sole breadwinner for a 13-year-old son, along with daughter Anna and an infant granddaughter.
The elder Horton had worked for years in collections, but the business shriveled and by November 2008, she was axed. She quickly landed a part-time gig in retail, but that lasted only through the holidays. Once again, she found herself with too much month and not enough money.
So, she enrolled in Harper’s Women’s Program, which provides support to displaced homemakers, and has immersed herself in the certified nursing assistant curriculum. While she’s awaiting her certification, she’s taking some nursing classes, hoping that the additional instruction will make her even more marketable.
Economics also played a large part in the Gudowskis’ decision. Originally, Marissa had her heart set on St. Mary-of-the-Woods College near Terre Haute, Ind., but the $30,000-plus annual tab was just too steep for a mostly stay-at-home mother and her postal clerk father.
Instead, the family scaled back, choosing Prairie State (average tuition: $2,228), which just posted the largest spring enrollment figures in the school’s history. An elementary education major, the daughter plans to knock out her prerequisites, then transfer to Northern Illinois University in DeKalb. Her mom graduated with honors from Prairie State, receiving her associate’s degree in photographic studies in May, but is still taking classes toward a bachelor’s of fine arts in photography.
The Gudowskis, who live about 25 minutes from campus in Dyer, Ind., have one car between them, which means their schedules have to be in sync.
“When I got out of high school, I thought ‘Cool. … Now I can take my first class at noon.’ But four out of five days, my Mom starts at 8 a.m.,” Marissa said, rolling her eyes.
Sleeping in is rarely an option for Diana Gudowski, who started her studies in 2003. “It’s much easier to do this right the first time, before you have to juggle a lot of family and household responsibilities,” she said.
That sentiment is seconded by Lupe Wolske, who has elevated multitasking to an art form. On top of her classes at College of Lake County, the 43-year-old manages a job as a teacher’s aide in Antioch and four children, ranging in age from 11 to 20-year-old Megan, who is in her second year at the Grayslake campus.
“The hardest part is keeping track of everyone’s schedule,” said Wolske, who always has her textbooks in the car, just in case she can steal a few moments while waiting for kids to get out of football, wrestling, track or dance practice.
“Megan and I have gotten a lot closer since we’ve been going to school together. She helps me with math, I help her with English … and we’re always bouncing ideas off each other,” Wolske said. Another daughter, Monica, plans to join them after graduating from Antioch High School in June.
For their part, the younger generation concedes — sometimes begrudgingly — that having mom or dad on campus can be a benefit; there’s someone on campus to hit up for lunch money or offer free baby-sitting and transportation. The Hortons, for example, hand-off 3-month-old Aniya and a Toyota Corolla between classes.
Then there are the less quantifiable lessons they learn from each other.
“My mom is doing homework all the time — even when it’s not due the next day,” marveled Anna Horton. “She’s showing me what I need to do, so I don’t have to struggle in life.”
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