Civic Ventures, a think tank on boomers, work and social purpose, and MetLife Foundation have awarded eighteen $25,000 Encore Career grants in 2007 and 2009 to community colleges preparing boomers for social purpose work. In both years the colleges were selected from a nationwide pool of 100 applicants for their innovative approaches to matching 50+ talents with social purpose jobs that fill specific workforce needs in health care, education, social services and the environment.

New Grants in 2010: Six grants are now available for community colleges focusing on specific jobs in health care and education. Applications are due April 12, 2010.

Read about past grantees under Frequently Asked Questions, How are Community Colleges involved with encore careers?

Why Encore Careers?

According to the recent Encore Career Survey commissioned by MetLife Foundation and Civic Ventures, nearly half of those surveyed between the ages of 44 and 70 are interested in finding an encore career that combines continued income, personal fulfillment and social impact.  They want to use their accumulated experience and skills to work in classrooms and create healthy communities.  Respondents most interested in social purpose careers tend to be the youngest: 50 percent of boomers ages 44-50 say they want encore careers.

This desire for meaning in the post-midlife years has the potential to meet widening human resource shortages in sectors like education, environment, health care and social services. However, most 50+ adults think it will not be easy to find jobs where they can make a difference. Many will need to add specialized learning to prepare for and succeed in these new roles.

Community colleges – most of which have excellent workforce programs and services in place and have developed strong relationships with local employers – have an important role to play as the connecting link between boomers seeking encore careers in the social sector and prospective employers.