As faculty administrators, deans, program heads, etc. we are no doubt involved in the faculty development of our instructors. It also goes without saying that our instructors are the number one liaison and source of support to our students. In that regard, faculty development accentuates many areas - teaching methodologies and delivery, instructional planning, classroom and lab management, active learning, working with diverse learners too name a few. Additionally though, student retention is a key component of faculty development - how can we help prepare our faculty in addressing retention/attrition issues? The first step may be in acknowledging what some of the top reasons for student attrition are (in no particular order):

• Financial stress or an unsupportive work environment - not being able to pay personal bills, rent, etc. puts tremendous stress on an adult learner, and a student's environment at work, particularly when the workplace does not support a student's educational efforts, cam create a substantial roadblock
• The moving target - similar to the reason above, daily stresses like daycare, transportation, etc. create challenges to student retention, and the "target" moves as different needs arise, especially when the student is trying to handle it all
• Something more attractive has come along - a job, a better-paying job, a change in status or family; anything that takes the focus off of an adult learner's educational objectives, even if it's in the short run, but may not be as beneficial down the road
• Unsupportive home environment - this might involve an unsupportive spouse or significant other, or no home environment at all; this can be part of the moving target above, but can also be a more long-term and affecting challenge
• It's harder than I thought - for an adult learner, going back to school to learn skills and interacting with other students may be a significant challenge; the learner may even be a first generation/postsecondary student 

The above is not an exhaustive list, but it builds an awareness of the challenges our adult learners, many of them single parents, face. From a faculty development perpspective, it is also important for our instructors to know what they can and cannot do in these situations.  Our instructors are first and foremost educators and cannot change or resolve many of the above issues, nor should they be expected to; but in the areas that they can affect - the way they teach, the way they handle their classrooms and labs, the professional relationships they build with their students - we need to provide them the direction and resources to be an effective retention agent - student retention is everyone's business.