They've potty-trained their kids, assembled Big Wheels, drudged through piles of laundry and fixed the kitchen sink.

Returning adult learners at the Commonwealth Campuses must overcome day-to-day obstacles and deal with more than just their classwork.

Bonnie Fields, 37, is a returning adult student who attends classes part-time at the Fayette Campus. And she is just one returning adult student who is dealing with life as a pupil, life as a parent and life as an employee.

Fields faces new challenges every day --balancing classwork, a job with the University and a family life. She planned on going to college after high school, but changed her mind and got married instead. Now, she's back in school because the idea of having a degree appealed to her.

Fields is just one of the growing number of returning adult students at the Commonwealth Campuses.

Betsy Baird, assistant director of student programs at the Fayette Campus, listed two reasons for the increasing number of returning students: Many people want more education, and adults are aware of the need to update their skills and programs to get jobs, she said.

Currently, about 28 percent of University students are returning adults, said Charlene Harris, director of the Returning Adult Student Center at University Park. And although the number is increasing, the University may not be doing enough to assist the needs of these students, she added.

"I really think the University needs to do more," Harris said.

To accommodate that growing number, the University has initiated a four-year degree program geared toward returning adults, said Margaret Cote, associate dean for Commonwealth Education in the College of Liberal Arts.

The Extended General Arts and Sciences degree is being offered at nine of the Commonwealth Campuses to assist those students who are location-bound, said Jennifer Morris, administrative assistant in the College of Liberal Arts.

This is convenient since most people with family and employment responsibilities can't transfer, Harris said. The program will keep people at the Commonwealth Campuses, she added.

Students enrolled in the program can earn their bachelor's degrees at a location other than University Park, Morris said.

Fields is enrolled in the new EGNAS program, and although she is satisfied with the program, it will take her seven years to complete her degree requirements.

Other extended programs offered by the University are the administration of justice program and the nursing program, Harris said. The University is currently considering offering more extended programs, she added.

The EGNAS program is going remarkably well and growing at a fast rate, Morris said.

Students in this new program, as well as any other, have to worry about classwork, and some also have to consider child care, Harris said.

Although the program is a step toward helping adult students, child-care facilities are still severely lacking at the Commonwealth Campuses, Harris said.

Teresa Pavlinsky takes her 4-year-old daughter to class with her since the Fayette Campus has no child-care facilities. The 38-year-old student must get permission from her instructor first and see that her daughter remains quiet throughout the entire class period.

Sometimes it gets difficult, especially if she has a three-hour class, she said.

"I think it would be a lot easier if they did have child care," she said.

But until the University offers child care at Fayette Campus, Teresa's daughter will continue to attend classes with her.