KINGSTON, R.I. – April 15, 2026 – A workplace need and a chance meeting on an airplane led Kathy Peno to her role on the faculty in the University of Rhode Island’s Feinstein College of Education.

A professor of adult education, Peno prepares professional adult educators who teach in adult literacy, the military, higher education, corporations, and health care, and directs URI’s Adult Education master’s, Training and Development and College Teaching graduate certificates, and two brand new Health Professions Education graduate programs. She was recently honored with the Exceptional Service in the Field Award from the Adult Higher Education Alliance at the organization’s conference in March, which she says was a great opportunity to connect work in academia with work in the field.

“This was quite an honor,” Peno says.

Mentoring matters

Peno has worked in adult education for nearly three decades and will celebrate 26 years at URI in June, but becoming a professor was not her initial career goal. She worked in banking for 18 years prior to joining academia, and it was in that role that she became interested in workforce education.

“Seeing workforce development needs firsthand each day,” she says, “I began to ask: How can we better prepare people for their work?”

Peno was a vice president at Citizens Bank when she had an epiphany. “We were hiring entry-level people and I wanted to know how they were being trained for customer service,” she recalls. “I wondered what kind of training existed and realized there was a need for that.”

That sparked Peno’s interest in developing improved skill and workforce training at the bank. She went on to obtain her graduate degrees in adult learning and human resource development. Maintaining a business mindset, her dissertation examined crisis-induced learning in a small business. A chance meeting on a plane with Professor Emeritus John Boulmetis, then a professor of adult education at URI, led her to look at academia and URI as a place to put her skills and expertise—and from there, her career in education took off.

“This career change was well suited to me,” Peno comments, “but I still share about my corporate background when I meet new classes and students. When we’re talking about skill development, I lived it! I think this gives me some credibility in my work.”

Today, Peno’s scholarship focuses on professional learning and skill development, with a focus on mentoring. She’s taught a number of classes at URI including the Adult and the Learning Process, the Psychology of Learning, Making Sense of Changing Organizations, and courses on the development and delivery of adult programs. She’s also been invited to present to the Massachusetts Audubon Society, Providence School Department, American Dental Association, Bryant Women’s Summit, and the URI College of Pharmacy.

Peno says the field of adult education has changed over the years. When she first started, the field was still young and more focused on literacy, ESL or GED attainment. Now adult education has expanded to workforce development.

“People are seeing the value added in this kind of work,” Peno says. “Having worked in professional development all those years, that has been exciting to see. We can help provide more people with access and opportunity.”

Many of the students Peno works with in URI’s online programs are working in professional development training roles or continuing education, or health care fields where professional development is ongoing. Some go on to do policy work in higher ed or adult education. Others work as advisors in literacy or at community organizations.

Her department also has a contract with the Navy, helping to prepare naval officers to become naval instructors.

“They bring such richness to our program,” Peno says. “Really, our program is a very diverse group of students doing diverse things.”

She is excited that URI has approved two new programs (certificate and master’s), bringing adult learning to health care providers. These programs will begin this fall.

“I love what we do here,” Peno says. “Adult education is about improving one’s prospects at every step in life. I feel honored to be recognized with this award and feel lucky to have this role. URI has been a great place to be and do this work.”