Good afternoon! My name is Brent, and I live in Peoria, Illinois. I moved to Peoria from Chicago after learning about the Greater Peoria 2030 campaign in 2022 (1). Back in the day, my wife and I decided to make a change in our family’s lifestyle and moved into a more community-friendly environment at a more affordable rate. Peoria’s demographics have not changed a lot. We are still a primarily white, English-speaking community (10). The change from Chicago to Peoria was helpful, considering how difficult it was to live through COVID-19 in the big city.


I am 65 years old, and while I have always been working with heavy equipment, it has not been easy to keep a job for more than five years with all the changes taking place with technology. It feels like I’m running a marathon, and the machines are right behind me, ready to take my job. In 2032, I decided to stop running from the machines and embrace this movement. That's when I started working as a Gig Economy Manager (3) in one of Caterpillar’s few offices left in Illinois after they moved their HQ to Texas (9). While I was offered an opportunity to move to Texas, I decided to stay since Illinois is more of my cup of tea. Caterpillar is building new, all-electric machines under its automation portfolio to help companies with their zero-emissions goals (2). While hundreds of people work full-time at Caterpillar, we also hire many employees that work with us on project-based contracts. 


Working with large teams, helping project-based workers find their way through the task, and working closely with our clients and full-time employees is part of my job. Finding a job that uses my personal and professional experience has been rewarding. However, I struggled with the ins and outs of the management side of my job and how to use the newer machines. That's the reason my manager suggested I take a few Content Capsules (4) from Purdue Global. First, I was not very happy about this. I felt too old to go back to school. I was not sure I was going to fit in. How am I supposed to learn online with people I don't know at my age? But I had no choice. I had to give it a try. 


Purdue Global is so different from what I experienced attending college in the early 2000s. It reminds me of those books where you chose your own adventure. I don't need to take all of the available Content Capsules. I just pick and choose with my manager what I need to learn at the moment. What I learn, I apply it right away at work, which counts toward my professional development points. About ten years ago, Purdue Global launched a new learning ecosystem model (5) with several employers to help connect what we are learning with our work experience and hiring. The navigation of that ecosystem and wraparound support I get from my school and company have made a big difference for someone my age.


I still have five more years before I will eligible to retire, but considering how life is moving, I am not sure I will be able to afford to retire then (6). I wonder how long my kids and grandchildren will need to work if they live 100-year lives (7). I imagine they will be taking classes at Purdue Global even when they are older than I am today. Who knows, maybe they don't even need to go to school to prepare for work. I think I read somewhere that people won't need to work after the year 2069 (8). That sounds like an interesting life situation, don't you think?