Since Jennifer L. Gigliotti was in elementary school, the 70-acre Ford Motor Company plant in northwestern Ohio has been a constant in her life. Her mother and father have worked the production line at the Maumee Stamping Plant for almost 60 years combined, making bumpers and body panels for generations of Ford vehicles. So when her father's name came up in a plant lottery allowing him to nominate her for a job, she applied and landed a production position that paid $21 an hour. Last September, Ford announced that it would be closing the Maumee Stamping Plant in 2008. Employees had two months to decide if they wanted to take a buyout package or try to transfer to another plant. She was one of 38,000 Ford workers nationwide who took the buyout. To politicians, corporate executives, and college officials, the solution to the situation here and in dozens of other factory towns nationwide seems simple: have the workers go back to school, learn different skills, and get a new job. This article discusses the problems facing both the higher-education institutions trying to enroll displaced workers and displaced workers who have little interest in going to college.