Although roots of adult education can be traced back more than a century, rural adult education is an emerging discipline in American education which has yet to develop an established research base. Recent research has established that rural adult learners look like, act like, and learn like urban adult learners, but their opportunities for participation in adult education programs are limited because of access, distance and travel, self-confidence, and affordability. Identified as providers of rural adult education are four-year colleges/universities, federal and state government agencies, private organizations, research institutes, regional libraries, state departments of education, two-year community colleges, and vocational-technical colleges. Research shows programming offers undergraduate degrees, job training and professional development, noncredit conferences and workshops, Adult Basic Education courses, rural focused curricula, and community development activities. Efforts to improve research on rural adult education focus on creating a complete picture of rural adult learners and educational providers, developing policy options more responsive to increased costs associated with delivering services to rural areas, examining collaborative models and methods of coordination that best serve rural communities, and studying successful rural adult programs. Research is also needed on the role of adult education as a mechanism to promote rural development. (NEC)