Life Lab, an alternative educational program stressing self-directed learning at Miami-Dade Community College, is discussed in terms of its development, impact, and student attributes. More than half of the document presents personal histories and opinions of students and staff, alternating with the views of Dr. MacGregor Smith, program founder. An appended document reports five studies covering a wide range of student attributes: (1) Self-Concept Study, Phase II, indicating a significant relationship between length of time in the program and an increase in self-awareness, as measured by the Distribution Score of the Tennessee Self Concept Scale; (2) Demographic Survey, with a 69.13% return rate, showing the typical student to be a middle-aged, white male, married and employed full-time; (3) Learning Style Study, with results from the Learning Style Inventory indicating student and program approaches are consistent; (4) Nowicki-Strickland Study, showing that the program's students do not differ significantly from other community college populations regarding range of locus of control; (5) Educational Attitudes Study, finding students' attitudes to be consistent with the programs in which they were enrolled. (LH)