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Who is behind Community Partnerships for Adult Learning?
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This is an initiative of the U.S. Department of Education's Office of Vocational and Adult Education. |
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How is this different from other federally funded adult education projects, such as the National Institute for Literacy and the National Center on Adult Learning?
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Community Partnerships complements and helps communicate the important work of these and other adult education groups, but it is by no means intended as a substitute. The essential goal of this initiative is to encourage every community’s stakeholders— businesses, labor unions, public school systems, libraries, faith-based organizations, literacy service providers, volunteer groups and other nonprofits, social service and workforce development agencies and colleges—to understand the urgent need to improve access to and the quality of adult education, and to pursue this goal together. |
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What exactly is the "urgent need"?
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Many adult education programs and community partnerships across the nation are doing an admirable job of serving a wide range of clients in various environments. More than 4 million adults received services in basic education, English literacy, high school credentialling programs, employment education and training, and family literacy in the late 1990s. But statistics show that millions more are not being reached adequately. Here are some examples:
- Low Literacy: In 2001, researchers at the National Center for the Study of Adult Learning and Literacy and the Center for Labor Market Studies estimated that 64 million adults function at the lowest levels of literacy. The Workforce Investment Act of 1998 defines literacy as "an individual's ability to read, write, speak in English, compute and solve problems at levels of proficiency necessary to function on the job, in the family of the individual, or in society."
- High school dropouts: More than 37 million people over the age of 18 have not completed high school.
These adults will have difficulty finding employment in today’s market, where all but two of the 50 fastest-growing jobs identified by the Department of Labor require some postsecondary credential.
- Growing income gap: A high school diploma or GED is desirable and necessary, but adults who hope to find well-paying, meaningful employment cannot stop there. In 1999, male and female college graduates earned 58 and 92 percent more, respectively, than those who had not gone beyond high school.
- Rising demand for English language programs: English Literacy (EL) is the fastest-growing component of adult education. It is estimated that nearly 5 percent of the nation’s working–age (18-64) adults have limited English-speaking skills and would benefit from EL and civics education services. Demand for English instruction reflects this need. There are waiting lists throughout the country for EL classes that involve waits of a few months to over a year.
- Workforce skill needs: For adults to be successful in today’s workforce, they need to acquire a range of skills that include not only technical competencies but also general abilities like problem solving, communication, flexibility and conscientiousness. Yet, a solid majority of American manufacturers and other businesses report that they are struggling to find employees who possess these skills.
- Family literacy needs: Between 1971 and 1999, according to the National Center for Education Statistics (NCES), there was a decline in the overall reading performance of children ages of 13 and 17 whose parents' highest educational level was a high school diploma. The NCES also found that 64 percent of elementary schools with a high concentration of poverty believe that parental involvement suffers when parents are not educated.
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What is preventing the adult education system from addressing all the needs of adult learners?
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Adult learners are a more challenging group to serve. They are not a "captive" audience as are children and adolescents in K-12 schools. Many have job and family responsibilities that make it harder for them to commit to programs even when they understand the long-term benefits. In addition, adult learners often require support services, such as child care, transportation and health care, which their programs may not offer. Another issue is that programs struggle to attract qualified teachers and provide them with the necessary professional development to keep their skills fresh. |
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How can partnerships resolve these issues?
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Strength in numbers. It's not that partnerships are the magic solution, but it is common sense that all stakeholders in adult education—from the business, government, and nonprofit sectors—need more opportunities to learn from one another so they can expand their capacity to serve more learners, and serve them well. Community partnerships around the country have benefited from the sharing of ideas, infrastructure, learner information, and resources. A 2002 Pew Partnership for Civic Change survey of business, nonprofit and local government leaders found that 72 percent believed the partnerships they have been involved with have been very successful. Less than 2 percent said their cooperative relationships had not been fruitful at all. |
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How, specifically, is the Community Partnerships initiative intending to encourage these collaborative efforts among adult education providers?
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In part by gathering the examples of effective partnerships and resources that you will find on this site. Many adult education providers are engaged in the community partnerships, and this initiative intends to share the lessons they have learned and to help disseminate the valuable tools and research that have already been developed in this area. This site also acts as a portal to the sites of many adult education organizations and those that support community building. Other activities of the multi-year initiative include:
- case studies of partnerships, which will be featured on this site beginning early in 2003
- "outreach sessions" for adult education providers to discuss the concept of community-based adult learning
- a focused study on how communities can learn from one another
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How can the involvement of different community partners benefit adult learners?
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Every stakeholder in a community's adult education system — including government, business, and community organizations — has unique expertise. When these entities join forces, the odds are much better that a community’s diverse and complex adult learning needs will be met more effectively.
What can each partner bring to the table?
Community organizations
- knowledge of pressing local issues and expertise in addressing them
- longstanding, personal relationships with hard-to-serve neighborhoods and individuals
- source of wide-ranging services for adult learners
- organizational flexibility to try innovative solutions
Government agencies
- expertise in planning, coordinating, and facilitating collaboration
- capacity to offer financial and technical assistance
- access to data that may help inform partnership efforts
- knowledge of federal and state funding sources, laws and government initiatives that may aid the partnership
Businesses
- expertise in strategic planning, public relations, and marketing
- valuable perspective on the community’s workforce needs
- financial and other resources (such as surplus or used equipment, classroom facilities)
- capacity to provide adult learners with skills-based training and job opportunities
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How can I become involved in this initiative?
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Share information about your community partnerships via the Website’s e-mail in the Contact Us section. Let us know if there are “how-to’s,” research or Websites that you recommend be added. This site presents an opportunity to showcase community building and adult education materials that have been developed locally. We hope that you will send these to us and pass along the Website address to others who may have something they would like to contribute. Check back regularly to see what new resources have been added. Help us make this site as useful as possible by offering your comments and suggestions each time you visit. |
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Is there funding available through this initiative for communities that want to form or enhance local partnerships?
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This initiative is about meeting the needs of adult learners at the local level through partnerships. It’s about creating strong infrastructures that ensure stable support for adult education regardless of external funding. Communities that are able to build a funding base from a variety of sources have the greatest chance of serving adults for years to come. Information on how to leverage resources is included in the Building Community Partnerships section of the Website. The Community Partnerships initiative itself does not have any funding available to support state or local community-building efforts. |
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Where can I find more detailed information about the Department's plans and policies with regard to adult education?
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Visit the U.S. Department of Education and Office of Vocational and Adult Education sites. |
