Adult Education and Family Literacy Act (AEFLA)
Title II of the Workforce Investment Act (WIA), AEFLA supports adults seeking to improve their basic reading, writing, speaking, and math skills and provides funding to states and local communities for adult and family literacy programs.

American College Testing (ACT)
A college admissions examination used to assess a high school student’s academic skills in English, mathematics, reading and science. For more information on ACT, go to http://www.act.org.

Americorps
A group of national service programs that provides volunteers and grant funding to nonprofits, public agencies and faith-based organizations in the areas of education, public safety, health, and the environment. To learn more, go to http://www.americorps.org.

Community Development Block Grants (CDBGs)
Sponsored by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD), CDBGs are annual grants to states, cities, and other applicants striving to promote neighborhood development, economic development, and improved community facilities and services, principally for person of low and moderate income. To learn more, go to http://www.hud.gov/offices/cpd/communitydevelopment/programs/index.cfm.

Comprehensive Adult Student Assessment System (CASAS)
A competency outcome-based assessment that measures functional reading, writing, listening, speaking skills, and higher order thinking skills. Results are used to place learners in programs, diagnose learners’ needs, monitor progress, and certify mastery of functional basic skills. To learn more, go to http://www.casas.org/casasnewweb/index.cfm.

Computer Technology Centers (CTC)
A federally funded program that supports the development of computer centers that provide disadvantaged residents of economically distressed areas with access to information technology and related training. To learn more, go to http://www.ed.gov/fund/grant/apply/AdultEd/CTC/index.html.

Early Head Start
A federally funded initiative that funds community-based programs that promote healthy prenatal outcomes for pregnant women, enhance the development of very young children, and promote healthy family functioning. It targets low-income families with infants and toddlers and pregnant women. To learn more, go to http://www.ehsnrc.org/.

English literacy (EL)
English as a Second Language (ESL) or English for Speakers of Other Languages (ESOL).

EL Civics
Instruction for adult English literacy learners that integrates civics, civics education, and citizenship preparation.

Equipped for the Future (EFF)
Designed by the National Institute for Literacy (NIFL) to guide adult education teaching and learning, the EFF content framework encompasses the following skills: reading, writing, math skills, communication, and problem solving. EFF standards define the knowledge and skills adults need in order to successfully carry out their roles as parents, citizens, and workers in the 21st Century. To learn more, go to http://www.nifl.gov/nifl/eff.html.

Even Start
A federally funded program designed to alleviate poverty and illiteracy by improving the educational opportunities of low-income families. Administered by states, Even Start integrates a number of activities—adult literacy, early childhood education, interactive parent and child literacy activities, and parenting support—into a unified family literacy program. To learn more, go to http://www.evenstart.org/.

GED Connection
Developed by PBS LiteracyLink, GED Connection combines video, print, and the Internet into an instructional package for adults participating in GED classes or learning independently. To learn more, go to http://www.pbs.org/als/gedconnection/.

Head Start
A federally funded child-development program that supports family literacy programs serving low-income children and their families. Grant recipients—local public agencies, private organizations, Indian tribes, and school systems—use Head Start dollars to offer services in the areas of education and early childhood development, health, nutrition, and parent involvement. To learn more, go to http://www2.acf.dhhs.gov/programs/hsb/.

Literacy Information and Communication System (LINCS)
Developed by the National Institute for Literacy (NIFL), this on-line information and communications network includes multimedia curricula, specialized information on major literacy topics, literacy-related research and statistics, on-line discussion groups, and other resources. To learn more, go to http://www.nifl.gov/lincs/.

Memorandum of Understanding
An agreement developed and executed by two or more parties that describes the parties’ responsibilities in the pursuit of some goal(s).

Multi–sensory Instruction
Instruction that uses a combination of visual, auditory and kinesthetic/tactile techniques to convey information.

National Adult Literacy Survey (NALS)
A national assessment of literacy skills of U.S. adults conducted in 1992. A follow-up survey, the National Assessment of Adult Literacy, was administered in 2002. To learn more, go to http://nces.ed.gov/naal/.

Native Language Instruction (NLI)/Native Language Literacy (NLL)
English literacy instruction conducted in the native language of the adult learner.

“Neighborhood Networks” Computer Centers
A U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) program that provides grants to establish and operate new computer centers for public housing residents or update and expand existing centers. To learn more, go to http://www.hud.gov/offices/hsg/mfh/progdesc/nnw.cfm.

National Institute for Literacy (NIFL)
Overseen by the Secretaries of Education, Labor, and Health and Human Services, this federal agency provides national leadership regarding literacy, coordinates literacy services and policy, serves as a national resource for adult education and literacy programs, and disseminates information on scientifically based reading research pertaining to children, youth, and adults. To learn more, go to www.nifl.gov.

The National Reporting System (NRS)
An outcome-based reporting system for state-administered, federally funded adult education programs. Developed by the U.S. Department of Education, the NRS follows the accountability requirements for the adult education program as outlined by Title II of the Workforce Investment Act of 1998. To learn more, go to www.nrsweb.org/.

No Child Left Behind Act (NCLB)
The current reauthorization of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act (ESEA), the nation’s largest and most comprehensive federal education law. It supplements state and local efforts to provide all children with a high-quality education. To learn more, go to http://www.ed.gov/nclb/landing.jhtml?src=pb.

One-Stop Career Centers
As directed by Title I of the Workforce Investment Act of 1998, each state is charged with creating and maintaining an integrated service delivery system, a “one-stop” system, that provides job-seekers and employers with information about and access to a wide range of employment, job training, and education services.

Personal Responsibility and Work Opportunity Act of 1996 (TANF)
As authorized by the Personal Responsibility and Work Opportunity Reconciliation Act of 1996, TANF created a new system of block grants to states, territories, and tribes to provide assistance to needy families and move people from welfare into work.

PLATO Learning Software
Available in Web-based and CD-ROM formats, PLATO is an adult education system with curriculum in reading and writing, math, social studies, science, English literacy, work skills and life skills. To learn more, go to http://www.plato.com/.

Reading Excellence Act
Reauthorized by the No Child Left Behind Act of 2001, the Reading Excellence Act provides funding to states and local agencies to implement comprehensive reading instruction grounded in scientifically based reading research for children in kindergarten through third grade.

Recidivism
A relapse into prior criminal habits leading to rearrest, reconviction and reincarceration.

Tests of Adult Basic Education (TABE)
A commercially-produced multiple choice test designed to assess reading, mathematics, language, and spelling skills. It also includes a version in Spanish and independent tests that assess basic skills in work-related contexts.

Volunteers in Service to America (VISTA)
Part of the AmeriCorps program, VISTA is a full-time, year-long volunteer program that supports community based non-profit agencies that are addressing issues such as homelessness, illiteracy, economic development, and neighborhood revitalization. To learn more, go to http://www.friendsofvista.org/.

Volunteers of America (VOA)
A national, nonprofit, spiritually based organization that provides local human service programs and opportunities to youths at risk, elderly, abused and neglected children, people with disabilities, and the homeless. To learn more, go to http://www.voa.org/.

Workforce Investment Act (WIA)
Enacted in 1998, WIA was designed to support workers and employers by consolidating, coordinating, and improving employment, training, literacy, and vocational rehabilitation programs in the U.S.

Workforce Investment Board (WIB)
Established by state governors in accordance with the Workforce Investment Act (WIA), state WIBs are charged with assisting with the development and continuous improvement of the state one-stop delivery system. The creation of local WIBs also was required by WIA to set policy for the portion of the statewide workforce investment system within the local area.

Workforce Investment Board Operators Consortium
A public or private entity, or consortium of entities, designated by the local Workforce Investment Board to manage the local one-stop delivery system.