In 2005, Jobs for the Future and the National Council for Workforce Education launched "Breaking Through: Helping Low-Skilled Adults Enter and Succeed in College and Careers," with funding from the C.S. Mott Foundation. The goal of the multi-year, college-based initiative is to increase the number of low-skill adults who enter and succeed in…

Describes Odessa College's adult basic education program which served over 2,500 adults in 17 Texas cities during 1975-76. Essential ingredients contributing to the success of the program are described. (JDS)

In 1991, a study was conducted of the 71 community colleges and technical institutes in Texas to generate a description of existing literacy programs and activities. A total of 61 surveys were returned for an 89% response rate. Findings from the study included the following: (1) 66% of the institutions cited the lack of resources as the…

As part of an effort to combat the persistent problem of adult illiteracy, the Center for Advancing Technology was initiated at Piedmont Community College (PCC) in North Carolina and charged with the design of an effective model of rural, adult education for use throughout the state. The first step in the development of the center's literacy…

A program for low-achieving students at a Connecticut community college involves one course combining the fundamentals of reading and writing, which is taught in conjunction with a college-level, introductory psychology course. This program is based on four assumptions: that adult learners can gain critical consciousness within a literacy program,…

This collection of brief program descriptions focuses on the efforts of 10 community colleges to meet the current and future needs of their communities in the areas of economic development, worker training and retraining, and literacy education. The 10 colleges highlighted are: (1) Central Arizona College, which offers a highway maintenance worker…

In 1990, the American Association of Community and Junior Colleges developed a national workplace literacy demonstration project to raise awareness of the link between local economic development and basic workplace skill performance, and to stimulate a local leadership initiative around a community-wide effort to raise worker performance levels.…

One of the most difficult problems facing colleges today is dealing with students whose basic skills are too low to allow them to benefit from college-level studies. While some institutions seem to have given up expectations for underprepared students' achievement, others have instituted massive programs of individualized counseling and tutoring…

In response to increased attention by federal and state agencies and community groups to the potential role of libraries in literacy education, the Office of Libraries and Learning Technologies (OLLT), initiated a national study of library involvement in literacy education. Using surveys and case studies of public libraries, public school…

The Corpus Christi Literacy Council (CCLC) is an independent, non-profit educational organization operating through joint partnership and grant activities with Del Mar College (DMC) and community and government organizations in the Corpus Christi (Texas) area. The major purposes of the council are to establish comprehensive reading programs for…

In 1990, President George Bush and the nation's governors adopted new goals for education, including the goal that every adult American would be literate by the year 2000. During the past two decades, community colleges have played a significant role in the promotion of adult literacy. In many ways, the resources and services provided by community…

STRIDE (Success Through Reading Improvement and DEvelopment) is a literacy program developed in 1986 by Crowder College, located in the rural Ozarks of southwestern Missouri. Serving all age groups with trained literacy tutors ranging in age from 11 to over 60, STRIDE has been built on five main activities: (1) develop a philosophy that is…

This report considers the basic skills levels of adults in Kansas, the provision of basic skills training by public and private agencies, and policy options for improving the basic skills of Kansas's workforce. Following a detailed executive report, chapter 1 reviews the workforce challenge, economic and technological changes, and shifts in…

In 1983 the North Carolina Commission of Indian Affairs received a grant to increase Indian participation in Adult Basic Education (ABE) programs at community colleges in Hoke, Scotland, Halifax, and Warren counties. There were 135 Indian adults recruited in the 4 counties--68% female and 32% male. Ages ranged from 18 and younger (6%) to over 60…

Some 42% of Jamaica's adult population was not functionally literate in 1962--figures that precipitated expansion in adult literacy and Basic Education programs as described in this survey report. Following a seven-page introductory historical profile, the authors note attempts made to assess adult illiteracy, such as the 1975 survey that found…