Published by the California State Consortium for Adult Education California Adult Education Insider California Adult Schools: Serving 1.8 Million Californians March 2010 Insider gratefully acknowledges the support of its sponsor.. BOSTON REED COLLEGE 2010/11 Budget Forecast According to many readings of recent economic reports, California is slowly re- covering from the worst economic condition since the Great Depression. The Department of Finance noted that while the state has consistently suffered job losses throughout 2009, it gained 31,100 jobs in October 2009—the first gain in jobs in almost 18 months. Even though the state economy is showing some signs of recovering, Califor- nia still faces an uphill battle. The state’s personal income num- bers have fallen most of 2009 and showed only moderate growth toward the end of the year. Both taxable sales and construction were weak through most of 2009, but home sales began to stabilize toward the end of the year. With state revenues still falling short of esti- mates, the state now faces a deficit of $19.9 billion if no corrective action is taken by July 1, 2011. With the revenues still declining in the current year and a deficit of $6.9 billion, the governor has proposed some reductions to balance the budget. Here are the implica- tions for California Adult Schools: The “tier 1,2,3” categorical flexibility ad- opted as part of the 2008/09 and 2009/10 budgets remains unchanged. Under current law, these options are to sunset in fiscal 2012/13. Other flexibility elements such as waiving the deferred maintenance match, reducing routine restricted maintenance reserves, and sweeping up ending year bal- ances remain in effect. The governor vowed to protect education with his budget proposal, but there are some adjustments to the education budget. For example, the governor’s propos- al reduces Proposition 98, based on a reduc- tion of the base minimum guaran- tee. Other changes include a reduction in CalWORKs Child Care and the Class Size Reduction Pro- gram, and the Cen- tral School District Administration. Although adult education is not di- rectly named in the governor’s budget, many districts are finding that local priorities are served by taking advantage of the flexibility to divert funds into other areas. Adult adminis- trators are advised to work closely with local district leadership to find the most collabora- tive solutions to continue to serve the adult student population. CCAE State Conference The California Council for Adult Educa- tion (CCAE) annual State Conference at Palm Springs Renaissance Hotel by Marriott is May 6-8. A full schedule of workshops will appeal to the interests of every CCAE certificate and classified staff member. Browse the vendors’ area to see a variety of exhibits, demonstrations, and products. Two events, a Saturday awards breakfast and the Saturday evening awards dinner and dance, will recognize educators who have made significant contributions to adult education and CCAE. For more infor- mation go to www.ccaestate.org and see the conference schedule on page eight.
Transcript
Published by the California State Consortium for Adult Education
California Adult Education
Insider
California Adult Schools: Serving 1.8 Million Californians March 2010
Insider gratefully acknowledges the support of its sponsor..
Boston Reed College
2010/11 Budget Forecast According to many readings of recent
economic reports, California is slowly re-covering from the worst economic condition since the Great Depression. The Department of Finance noted that while the state has consistently suffered job losses throughout 2009, it gained 31,100 jobs in October 2009—the first gain in jobs in almost 18 months.
Even though the state economy is showing some signs of recovering, Califor-nia still faces an uphill battle. The state’s personal income num-bers have fallen most of 2009 and showed only moderate growth toward the end of the year. Both taxable sales and construction were weak through most of 2009, but home sales began to stabilize toward the end of the year. With state revenues still falling short of esti-mates, the state now faces a deficit of $19.9 billion if no corrective action is taken by July 1, 2011.
With the revenues still declining in the current year and a deficit of $6.9 billion, the governor has proposed some reductions to balance the budget. Here are the implica-tions for California Adult Schools:
The “tier 1,2,3” categorical flexibility ad-
opted as part of the 2008/09 and 2009/10 budgets remains unchanged. Under current law, these options are to sunset in fiscal 2012/13. Other flexibility elements such as waiving the deferred maintenance match, reducing routine restricted maintenance reserves, and sweeping up ending year bal-ances remain in effect.
The governor vowed to protect education with his budget proposal, but there are some adjustments to the education budget. For example,
the governor’s propos-al reduces Proposition 98, based on a reduc-
tion of the base minimum guaran-tee. Other changes include a reduction in CalWORKs Child Care and the Class Size Reduction Pro-gram, and the Cen-tral School District Administration.
Although adult education is not di-rectly named in the governor’s budget, many districts are finding that local priorities are served by taking advantage of the flexibility to
divert funds into other areas. Adult adminis-trators are advised to work closely with local district leadership to find the most collabora-tive solutions to continue to serve the adult student population.
CCAE State ConferenceThe California Council for Adult Educa-
tion (CCAE) annual State Conference at Palm Springs Renaissance Hotel by Marriott is May 6-8. A full schedule of workshops will appeal to the interests of every CCAE certificate and classified staff member. Browse the vendors’ area to see a variety of exhibits, demonstrations, and products. Two events, a Saturday awards breakfast and the Saturday evening awards dinner and dance, will recognize educators who have made significant contributions to adult education and CCAE. For more infor-mation go to www.ccaestate.org and see the conference schedule on page eight.
�California Adult Schools: Serving 1.8 Million Californians March 2010
CASAS Launches PilotOn January 14, CASAS launched the
Workforce Skills Certification System (WSCS) Pilot Project with an all-day train-ing at the Cypress Campus of North Or-ange County CCD. This pilot project is part of the California Department of Education’s ABE Initiative, and it involves 11 sites throughout the state. The goal of the pilot is to promote the transition of adult ABE and ASE students into the workforce.
Agencies involved in the pilot include Burbank Adult School, Contra Costa County Office of Education Parolee Project (7 sites participating), Eureka Adult School, Charles A. Jones Skills Center (Sacramento City USD) and Valle-jo Adult School. By the end of the WSCS Pilot, learners will be able to utilize work readiness skills identified and valued by employers, in order to increase the likeli-hood of getting and keeping employment. The pilot is a comprehensive system that includes employability skills assessment, curriculum development to improve on-the-job skills, and community outreach to partner with WIB’s, one-stops, and local employers. Given the importance of mean-ingful employment to lifelong success, CASAS has created a framework for which pilot sites can make the pathways between education and employment seamless and efficient.
Soft Skills AssessmentOne component of the pilot involves
assessing soft skills using the Learning Resources, Inc. (LRI) online soft skills as-sessment, and academic skills using CA-SAS eTests. The LRI online soft skills as-sessment is nationally validated and was created with the input of employers. The assessments, designed for entry-level em-ployment, are comprised of video simula-tions, each depicting a real workplace situ-ation and four possible response options. Learners are asked to choose the “best” and the “least” effective ending to each of the video scenarios. Instructors are in-stantly able to view feedback from student results that outlines, in detail, the types of skills each learner does well, and those that need improvement. The soft skills assessed are extremely important in the workplace, such as integrity, responsibility, self-management, and decision-making.
In conjunction with the online soft skills assessment, pilot sites will continue to ad-minister their current CASAS assessments via CASAS eTests. Data from both the CASAS assessments and the online soft skills assess-ment will be electronically transferred and stored in TOPSpro, making it easy for the pi-lot sites to view student results and incorpo-rate them into a curriculum.
TOPSpro will generate a WSCS Student Profile, which documents in positive terms the academic and soft skills that each learner demonstrates. Learners can attach their WSCS Profile to their resumes when meeting with potential employers. Because this pilot also focuses on helping agencies strengthen communication with local WIB’s, one-stops and businesses, the WSCS Profile will be a valuable tool for both employers (to clearly see which employment skills each applicant possesses) and job applicants (to provide a meaningful list of their skills).
Successful PilotDuring the training on January 14, pi-
lot site staff members learned about the online soft skills assessments and were excited to have a way to measure job skills such as customer relations, sociability, and commitment to quality. Participants dis-cussed issues such as how to use both the CASAS and online soft skills assessment to inform instruction and shared resources that they could take back to the classroom. Site administrators were able to talk with a local WIB member, and instructors worked together to start planning how to imple-ment employment instruction.
The pilot will run for the next calendar year, with hopes that students will be able to learn tangible on-the-job skills for future em-ployment opportunities. CASAS is providing technical support and instructional guidance, as well as assisting agencies in integrating the online soft skills assessment into its pro-grams. CASAS will host monthly conference calls to measure progress and allow pilot sites to share their experiences. The organi-zation will also host an in-person workshop at the 2010 CASAS National Summer Insti-tute. In addition, there is a WSCS Pilot group through the ABE Initiative community on Ning (a social media website), which provides an online outlet for pilot sites to obtain ma-terials, share resources and pose discussion questions.
California Adult Schools: Serving 1.8 Million Californians March 2010�
Guest Speaker: Margaret Kirkpatrick Is Adult Education Worth It?
This pilot project is allowing adult edu-cation providers to bring meaningful soft skills instruction and assessment into the classroom. Learners are developing skills that will help in employment situations, in-structors are able to identify the types of employment skills needed for each learner, and agencies are able to form partnerships with the community.
New CDE ConsultantNoelia Ramirez joins the CDE’s Adult
Education Office after two years with the Advancement Via Individual Determina-tion (AVID) program, working statewide in the Intersegmental Relations Office. Prior to that, she served six years with the Em-
Adult Education has a long tradition of service to local communities and students, both adults and children. For over 150 years, California Adult Schools have pro-vided a second chance for adults who need vocational and basic literacy skills, a high school diploma, or life skills to stay active and healthy in their later years. Students can learn skills that will allow them to be-come a certified nursing assistant, a word processor, a medical front office worker, an EMT, or an accountant. High school stu-dents can attend Adult School in the eve-ning to make up credits. Parents can study English at their children’s school or at their local California Adult School, so that they can help their children be successful. All of these adult education programs are vital for educational and workforce develop-ment.
Adult education programs throughout the state of California are being cut, as a result of budget shortfalls. Since funding for adult education is now a part of the general school district budget, many dis-trict representatives are making difficult decisions about district priorities. But these decisions must be made based on long-term community needs and benefits to the local community and families.
To identify the long-term community benefit, one must look at how a commu-nity grows and prospers. Cities grow and prosper when they have a strong employee base and strong families. Presently immi-grants make up 35 percent of California’s workforce, compared to 14 percent nation-ally. Foreign-born residents are four times
less likely to have a high school diploma than native-born residents. Because this group constitutes approximately one-third of California residents over 25 years of age, 8.3 million of 23 million, foreign-born residents’ educational levels have a sig-nificant impact on California’s educational profile, presenting challenges for the future of the economy. Adult education programs provide the majority of services to immi-grants in the state.
The need for career technical education (CTE) or job training services is critical if California is to maintain a strong economy. In 2008, 178,000 adults participated in CTE through adult education programs. Of these, over 72,000 adult students were ec-onomically disadvantaged, and over 14,000 were limited English proficient. Adult edu-cation plays a key role in local workforce development.
Beyond gaining foundational skills to be productive in the workforce, adults must also be equipped to play key roles in their homes and communities. Parents and com-munity members, including those not cur-rently in the workforce, play an essential role in educating and motivating school-age children.
California Adult Schools plays a vital role in the life of the local school district and its surrounding cities. Many adult education programs already have been cut dramati-cally by reducing the school year, charging all students a yearly registration fee, and canceling some classes. The continuation of California Adult School services must be a priority for everyone.
8:30am Golf Tournament1:00pm CCAE State Executive Board Meeting3:00pm CCAE State Legislative Committee Mtg
Friday, May 78:00am CCAE State Board Meeting1:00pm Opening General Session2:15pm Workshops A3:15pm Afternoon Snack with the Vendors3:45pm Workshops B5:00pm President’s Reception6:00pm Night on the Town
Saturday, May 88:30am Awards Breakfast10:15am Workshops C11:30am Workshops D12:30pm Lunch on your own 2:00pm Workshops E3:15pm Closing Panel Discussion4:30pm Section Receptions6:30pm Awards Dinner/Dance
California Adult Schools: Serving 1.8 Million Californians March 20104
The California Adult Education Insider March 2010 Vol. 14, No. 3
A newsletter for California adult school administrators published by the California State Consortium for Adult Education, 1840 Benton St., Santa Clara CA 95050, tel. 541-488-8462, fax 541-448-8468, e-mail: [email protected], Web: www.cscae.org.
Writers: Margaret Kirkpatrick, Nikki Goth Itoi
CSCAE Board of DirectorsPaul Belomy
ChairmanSaundra T. Bishop
Compton Adult SchoolRoger Brossmer
Downey Adult SchoolColette Fleming
Grossmont Adult School
Jerry GreenCastro Valley Adult SchoolMargaret KirkpatrickBerkeley Adult School
Doris LongmeadHuntington Beach Adult School
Lionel de MaineSequoia Adult School
Brigitte MarshallOakland Adult Education
Cyndi Parulan-ColferHacienda La Puente Adult Education
Joan PolsterCSCAE
Lawrence TesharaSan Mateo Adult School
Boston Reed College makes it easy for you to offer high-demand training for jobs in the healthcare industry, allowing you to offer students training they can afford and a career they can grow with! Employers appreciate a skilled workforce from which to hire, students welcome programs that meet their
needs and your school meets its mission of serving the community with lifelong education. Boston Reed College provides registration, books, materials,
externships and certificates of completion.
Contact Boston Reed College to learn how you can partner to offer these high-demand, vocational healthcare training programs:
Partner with Boston Reed College to Create a Winning Partnership in Your Community!
Boston Reed College2799 Napa Valley Corporate Drice
Napa CA 94558 800-201-1141www.BostonReedCollege.com
Partner with Boston Reed College to Create a Winning Partnership
in Your Community! With an expert partner, It’s easy for you to offer high-demand training for jobs in the healthcare
industry. Give your students training they can afford and a career they can grow with! Employers appreciate a skilled workforce from which to hire, students welcome programs that meet their needs and your school meets its mission of serving the community with lifelong edu-cation. Boston Reed College provides registration, books, materials, externships and certificates
of completion. Financial assistance options are available for students. Contact Boston Reed College to learn how you can partner to offer these high-demand,
vocational healthcare training programs:
Clinical Medical Assistant Pharmacy Technician
Phlebotomy Technician Vocational Nurse
Orthopedic Technician Optometric Assistant
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2799 Napa Valley Corporate Drive Napa, CA 94558 800-201-1141 www.BostonReedCollege.com
WANTED! Healthcare Professionals!
ployment Development Department. A two and a half year assignment teaching adult ESL through the DQ University in Davis, led to a strong interest in adult education. Ms. Ramirez, who is originally from the Salinas area, holds a B.A. in Italian and an M.A. in Spanish from CSU Sacramento.
She looks forward to many new challeng-es, including meeting representatives from all the agencies in Region 5, the South Bay. She sees her greatest challenge as “keeping track of everyone” and helping them fight for the resources necessary to continue their strong programs.
Outsourcing Healthcare Training ProgramsSome budget-starved adult schools are
creating revenue by outsourcing health training classes. Boston Reed College, a principal California provider of such instruc-tion, reports its programs at community col-leges and some adult schools have become more popular during the budget crisis. The company offers Pharmacy Technician, Clini-cal and Administrative Medical Assisting, Phlebotomy, EKG Technician and other ca-reer technical education training programs. In a typical adult school-Boston Reed part-nership, students enroll directly with Bos-ton Reed. The adult school receives a per-student fee and provides a classroom, plus catalog and website advertising. Instruction, textbooks, all classroom materials, extern-ships, and certificates of completion are provided by Boston Reed. Payment plans, financial assistance and WIB sponsorships for students are available. Contact Alice Wertz Chegia, [email protected] or at 707-307-5062.
