L-R: Commissioner Creade V. Brodie, Jr., Commissioner David J. Caporale, ACM Adult Basic Education Instructional Assistant Deborah Miller, ACM Adult Basic Education Program Director Melanie Chapman and Commissioner Jacob C. Shade.
COUNTY COMMISSIONERS RECOGNIZE ADULT EDUCATION AND FAMILY LITERACY WEEK:
Nationally 1 in 3 Young Adults Drops Out Of High School
CUMBERLAND, Md. (Sept. 18, 2019) –The Board of County Commissioners of Allegany County has proclaimed September 22-28 National Adult Education and Family Literacy Week in Allegany County.
Adults with low literacy levels frequently face poorer health, lower wages and higher rates of unemployment. Nationally, children of parents with low literacy levels have a 72% chance of being lowest-level readers. These children are more likely to get poor grades, have behavioral problems, experience high rates of absenteeism, repeat grades, or drop out of school.
Approximately 11% of Allegany County’s population struggle to read, write, do math
and use technology above a third-grade level. Within the county, nearly 26% of adults
who lack high school credentials live at or below the poverty line, according to the
US Census Bureau.
Locally the Adult Basic Education program within ACM’s Center for Continuing Education
and Workforce Development serves adult learners 18 years and older who wish to earn
a Maryland high school diploma, improve their reading or gain work-ready skills. Classes
include: Adult Basic Education (ABE), Adult and Family Literacy, General Education
Development (GED), External Diploma Program (NEDP), and Workplace Skills – ACT WorkKeys,
ABE Program Support Instruction and English as a Second Language (ESL). Online learning
options are also offered. There are no fees for the classes and support services are
available.
National Adult Education and Family Literacy Week raises public awareness about the need for and value of adult education and family literacy. Its goal is to leverage resources that support access to basic education programs for the 36 million U.S. adults with low literacy skills. In a survey of the United States and 23 other industrialized countries, the Program for the International Assessment of Adult Literacy (PIAAC) found that the U.S. mean literacy score was ranked 16 out of 24 countries, below the international average.
Local advocates for adult basic education, including current Adult Basic Education program students, graduates and staff, will visit Capitol Hill on Tuesday, September 24, 2019, to meet with members of Maryland’s federal delegation.
For more information about the Adult Basic Education program at ACM, call 301-784-5447 or email dkmiller@allegany.edu.
