ADULT EDUCATION PROGRAM JOINS MOVING AHEAD CAMPAIGN TO GET ADULTS BACK TO SCHOOL AND WORK
Reskilling, Upskilling Will Help Move Adults Into Family-Sustaining Jobs for Economic Recovery from Pandemic
Cumberland, MD (Oct. 9, 2020) –The Allegany College of Maryland Adult Basic Education program joins more than 65,000 adult educators in Moving Ahead with Adult Ed – a new national campaign to enroll adult learners into programs that equip them with skills that lead to high school equivalency and living wage jobs that pay a family-sustaining wage.
Moving Ahead with Adult Ed promotes adult education, with its existing reskilling and upskilling programs, as an economic catalyst to help low-skilled adults and their communities recover from the financial impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic. An international study indicated approximately 43 million working-age Americans lack the skills needed for many of the nation’s fastest-growing and highest-paying jobs. According to the U.S. Census, there are over 22 million adults in the U.S. without a high school diploma.
Through in-person and online instruction online, the ACM Adult Basic Education (ABE) programs are designed to reengage adults who need to reskill or upskill to re-enter the workforce or pursue their education. “Adult education provides on-ramps to better jobs and to community college,” said Melanie Chapman, ACM’s ABE Program administrator. “With adult education, the infrastructure is in place to get adults back into the workforce and hopefully get them into better jobs than they had before the pandemic.”
Campaign partners Coalition on Adult Basic Education and the National Association of State Directors of Adult Education estimate that for every dollar invested in adult education, a community receives $60 back in increased income, property taxes and savings on public assistance and legal-system expenses.
The #MovingAheadWithAdultEd campaign focuses on reengaging the millions of Americans in need of additional skills to compete in the workforce and recover financially from the pandemic. In addition to providing industry skills training, adult education programs teach literacy, numeracy and digital literacy, as well as offer high school equivalency classes.
The ACM Adult Basic Education program offers a full range of educational opportunities to individuals over the age of 18 who have withdrawn from the public education system and are seeking to earn their Maryland high school diploma, improve their reading, or gain work-ready skills. Adult Basic Education courses are designed to develop the reading, writing, and math abilities for individuals to perform day-to-day tasks and build skills necessary for securing a non-traditional high school diploma and employment. Family Literacy courses provide parents real-world reading, writing, math, and technology skills along with opportunities for career exploration to provide a strong literacy foundation for families. Diploma Prep prepares students to take the official GED test or quality for admission to the National External Diploma Program. ABE Program Support Instruction supports students’ transition to college by identifying career and education goals, developing post-secondary learning skills and strategies, and building content knowledge. English as a Second Language (ESOL) courses provide instruction for English language learners in reading, writing, speaking, and listening basics. Literacy Support Tutoring helps individuals who wish to learn to read, and local community organizations also provide Work Readiness workshops delivered through a mobile-based learning management system. For more information about any of these opportunities, individuals are encouraged to contact Melanie Valentine at 301-784-5448 or mvalentine6162@allegany.edu, or visit allegany.edu/ce/abe-ged.
