From the Dec. 9, 1996 Daily Report Card:
-> *4   ADULT EDUCATION:  NEEDS EXPANSION IN LOUISIANA
->    La. state officials have recommended an expansion of
-> literacy and job training programs to cover the state's almost
-> one million undereducated citizens (Shipley, New Orleans TIMES-
-> PICAYUNE, 12/5).  "We're trying to determine what in Louisiana we
-> need to develop a better workforce," said Chris Weaver of Gov
-> Foster's office of Workforce Development.
->    Weaver offered several proposals to the state Board of
-> Elementary and Secondary Education earlier this month.  His
-> strategies include:  move youths at risk of dropping out of
-> school into adult education programs using school-to-work
-> programs that combine basic skills with workforce training;
-> expand the mission of the state DoEd adult education program
-> beyond GED preparation to include adult literacy education;
-> encourage partnerships among state agencies, technical and
-> community colleges, private companies and non-profit volunteer
-> agencies, writes the paper.
->    Weaver also called for rapid response to welfare reforms in
-> order to quickly move people from welfare to work by targeting
-> adult education, technical colleges, Job Training Partnership Act
-> programs, and community colleges.  According to the paper, Weaver
-> explained that "efforts to boost workforce development have
-> become more urgent by recent welfare reforms that will force
-> 7,000 adults into the workforce in 1997 alone."
->    The GED was discussed at the board meeting, with board
-> member Leslie Jacobs noting that the average age for a La. GED
-> candidate is 22.5 years old, the lowest in the nation.  Board
-> member Donna Contois followed up that the state's approach to the GED
-> serves as a dis-incentive for some students, notably those
-> out of school the longest.  Before being able to take the GED,
-> students must first pass a preliminary exam that determines
-> whether they have reached the level of a high school senior,
-> writes the paper.
->    Contois, pointing out that 82% of students who take the
-> preliminary exam pass the test, said the success rate is no
-> accomplishment.  "It's easy to get 16- to 19-year olds and say we
-> have an 82% success level.  Ninety-five percent of the illiterate and
-> semiliterate people in this state are not being addressed by any
-> literacy program, and that's because of the high bar for the GED
-> program," she said.
->    Older, illiterate adults are not getting help because they
-> do not seek assistance, observed board member Gerald Dill.  "The key
-> problem is, we're working with those who come to us.  We need to go
-> to them," he said.
->    Weaver suggested that teen-age dropouts be sent to
-> alternative schools run by the public school system, in order to free
-> up adult education funds to "help older adults who have
-> different needs," writes the paper.
->    Board members requested that schools Superintendent Cecil
-> Picard recommend policy changes in January.
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