http://www.clasp.org/issues/in_focus.xml?type=basic_skills_and_workforce_training In Focus articles from the Center for Law and Social Policy (CLASP) en-us Wed, 19 Jun 2013 21:32:02 -0500 info@clasp.org webmaster@clasp.org 40 Wed, 12 Jun 2013 00:00:00 -0500 http://www.clasp.org/issues/in_focus?type=basic_skills_and_workforce_training&id=0047 http://www.clasp.org/issues/in_focus?type=basic_skills_and_workforce_training&id=0047 Fri, 12 Apr 2013 00:00:00 -0500 http://www.clasp.org/issues/in_focus?type=basic_skills_and_workforce_training&id=0046 The PresidentaEUR(TM)s budget blueprint released on Wednesday calls for Congress to support employment and job training opportunities for the long-term unemployed and low-income adults and youth through the Pathways Back to Work Fund. Even as the economy recovers, too many unemployed workers and individuals with low education and skill levels face a difficult job market. This legislative proposal, which was introduced as part of the American Jobs Act, builds on the successful, two-year program funded by the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act that provided jobs for about 260,000 people in 39 states and the District of Columbia. http://www.clasp.org/issues/in_focus?type=basic_skills_and_workforce_training&id=0046 Tue, 12 Mar 2013 00:00:00 -0500 http://www.clasp.org/issues/in_focus?type=basic_skills_and_workforce_training&id=0045 New York State made headlines last week after it announced it would be dropping the GEDA(R) as its high school equivalency examaEUR"a move that can only be defined as a aEURoegame changeraEUR? in adult education. Instead, the state will be working with CTB/McGraw Hill to develop an alternative exam, the Test Assessing Secondary Completion (TASC), which New York believes will keep costs low and allow its Education Department to continue to serve adults and youth seeking to earn a high school equivalency diploma and gain greater economic mobility. New YorkaEUR(TM)s shift to the TASC is one of the most significant developments in adult education in decades. Since 1942, the GEDA(R) has been synonymous with high school equivalency in the U.S. and widely recognized by potential candidates, employers, and postsecondary institutions. http://www.clasp.org/issues/in_focus?type=basic_skills_and_workforce_training&id=0045 Mon, 11 Mar 2013 00:00:00 -0500 http://www.clasp.org/issues/in_focus?type=basic_skills_and_workforce_training&id=0044 Last week the House Education and Workforce Committee voted to advance a bill that restructures a range of federal workforce programs, including the Workforce Investment Act (WIA). Tensions ran high during the legislative mark-up session and the hearing that preceded it, signaling a decline in the bipartisan spirit that has animated most reauthorization efforts in the past. http://www.clasp.org/issues/in_focus?type=basic_skills_and_workforce_training&id=0044 Thu, 14 Feb 2013 00:00:00 -0600 http://www.clasp.org/issues/in_focus?type=basic_skills_and_workforce_training&id=0043 http://www.clasp.org/issues/in_focus?type=basic_skills_and_workforce_training&id=0043 Tue, 17 Jul 2012 00:00:00 -0500 http://www.clasp.org/issues/in_focus?type=basic_skills_and_workforce_training&id=0042 This week, ten states, in conjunction with CLASP, are launching the Alliance for Quality Career Pathways, a national effort to create a framework of benchmarks and measures of success for adult career pathway initiatives. Career pathways are a promising solution to ensure America remains globally competitive, and that all workersaEUR"regardless of initial skill levelaEUR"can have access to postsecondary credentials and economic opportunities. http://www.clasp.org/issues/in_focus?type=basic_skills_and_workforce_training&id=0042 Tue, 03 Jul 2012 00:00:00 -0500 http://www.clasp.org/issues/in_focus?type=basic_skills_and_workforce_training&id=0041 At no time in recent history has the importance of adult education been greater and the funding more threatened. Despite the fact that as many as 93 million adults in the U.S. may need basic skills services to improve their economic prospects, funding for these services is stagnating at the federal level and being slashed in statehouses and state agencies across the country. Demand remains high, with waiting lists in nearly every state. New findings from a national survey of adult education state directors, conducted jointly by CLASP and the National Council for State Directors of Adult Education (NCSDAE), shed light on key financing and tuition policies, including how programs are funded and how much money is propping up the system from all levels of government, local programs, and students themselves. http://www.clasp.org/issues/in_focus?type=basic_skills_and_workforce_training&id=0041 Mon, 02 Jul 2012 00:00:00 -0500 http://www.clasp.org/issues/in_focus?type=basic_skills_and_workforce_training&id=0040 Starting this month, adult education programs are now required to dramatically change how they report data to the federal government on student outcomesaEUR"moving adult education toward greater alignment with other education and training programs and laying a foundation for using adult education program data as a tool for incentivizing and measuring system progress for adult education. These changes are being implemented through the Department of EducationaEUR(TM)s authority to develop and measure progress of federally-funded adult education programs and do not require a reauthorization of the Workforce Investment Act. http://www.clasp.org/issues/in_focus?type=basic_skills_and_workforce_training&id=0040 Mon, 18 Jun 2012 00:00:00 -0500 http://www.clasp.org/issues/in_focus?type=basic_skills_and_workforce_training&id=0039 On June 14, the Senate Appropriations Committee approved the FY 2013 Labor-HHS-Education appropriations bill that sets funding levels for key education and training programs. Importantly, the bill also includes an amendment that would restore financial aid eligibility for some students without a high school diploma or its equivalent who are able to demonstrate their ability to benefit from college-level coursework. The provision would allow this eligibility only for ATB-eligible students who are enrolled in career pathway programs, a program model which CLASP has long-supported. http://www.clasp.org/issues/in_focus?type=basic_skills_and_workforce_training&id=0039 Tue, 12 Jun 2012 00:00:00 -0500 http://www.clasp.org/issues/in_focus?type=basic_skills_and_workforce_training&id=0038 Late last week the House Education and Workforce Committee voted along party lines to adopt a bill that reforms a range of federal workforce programs, including the Workforce Investment Act (WIA). This House action is the first significant push to reauthorize WIA since the SenateaEUR(TM)s effort to craft a bipartisan bill during 2011. http://www.clasp.org/issues/in_focus?type=basic_skills_and_workforce_training&id=0038 Thu, 29 Mar 2012 00:00:00 -0500 http://www.clasp.org/issues/in_focus?type=basic_skills_and_workforce_training&id=0037 After July 1, 2012, newly enrolled college students without a high school diploma or secondary school equivalent will no longer be eligible for federal student aid, due to the elimination of the aEURoeAbility to BenefitaEUR? (AtB) options by Congress in December 2011. Two new CLASP resources released this week lay out the facts of the issue and explain why reinstatement of the provision is essential for maintaining access to education and training for low-income, low-skilled students. http://www.clasp.org/issues/in_focus?type=basic_skills_and_workforce_training&id=0037 Thu, 15 Mar 2012 00:00:00 -0500 http://www.clasp.org/issues/in_focus?type=basic_skills_and_workforce_training&id=0036 Despite an organized effort to persuade the city to preserve adult education funding, the Los Angeles Unified School District (LAUSD) board on Tuesday approved a preliminary budget that would decimate one of the nation's largest programs serving adult students. All of the adult schools in the city could be closed and at least 1,800 faculty and staff could lose their jobs if the city fails to find revenue to fill the funding gap before it finalized the city budget in June. Word of the drastic proposal to eliminate funding sparked a significant grassroots response to save the program, which plays a vital community role by providing adult education (including English language services). During the previous few weeks, the SaveAdultEd Campaign has mobilized thousands of people to voice their support through phone calls, letters, and most recently at a rally during the contentious vote on March 13. Campaign leaders and adult education advocates also participated in a guest blog discussion series, Cut the Excuses Not Education!, hosted by the National Coalition for Literacy leading up to the rally. In spite of these efforts, the board voted to cut funding. http://www.clasp.org/issues/in_focus?type=basic_skills_and_workforce_training&id=0036 Tue, 21 Feb 2012 00:00:00 -0600 http://www.clasp.org/issues/in_focus?type=basic_skills_and_workforce_training&id=0035 Every year, adult education serves 2 million of our nation's low-skilled adults and helps them get on a path to college or a better job to support their families. And while 2 million students may seem like a lot, the latest data show at least 93 million adults have basic skills deficiencies that could limit their economic and career potential. Yet funding for these critical services is being slashed at almost every level of government. http://www.clasp.org/issues/in_focus?type=basic_skills_and_workforce_training&id=0035 Wed, 15 Feb 2012 00:00:00 -0600 http://www.clasp.org/issues/in_focus?type=basic_skills_and_workforce_training&id=0034 Given that low-income, low-skill workers have been hard hit by the recent recession, President ObamaaEUR(TM)s FY2013 budget proposal to make substantial new short-term investments in education and training leading to a job is a wise investment for workers and the nation. http://www.clasp.org/issues/in_focus?type=basic_skills_and_workforce_training&id=0034 Tue, 14 Feb 2012 00:00:00 -0600 http://www.clasp.org/issues/in_focus?type=basic_skills_and_workforce_training&id=0033 President Obama's budget blueprint released Monday lays out spending priorities for the nation. The proposal calls for Congress to support employment and job training opportunities for unemployed workers through the Pathways Back to Work Fund. This proposal indicates that the president recognizes that the economic recovery must be inclusive to be complete. http://www.clasp.org/issues/in_focus?type=basic_skills_and_workforce_training&id=0033 Wed, 08 Feb 2012 00:00:00 -0600 http://www.clasp.org/issues/in_focus?type=basic_skills_and_workforce_training&id=0032 It's hard to believe that some members of Congress want to make it harder for unemployed workers to get benefits that help them and their families keep their heads above water while they search for a job. As part of the price for extending federal unemployment benefits, House Republicans want to add a provision that denies benefits to workers without a high school diploma or equivalent if they cannot prove they are enrolled in a credential-granting program. Another proposal would require all UI claimants to submit to drug testing as a condition of eligibility. These provisions literally add insult to injury, suggesting that it is unemployed workers' fault that they can't find jobs, no matter how bad the economy. http://www.clasp.org/issues/in_focus?type=basic_skills_and_workforce_training&id=0032 Wed, 25 Jan 2012 00:00:00 -0600 http://www.clasp.org/issues/in_focus?type=basic_skills_and_workforce_training&id=0031 In last night's State of the Union address, President Obama laid out an ambitious goal to train 2 million American workers with the skills that will lead directly to a job. At a time when 13 million Americans are unemployed and employers are seeking to hire individuals with the right skill sets, this is an important step in the right direction for our economy. http://www.clasp.org/issues/in_focus?type=basic_skills_and_workforce_training&id=0031 Tue, 03 Jan 2012 00:00:00 -0600 http://www.clasp.org/issues/in_focus?type=basic_skills_and_workforce_training&id=0030 Congress recently settled its extended sparring over Fiscal Year 2012 appropriations, resulting in some cuts to workforce programs that are far less damaging than those originally proposed by the House. http://www.clasp.org/issues/in_focus?type=basic_skills_and_workforce_training&id=0030 Tue, 15 Nov 2011 00:00:00 -0600 http://www.clasp.org/issues/in_focus?type=basic_skills_and_workforce_training&id=0029 A bill introduced today would address the ongoing jobs crisis by creating work and educational opportunities for unemployed workers, those who can't qualify for unemployment benefits and other disadvantaged individuals. While the nation has dealt with an unemployment rate hovering around 9 percent or higher since 2009, policymakers cannot allow this to become a new normal. This is the third scaled-down jobs bill based on provisions in the Americans Jobs Act to be introduced in the past month. Two other measures failed to get enough votes to move past debate. http://www.clasp.org/issues/in_focus?type=basic_skills_and_workforce_training&id=0029 Wed, 02 Nov 2011 00:00:00 -0500 http://www.clasp.org/issues/in_focus?type=basic_skills_and_workforce_training&id=0028 The trick-or-treaters have come and gone, but chilling days might be ahead for federal programs that help low-income Americans. November includes two important dates on which we could see devastating cuts in these programs, including Pell Grants and workforce funding. http://www.clasp.org/issues/in_focus?type=basic_skills_and_workforce_training&id=0028