[AAACE-NLA] More lessons learned on advocacy

[ATSSrAdv@aol.com]

Report from Michigan

While we have yet to receive the final word, our state house as passed a bill 
with $21 Million for adult education and our senate one for $20 Million. It 
now goes to a conference committee with final action not expected until late 
summer or fall. Our fiscal year is the same as the Feds, Oct. 1- Sept 30. We 
have had trouble raising the $20 Million back to the $80 Million that was in 
place in the 02-03 year and several prior years due to our total state deficit 
situation. We have been leading the nation in unemployment for months, thousands 
of manufacturing jobs have been lost and as a result K-12 State funds has been 
cut or level funded for the last two years, making it difficult to get 
meaningful increases in adult ed or other categorical education programs. 

As a state organization of adult and community education we have been able to 
maintain a grass roots system to keep our issue alive and in front of the 
Governor, the legislators and the media. We were also successful in turning back 
an initiative to have a couple of regional pilot programs funded out of the 
$20 million in conjunction with area work force development agencies. We have a 
good relationship with our Adult Education office located in the Department of 
Labor & Economic Growth

We are trying to rebuild. We have a good foundation, excellent committed and 
skilled workers at the ready, adults in need, but we despertal¥ need 
additional material to work with in the form of monies. 

Now if only the rest of the county would buy more GM, Ford and Chryslers, we 
quit loosing jobs to China and elsewhere, we might have a chance.

Ken Walsh 
Executive Director
Michigan Association of Community and Adult Education
macae at macae.org
-------------- next part --------------
An HTML attachment was scrubbed...
URL: http://lists.literacytent.org/pipermail/aaace-nla/attachments/20050701/982fc7cd/attachment.htm