[NLA] Discussion: WIA Reauthorization and OMB Four common Measures

[Chris Francisco]

Catherine,

I completely agree...my mother was a refugee of war that came to this 
country many years ago...my earliest memories of "school" were in a church 
basement studying citizenship...this connection to adult education has 
stayed with me all of these years...our extended family in this country and 
abroad know the stories of compassion and understanding that America has 
provided.  I am grateful.  My family is grateful. As an adult educator I 
continue to return the life changing energy our enterprise has 
provided.  Be well.

peace and love,

Chris Francisco

  At 10:54 AM 12/12/2002 -0800, you wrote:
>David:
>
>If the present administration is REALLY interested in
>worldwide change of our policy and our image, they
>should start with the immigrant population that enters
>our programs.  What a rich place.
>
>Whom do they think these folks communicate with if not
>with their families back home?  If the current administration
>really  understood this, or if they really are interested in
>making long-term inroads in communication with the
>people in other countries--especially the middle eastern
>countries--then what better way than doing everything we
>can to educate these people--for us, and for them?
>
>What they send back in their letters, e-mails, phone calls
>and just their general attitude,  is political manna for us--
>a country who desperately needs to better our policy and
>our impression of neo-colonization on others in the world?
>
>Catherine King
>Adjunct Instructor
>Department of Education
>National University
>San Diego, CA
>-- Original Message -----
>From: David J. Rosen <DJRosen at theworld.com>
>To: nla <nla at lists.literacytent.org>
>Sent: Thursday, December 12, 2002 4:38 AM
>Subject: [NLA] Discussion: WIA Reauthorization and OMB Four common Measures
>
>
> > NLA Colleagues,
> >
> > At the final plenary of the National Workforce Alliance Conference in
> > Washington, D.C. yesterday, a representative of the U.S. Department of
> > Labor (DOL) outlined some of the factors which we might expect to
> > influence WIA authorization in 2003.  Among them she mentioned the
> > recommended change from the current 17 to four common measures
> > recommended by the White House Office of Management and Budget. She said
> > the four proposed performance measures for programs serving adults are:
> > employment entry rate, job retention rate, earnings increases, and an
> > efficiency measure involving the appropriation level per participant,
> > something like a return on investment assessment figure.
> >
> > She also mentioned that DOL is concerned about the increasing number of
> > immigrants with employment-related goals who are limited English
> > proficient, that the DOL would like to do something about that.  In the
> > question and answer period I pointed out that the four common measures
> > would discourage programs from providing English language services,
> > especially under WIA Title II, since clients seeking beginning English
> > language and adult literacy services often will not be able to attain
> > these program outcomes within a funding year. She said they would have
> > to look at that. (In a downturned economy, with an unemployment rate of
> > 6%, all employment-related outcomes are challenging to attain.  Programs
> > would have to be selective about who they admitted, and would serve only
> > those who could produce these outcomes in a year, in a word would
>"cream.")
> >
> > We must be concerned about the OMB four common measures recommendation.
> >   Apparently it is being taken seriously.  For example, if the
> > Administration put this forward to Congress in its WIA Authorization
> > plan this winter, and if, as we saw with the Administration TANF
> > reauthorization plan last year, debate in Congress were limited, and if
> > the administration proposal passed largely as proposed, the four common
> > measures could be part of the law. This would compromise one of the most
> > important principles advocated by our field, that public adult education
> > funding must be broad, to serve a variety of legitimate student and
> > community goals and needs, not only employment.  WIA Title II, as many
> > on the NLA list know, is funding which was before in the National
> > Literacy Act, now called Adult Education and Family Literacy.  If the
> > four common measures recommendation holds, that would be the end of
> > federal broad-purpose funding for adult education and literacy.
> >
> > Through our NIFL advocacy campaign the past few months, we have
> > identified friends in Congress. That's good news because we are going to
> > need a lot of friends in Congress in 2003.  As I read the signs, we are
> > going to need to work very hard for adult literacy education this year.
> >
> > David J. Rosen
> > NLA List Moderator
> >
> >
> > _______________________________________________
> > NLA mailing list: NLA at lists.literacytent.org
> > http://lists.literacytent.org/mailman/listinfo/nla
> > LiteracyTent: web hosting, news, community and goodies for literacy
> > http://literacytent.org
> >
>
>_______________________________________________
>NLA mailing list: NLA at lists.literacytent.org
>http://lists.literacytent.org/mailman/listinfo/nla
>LiteracyTent: web hosting, news, community and goodies for literacy
>http://literacytent.org


_______________________________________________
NLA mailing list: NLA at lists.literacytent.org
http://lists.literacytent.org/mailman/listinfo/nla
LiteracyTent: web hosting, news, community and goodies for literacy
http://literacytent.org