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<TITLE>Thursday Notes, 6/13/02</TITLE>
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<P ALIGN=RIGHT><B><I><FONT COLOR="#008080" SIZE=5 FACE="Arial">Thursday Notes</FONT></I></B></P>
<P ALIGN=RIGHT><B><FONT COLOR="#008080" FACE="Arial">From the D</FONT><FONT COLOR="#008080" FACE="Arial">ivision of</FONT> <FONT COLOR="#008080" FACE="Arial">A</FONT><FONT COLOR="#008080" FACE="Arial">dult</FONT> <FONT COLOR="#008080" FACE="Arial">E</FONT><FONT COLOR="#008080" FACE="Arial">ducation and</FONT> <FONT COLOR="#008080" FACE="Arial">L</FONT><FONT COLOR="#008080" FACE="Arial">iteracy</FONT></B></P>
<P ALIGN=RIGHT><B><FONT COLOR="#008080" FACE="Arial">Office of Vocational and Adult Education</FONT></B></P>
<P><B><I><FONT COLOR="#008000" SIZE=2 FACE="Arial">Editor: Sarah Newcomb</FONT></I></B>
<BR><B><I><FONT COLOR="#008000" SIZE=2 FACE="Arial">Production: Rose Tilghman</FONT></I></B>
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<P><I><B><FONT COLOR="#008000" FACE="Arial">June 13, 2002</FONT> </B> </I>
<BR><B><FONT COLOR="#008080" SIZE=4 FACE="Arial">___________________________________</FONT></B>
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<P><B><FONT COLOR="#0000FF" SIZE=4 FACE="Arial">42 States Have Agreed </FONT></B>
<BR><B><FONT COLOR="#0000FF" SIZE=4 FACE="Arial">on Performance Levels</FONT></B>
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<P><FONT FACE="Times New Roman">At press time, 42 states and outlying areas had reached tentative agreement with the Office of Vocational and Adult Education on performance targets for years four and five of the Adult Education and Family Literacy Act. Performance targets must be approved by the Division Director and Assistant Secretary. Among states still discussing levels with the Department, the remaining point generally is whether some proposed levels are sufficient to demonstrate continuous improvement in performance of adult education programs in the fourth and fifth years. </FONT></P>
<P><B><FONT COLOR="#0000FF" SIZE=4 FACE="Arial">MA Auditors Check</FONT></B>
<BR><B><FONT COLOR="#0000FF" SIZE=4 FACE="Arial">Learners' Gain Data</FONT></B>
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<P><FONT FACE="Times New Roman">Massachusetts isn't the "show-me" state, but its state Department of Education is making sure learner gain data is valid and reliable. The state has hired an accounting firm to contact a random sample of learners to verify: their active enrollment and period of attendance; goals set and attained; and satisfaction with the services received. The accounting firm sends a report to the state Department of Education. The Department then holds a meeting with local program officials and the auditor to discuss recommendations related to the accuracy, timeliness and quality of the program's data collection and recording processes. Contact<U></U></FONT><U><I> <FONT COLOR="#0000FF" FACE="Times New Roman"><<A HREF="mailto:dcornellier@doe.mass.edu">mailto:dcornellier@doe.mass.edu</A>></FONT></I></U><I></I><FONT FACE="Times New Roman"> </FONT></P>
<P><B><FONT COLOR="#0000FF" SIZE=4 FACE="Arial">ID Ties Down Share</FONT></B>
<BR><B><FONT COLOR="#0000FF" SIZE=4 FACE="Arial">of Incentive Grant</FONT></B>
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<P><FONT FACE="Times New Roman">Idaho state director of adult education Shirley Spencer announced last week that collaborations among state agencies have netted $244,000 of the $975,000 available to the state as an incentive grant to be used for adult education activities. ID is one of just a dozen states that earned incentive grants by exceeding their performance measures in Title I, vocational and adult education programs. States have the option of using any or all of their incentive grant funds for WIA Title I, vocational education or adult education activities. Spencer plans to use the funds to purchase the latest version of standardized tests for all adult education programs, train staff, test out different strategies of research-based instruction and support an additional component of activity for the state's currently funded Community Technology Centers program. Contact</FONT><U></U><U><I> <FONT COLOR="#0000FF" FACE="Times New Roman"><<A HREF="mailto:sspence@sde.state.id.us">mailto:sspence@sde.state.id.us</A>></FONT></I></U></P>
<P><B><FONT COLOR="#0000FF" SIZE=4 FACE="Arial">Adult Health</FONT></B>
<BR><B><FONT COLOR="#0000FF" SIZE=4 FACE="Arial">Builder: Love A Pet</FONT></B>
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<P><FONT FACE="Times New Roman">Here's something for health literacy professionals that could help adult learners. Consistent research findings link pets with enhanced physical, mental and emotional well being in adults, the</FONT><I> <FONT FACE="Times New Roman">Washington Post</FONT></I><FONT FACE="Times New Roman"> reports. Recent studies confirm pet owners have lower blood pressure and cholesterol levels than folks without pets. Purdue University researchers found people experienced significant declines in blood pressure after watching fish in an aquarium for just 20 minutes. An earlier University of Maryland study following heart patients found pet owners actually outlived their pet-less counterparts. Dogs were excluded to be sure dog-walking exercise wasn't causing the disparity. Patients with iguanas, fish and gerbils did just as well. See</FONT><U> <FONT COLOR="#0000FF" FACE="Times New Roman"><A HREF="http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A54318-2002Jun3.html" TARGET="_blank">http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A54318-2002Jun3.html</A></FONT></U><FONT SIZE=2 FACE="Times New Roman"></FONT> </P>
<P><FONT COLOR="#000000" SIZE=2 FACE="Arial">_______________________________________________________________________________________________</FONT>
<P ALIGN=CENTER><B><I><FONT COLOR="#008080" SIZE=1 FACE="Arial">A Fact Sheet from the Division of Adult Education and Literacy</FONT></I></B></P>
<P ALIGN=CENTER><B><I><FONT COLOR="#008080" SIZE=1 FACE="Arial">Office of Vocational and Adult Education</FONT></I></B></P>
<P ALIGN=CENTER><B><I><FONT COLOR="#008080" SIZE=1 FACE="Arial">OVAE Homepage</FONT><FONT COLOR="#000000" SIZE=1 FACE="Arial"></FONT></I></B><B><I><U> <FONT COLOR="#0000FF" SIZE=1 FACE="Arial"><A HREF="http://www.ed.gov/offices/OVAE/" TARGET="_blank">http://www.ed.gov/offices/OVAE/</A></FONT></U></I></B><I></I></P>
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