[NLA] NLA Discussion: Adult Literacy Programs' Response to 9/11

[Nancy Hansen]

David,
In brief, I wanted to at least write back to say that the hearts of the Midwest are with all learners and practitioners from New York, New Jersey and beyond.  Plus I wished to respond to the 3 questions posed by Paul Jurmo.

1.  What impact is the September 11th attack having on the learners and the community you serve?

The impact of this disaster is minimal here, but it also is a well-known fact that it takes a lot longer for change to reach the Midwest from either coast.  However, we all truly have been talking about the folks on our East Coast.  We care about you all and hope that everyone is OK.

#1)  One immigration issue that *did* come up among several of our learner leaders in a small group discussion was expressed in this way:
    "The country has got to quit letting just anyone into our country," she said.
    This learner felt that a better form of screening people from other countries should be initiated, I believe.  Ironic as it feels to me, this remark was made by a student who calls West Africa her homeland.  She was angry because someone would do this from another country when she treasures *her* citizenship.

#2)  I would think that the *future* impact that we may *see* in South Dakota in the days ahead will be in learner job security areas -- loss of labor-intensive and manufacturing jobs, needs for employment retraining, airport security which will require employees there to be scrutinized and documented via paperwork etc. and issues related to the feeling of living in a safe environment
again.

2.  What should adult education programs do to respond to this situation?

#1)  My native-born compatriots to the above learner agreed with her.  I think I'm going to see an interest in discussion of immigration laws with this group of leaders as they sort out their feelings.  Are they written somewhere in a form that a literacy student can understand?  It *should* be provided, if it *isn't*.

#2)  Are we going to need different educational workplace materials to provide assistance to these learners in this kind of need?  I certainly feel as though the lack of a "safe environment" is going to affect many more learners on a broader base than just the East Coast.  The learner within eye-shot of a television screen on Sept. 11th is going to have issues regarding our America's
Fighting Back.

3. What should state-level policy makers do to respond to the needs of the learners and communities who have been affected by this disaster?

I will take a genuine interest in hearing what the East Coast literacy programs are facing there, but at this point no state-level policy changes are going to be impacted for us here.  It's so sad that something so severe could tear at our hearts in this land of freedom.  May He bless each of those adult learners in these cities who are mending and healing.

Nancy Hansen
Sioux Falls, SD
sfliteracy at mcleodusa.com


"djrosen at massed.net" wrote:

> NLA Colleagues,
>
> In a recent posting to the NJALL (New Jersey Adult Learning and Literacy Association) electronic list, Paul Jurmo, President of NJALL, wrote the message which you will find below.  At the end of his message Paul poses three questions which, it seems to me, apply to programs and policy makers across the country, and which we might discuss on the NLA list.
>
> What are your thoughts as a teacher, program administrator, student, policy maker, or other person who is concerned about the responsibility which adult literacy programs and policy makers have to adult learners in this post 9/11 world?
>
> "Dear NJALL Members,
>
> In its meeting yesterday, the NJALL Board discussed how the recent terrorist attacks might affect the learners and communities we serve and our field as a whole. Here are some concerns and ideas that came up in our discussion:
>
> -- Some programs are reporting that immigrant learners are afraid to leave their houses and attend classes.
>
> -- Some programs feel they should now put a new emphasis on intercultural communications in their curricula.
>
> -- One program reported that some of their volunteers asked not to be matched with learners of Middle Eastern background.
>
> -- It is likely that One Stop Career Centers and other employment-related agencies in New Jersey will be flooded with people who have lost their jobs due to the disaster.  It is feared that these already-under-equipped agencies will be unable to help these people.
>
> -- If some of the New York-based employers now need to relocate to New Jersey, those companies might benefit from workplace training programs to re-organize and prepare their workforces. However, there are currently limited resources provided to those kinds of programs and no real infrastructure for helping companies plan effective, customized services.
>
> -- Some fear that adult education -- which has already had to struggle to get recognition and funding from policy makers -- will be pushed even further down on the list of priorities as resources and attention are paid to other important issues like security and short-term job placements.
>
> These are a few concerns and ideas which were raised in a short discussion among NJALL board members yesterday.  We would like to hear what the rest of our members are thinking about these issues.  We would like to convey these concerns and good ideas to policy makers in the coming months. We'd thus be grateful if you now take a few minutes to respond to these questions by October 5th:
>
> 1.  What impact is the September 11th attack having on the learners and the community you serve?
>
> 2.  What should adult education programs do to respond to this situation?
>
> 3. What should state-level policy makers do to respond to the needs of the learners and communities who have been affected by this disaster?
>
> Thanks for your input.
>
> Paul JurmoNJALL President, 2001-2002"
>
> David J. Rosen
> NLA List Moderator
> <djrosen at massed.net>
>
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