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<p>NEWS RELEASE -- January 6, 2003 -- The Council for
Advancement of Adult Literacy (CAAL) today announced a project to help
strengthen the role of community colleges in adult education and literacy.
<p>“CAAL has a primary commitment to developing the state role in adult
education and literacy,” said president Gail Spangenberg. “To this end,
the potential of community colleges is of paramount importance. They
already provide adult education and literacy services for millions of adults,
but the links between their services, other aspects of the colleges’ operations,
and the adult education and literacy community are usually weak.”
She emphasized that “these institutions and the adult education and literacy
system will benefit greatly from strengthening the managerial, programmatic,
and curricular links between them. That is the basic goal of our
new project.”
<p>Over the next month, CAAL will form a blue-ribbon Task Force of leaders
and experts from community colleges, adult literacy, and government.
An outstanding individual dedicated to innovation in the community college
sector and improved adult literacy service will be named to chair the Task
Force. Members will be announced by February. Forrest Chisman,
CAAL’s Vice President for Special Projects, will be Study Director.
Dr. Chisman has extensive credentials in the areas of community college
innovation and collaboration, national and state policy analysis, and human
resource development.
<p>During an 18-month period, the Task Force will develop a work plan,
specify project outcomes, identify topics for several commissioned papers,
and assess the findings. Meetings will be held at CAAL’s offices
in New York City and, in Washington, D.C., at the Center for the Book in
the Library of Congress.
<p>CAAL will publish and disseminate nationally its commissioned papers
on various aspects of the community college role. The papers will
be released one-by-one as the project unfolds. At the end of the
project, the Task Force will issue a final report to sumarize its findings
and make action recommendations for community colleges, adult education
and literacy groups, government, and other organizations. CAAL expects
to play an active role in implementing the recommendations.
<p>The Nellie Mae Foundation, Verizon, Inc., and McGraw-Hill, Inc. have
each provided start-up funding for the project. Additional funds
are being sought from other sources. The current donors all have an ongoing
commitment to advancing adult literacy in America and a special interest
in community colleges.
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<p><b><u>Council for Advancement of Adult Literacy</u></b>
<br>1221 Avenue of the Americas – 50th Floor
<br>New York, NY 10020
<br>Phone: 212-512-2363
<br>Fax: 212-512-2610
<br>e-mail: bheitner@caalusa.org
<br><A HREF="http://www.caalusa.org">http://www.caalusa.org</A>
<p>Washington-area Satellite Office
<br>(Forrest Chisman)
<br>Phone: 410-643-0135
<br>Fax: 410-643-0137
<br>e-mail: forrest@crosslink.net
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