The revamped system will teach skills in critical thinking, problem-solving and teamwork in decision-making.

01:00 AM EDT on Friday, August 27, 2004

BY GINA MACRIS
Journal Staff Writer

PROVIDENCE -- With nearly one in five Rhode Islanders over the age of 15 unable to read well enough to earn a high school diploma, Governor Carcieri yesterday approved a plan to turn a disjointed "collection" of adult-education programs into a coordinated system delivering high quality services.

The revamped system will not only teach basic literacy and mathematics but also foster skills in critical thinking, problem-solving and teamwork in decision-making -- all necessary for success in higher education and in the workplace.

In a meeting at the State House, Carcieri accepted several recommendations from the Rhode Island Adult Literacy Task Force, a committee with representatives of more than 60 government and private agencies that the governor formed a year ago to find ways to boost adult literacy.

Some 19 percent of Rhode Islanders age 16 and older cannot read well enough to graduate from high school, according to a national literacy survey.

And the 2000 Census shows that among Rhode Island adults 25 and older, about 153,000 people -- or 22 percent -- lack a high school diploma.

Those statistics were offered by Janet Durfee-Hidalgo, a task force member representing the Governor's Policy Office, to illustrate the need for adult basic education in Rhode Island.

The task force recommended that the governor consolidate leadership for adult basic education in one state agency that will coordinate available services, which are now spread among several departments of state government and a wide array of private agencies.

Through a collaborative effort involving both government and the private sector, the coordinating agency is expected to:

Develop and implement a process for improving adult-education programs across the board, relying on evaluation methods required by the federal government.

Create a comprehensive program of professional development for teachers of adult education.

Adopt a consistent content for adult-education classes throughout Rhode Island while allowing for the flexibility necessary to meet the individual needs of students.

Create a forum for various state agencies to work together on the funding and delivery of adult-education services.

The state now spends nearly $4 million in federal money and $1.4 in state funds on adult education through several state government agencies that work in isolation, according to Durfee-Hidalgo.

The task force recommended that all of them -- the Office of Library and Science Information and the departments of Education, Human Services, Labor and Training, Corrections and Health -- should participate in the funding decisions under the auspices of the new lead agency.

Carcieri noted with a laugh that one of the beauties of Rhode Island -- its small size -- is also its curse.

"There are a lot of good ideas and everybody's busy with their heads down doing what needs to be done," he said.

But well-meaning, individual efforts are not necessarily the most effective, the governor said, emphasizing that adult-education services must all flow from the same high standards and effective teaching practices.

The task force will spend the next several months spelling out the role of the lead adult-education agency and creating the vehicle for cooperation among the several state agencies that now own a separate piece of adult-education services.

With the various arms of state government working together and the lead agency setting policy for adult education, the state should be able to make the most of limited resources, Carcieri said.

Of the $1.4-million state adult education budget, $1.1 million will finance services and the remainder will be reserved for administrative costs, including staff for the lead agency, according to members of the task force.

Peter McWalters, education commissioner and a member of the task force, said, "I hope people understand how dramatic this is."

The plan approved by the governor aims to do nothing less than create from scratch the same kind of system of reforms that have been put into place to improve the quality of elementary and secondary education, McWalters said.

He said teacher training will be at the center of efforts to change adult education. The place of the adult-education teacher must move from a low-paying part-time or volunteer position to the level of professional standards and commensurate pay, McWalters said.

"Without this [movement], we won't meet the needs of work-force development," McWalters said.

Judy Titzel, project manager for the task force, said that Rhode Island is not bereft of high quality programs in adult education, but the programs do lack consistency.

Task force member Jack Warner, who is commissioner of higher education, said that adult education must aim to prepare its graduates for post-secondary education.

A report issued by his office earlier this year indicated that 58 percent of Rhode Island graduates entering the Community College of Rhode Island in 2001 needed two or more courses in remedial reading, writing or math.

Jeff Grybowski, a staff member of the governor's office who chairs the task force, said that the wide network of adult-education providers must "buy in" to the new approach for the reorganization to succeed.

He said he thinks it will take a "couple of years for this to get off the ground."