Title II of the Workforce Investment and Opportunity Act (WIOA) provides block grants to states for Adult Education and Literacy (AEFLA). The purpose of AEFLA’s basic state grant program is to:
- Assist adults to become literate and obtain the knowledge and skills necessary for employment and economic self-sufficiency.
- Assist adults who are parents or family members to obtain the education and skills that are necessary to becoming full partners in the educational development of their children, and lead to sustainable improvements in the economic opportunities for their family.
- Assist adults in attaining a secondary school diploma and in the transition to postsecondary education and training, including through career pathways.
- Assist immigrants and other individuals who are English language learners in improving their reading, writing, speaking and comprehension skills in English; mathematics skills; and acquiring an understanding of the American system of government, individual freedom and the responsibilities of citizenship.
The statute requires states to allocate no less than 82.5% of their allotments to local agencies through a competitive grant or contract process. The U.S. Department of Education collects data from each state on how the grants have been allocated and reported outcomes of students in WIOA programs.
This analysis uses data from the National Reporting Service (NRS) for Adult Education Aggregate Reports. Table 14 on the NRS site provides detailed information by state on the categories of local grantees receiving the block grants.
Across all states and territories, community colleges received 34.3% of all Title II local funding, while local education agencies (LEAs, or K-12 school systems) received 41.9%. Community-based organizations were the third most likely (12.7% of funds) to have received local grant funding.
There was significant variation across states on how the block grants were distributed. The figure above provides a state-by-state look at the distribution of community college grants and LEA grants. In nine states and the District of Columbia, no funds went to community colleges, while in Iowa and Oregon, all the funds went to community colleges. Twelve states provided no local funds to LEAs, and two (Hawaii and Maine) provided all their local funds to LEAs.
States annually report on the number of adult education participants who had measurable skills gains. The reportable skills gains are:
- Achievement of at least one educational functioning level of a participant who is receiving educational instruction below the postsecondary level
- Attainment of a secondary school diploma or its equivalent
- Transcript or report card for either secondary or postsecondary education that shows a participant is achieving the state unit’s academic standards
- Satisfactory or better progress report, towards established milestones from an employer/training provider who is providing training (e.g., completion of on-the-job training, completion of one year of an apprenticeship program, etc.)
- Successful passage of an exam that is required for a particular occupation, progress in attaining technical or occupational skills as evidenced by trade-related benchmarks, such as knowledge-based exams
The data are available on the Statewide Performance Report. Nationally, 46.9% of program participants demonstrated measurable skills gains. The percent of adult ed students demonstrating measurable skills gains also varied by state, from a low of 23.8%, to a high of 75.1%. The average measurable skills gain rate was lowest in states that had no funding for community colleges, and highest when community colleges received between 25% and 75% of the funding (See figure below).
Conversely, the average measurable skills gain rate was lowest in states that had the highest percentage (more than two-thirds) of funding going to LEAs, but highest in states where between one-quarter and two-thirds of the funding went to LEAs.
