Adult Education and Family Literacy Act Program

The State uses leadership funds, no more than 12.5 percent, of the total grant to execute the four mandatory leadership activities and other state leadership activities described in section 223 of WIOA.

The four mandatory leadership activities are:

1. Alignment of adult education and literacy activities with core partners and CareerSourceFlorida partners. Programs submitting grant applications during a competitive or continuation grant year must submit the grant application to the local CareerSource Florida network board to ensure the activities align with the CareerSource Florida network local plan. Leadership funds were used to conduct a competitive grant process in the spring of 2016 to award grants in the amount of $25,000 to develop an integrated education and training program. Eight programs were awarded a grant in the 2015 grant process, five additional programs in 2016. Each program works closely with the local board to determine job demand when they are selecting a career pathway program that is offered by their local regional technical center or college or state college.

CareerSource Florida network career centers and adult education programs work collaboratively within their local areas; assessment and instructional services are provided onsite at the centers. CareerSource Florida network career center staff are provided the opportunity to participate in TABE and Comprehensive Adult Student Assessment System (CASAS) trainings conducted by the DCAE throughout the year. Many CareerSource Florida centers provide representatives directly to the adult education facility offering counseling, advice and other services improving awareness of workforce resources. The sharing of cross-referral outcomes is a priority of FDOE in supporting WIOA goals and increasing student access and achievement.

2. The establishment or operation of high quality professional development programs (section223(a)(1)(B) of WIOA) - The DCAE supports professional development with leadership grants to the IPDAE, Adult and Community Educators (ACE) of Florida professional organization and the Florida Literacy Coalition. IPDAE is the main professional development hub for adult education at http://www.floridaipdae.org. IPDAE provides a web-based site which allows adult educators access to various resources. These resources include, but are not limited to, electronic documents, toolkits, lessons, videos, workshops, webinars, virtual trainings, online training modules, newsletters and consistent communication outreach through an email contact database. IPDAE provides the convergence of subject matter experts, interactivity engagements, planning/coordination and a technology platform to disseminate information required for implementing adult education programs. IPDAE provides methods to measure and assess involvement and effectiveness of adult education programs through data reports, evaluations and surveys.

Regional workshops and webinars are conducted on professional development priorities identified by the professional development advisory committee, results from statewide needs assessments and the DCAE staff. Priorities identified for implementing this state plan are research-based reading strategies, integrated education and training, contextualized instruction, math training for ABE and GED® preparation and implementation of college and career readiness standards in adult education and ESOL.

The training events calendar is available at the IPDAE website. Additional training opportunities are listed on the ACE of Florida website, http://www.aceofflorida.org and the Florida Literacy Coalition (FLC) website, http://www.floridaliteracy.org. ACE conducts an annual conference for adult educators and regional workshops on ESOL and EL Civics. FLC provides training for tutors, volunteers and leadership from community-based organizations. FLC conducts an annual conference targeting adult educators, tutors and volunteers and community-based organizations.

3. TechnicalAssistance - The DCAE provides technical assistance on programmatic and data collection and reporting issues to providers through webinars, telephone inquiries and site visits. Technical assistance papers on assessment and adult high school policies are annually updated and posted on the Florida Department of Education website.

These links are:

• Adult Education Assessment Technical Assistance Paper: http://fldoe.org/academics/career-adult-edu/adult-edu/technical-assistance-papers.stml
• Adult High School Technical Assistance Guide: http://fldoe.org/academics/career-adult-edu/adult-edu/technical-assistance-papers.stml

Current practices with one-stop career center and provider partnerships include referrals, locating teacher and classroom at the CareerSource Florida center, or providing space for the CareerSource Florida activities in the adult education center. As part of the RFA and RFP process, eligible recipients submit their applications for review to the LWDB to ensure alignment with their plans.

Technical assistance is provided to staff and providers on using technology and distance learning options. Technology standards are included in each adult education program curriculum framework. Conferences, webinars and meetings focus on innovative use of technology in adult education classrooms. Over 50 percent of districts’ and colleges’ adult education programs are members of the Florida Adult and Technical Distance Learning Consortium (FATDEC).

FATDEC offerings include English Discoveries Online (ESOL), Instruction Targeted for TABE Success, AZTEC GED® (GED® Preparation) and 26 courses available for high school credit. High school courses are acquired from Florida Virtual School (K-12 system) and customized for adults. Programs make local decisions to implement additional online vendor products for ESOL, ABE and ASE.

4. Monitoring and Evaluation - In accordance with Section 223, Florida uses AEFLA State Leadership funds to monitor and evaluate the quality of and the improvement in adult education and literacy activities utilizing various means of assessment in its annual and ongoing evaluation process, including site monitoring visits, desk monitoring, program improvement processes, and performance and financial audits. The results of these processes determine program improvement actions.

Monitoring

DCAE will implement a Quality Assurance System that will assure student performance improvement, financial accountability, program quality, and regulatory compliance of local providers in accordance with federal laws and regulations, state statutes and rules, and the provisions of an approved grant award. The monitoring component of the Quality Assurance System is risk-based. Risk assessment is a process used to evaluate variables associated with workforce education grants and assign a rating for the level of risk to the FDOE and DCAE associated with each provider. In order to complete a risk assessment, certain risk factors have been identified which may affect the level of risk for each agency. A risk matrix is completed for each provider. The annual risk assessment is conducted by the quality assurance team to determine the monitoring strategy appropriate for each provider. A range of monitoring strategies includes conference calls, improvement plans, desk top self-assessment, grant reviews, etc., with the more comprehensive strategy such as an onsite visit, designated for providers deemed to be at higher risk.

Actions taken to improve quality

If non-compliance finding(s) are identified, a corrective action plan will be implemented. The corrective action plan must identify the findings and specific strategies the provider will implement to ensure finding(s) have been resolved.

Program Improvement Plan

DCAE conducts annual performance evaluations. The evaluations process is a data-driven accountability system for adult education programs. In each competition year, all awarded agencies are expected to meet at least 90 percent of the State Performance Target or demonstrate improvement for each educational functioning level (EFL). In continuing years, an Adult Education Program Improvement Plan (AEPIP) will be required if the DCAE determines that an eligible recipient failed to meet at least 90 percent of the state performance target or demonstrate improvement for each functioning level from the agency’s previous year completion rates. An AEPIP will be required for each EFL that fails to meet the required standards and will be implemented starting mid-way through the second year of funding and will be a condition for year 3 award funding.