On October 8^th of this year, the U.S. Department of Education’s National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) will release the first sets of results of the Program for the International Assessment of Adult Competencies (PIAAC). PIAAC is coordinated internationally by the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD). The results of PIAAC, can have great impact on the US adult basic education and adult literacy community…

The National Coalition for Literacy extends it sincere thanks to The Dollar General Literacy Foundation for its continued support for adult education and literacy!

On May 20, the Foundation announced that it had awarded more than $6 million in grants to more than 725 schools, nonprofits and literacy organizations to support adult, family and summer literacy programs.  The Foundation awarded a grant to NCL to create a coordinated response to the OECD Program for the International Assessment of Adult Competencies (PIAAC) Report, due to be released in October of this year.  See the PIAAC web page on the…

House Education and the Workforce Committee Chair John Kline (R-MN) opened last Tuesday’s hearing (5/21) on the FY 2014 education budget proposal from the Administration, at which Secretary of Education Arne Duncan served as the only witness, with the word “appalling.”  It went downhill from there.  To say that the Chairman and the Republican Members of the Committee object to requests for increases in funding for education is to understate their tone.

What particularly galled Chairman Kline and his colleagues was the lack of any increase in funding for the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA)—the one…

Congress returned to the Capitol last week with a long to-do list and really did try to get to work.  The Senate Judiciary Committee convened a mark-up of an immigration reform bill that is expected to continue throughout the month.  The Senate Health, Education, Labor and Pensions (HELP) Committee tried repeatedly to vote on the nomination of Tom Perez as the new Secretary of Labor, but Republican objections put that action on hold.

On the Senate floor, Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-NV) and Budget Committee Chair Patty Murray (D-WA) tried…

After months of negotiations, a bipartisan group of senators known as the “Gang of Eight” released a comprehensive immigration reform bill on April 16th. The bill would allow the nation’s 11 million undocumented immigrants to apply for U.S. citizenship while providing for additional security along the nation’s southern border.

If enacted, the ”Border Security, Economic Opportunity, and Immigration Modernization Act” (S.744) would be the first major overhaul to the nation’s immigration laws since 1986. It would create a 13-year…

By Washington Partners LLC

After Secretary Duncan’s dual appearances on Capitol Hill last week to defend and explain the President’s budget plan for education, it was Health and Human Services (HHS) Secretary Sebelius’ turn to appear before the same appropriations panels.  While she received a warm, bipartisan welcome, the same could not be said for parts of her HHS budget.

One topic that did seem to please Members was the focus on early learning.  New funding for home visiting, partnerships between childcare and…

On April 10, President Obama sent his FY 2014 budget proposal to Capitol Hill.  It was two months late and followed the approval of separate FY 2014 budget resolutions in both the House and Senate.  Given its tardy arrival, it will be interesting to see how the Administration’s plan influences the appropriations process.  In theory, the President’s budget represents a middle ground between the House and Senate plans.  He has stated his hope that by offering cuts in entitlement programs,…

By Washington Partners LLC

Last Wednesday, Secretary of Education Arne Duncan made his second trip to Capitol Hill to defend the President’s FY 2014 budget plan for the Department of Education.  This time he appeared before the Senate Appropriations Subcommittee on Labor, Health and Human Services and Education (LHHS).  Subcommittee Chairman Tom Harkin (D-IA) gave him a warm welcome, as did the new Ranking Member on the Subcommittee, Jerry Moran (R-KS).  Actually, there were kind words all around for a cabinet official the Members view as caring, energetic and…

After adopting the Senate-passed Fiscal Year (FY) 2013 budget bill and a budget resolution for FY 2014, House Members raced out of the Capitol for a two-week recess. Their colleagues in the Senate remain in town, locked in a vote-a-rama to pass their first budget resolution in four years, but once that is completed, they too will run for the exits.

Reading the flurry of congratulatory press releases on the passage of the FY 2013 budget, you would think something significant had been accomplished. In reality, the budget is six…

For the second consecutive year, COABE and the National Coalition for Literacy are co-hosting a Twitter Town Hall with Assistant Secretary Brenda Dann-Messier. Whether or not you are attending the COABE/LAPCAE Conference next week, you and your students can participate in the Town Hall from your location!

Please see these Town Hall Instructions on how to participate, whether you are on-site at conference or someplace else.  This short sheet also includes classroom ideas for instructors and students to participate.  Be sure to follow @NCLAdvocacy for the official Town Hall tweets.