State Leadership Funds (Adult education and family literacy act Section 223 (AEFLA))
AEFLA Section 223(1)(a)
During 2022-2023, program year activities to align adult education and literacy with other core programs and one-stop partners remained unchanged from the prior year with limited involvement of adult education in other labor-led statewide career pathways strategies. However, the Adult Education Initiatives (AEI) team engaged in several activities around IET development to support adult learner access to career pathways in the 22-23 program year. AEI also found continued success in working with the Colorado Division of Vocational Rehabilitation to support ongoing training around serving individuals with disabilities across the workforce development system. We also partnered with the Colorado Department of Labor and Employment to develop online professional development and continued conversations with WIOA partners around data sharing.
Grantees in Colorado enrolled learners in five Integrated Education and Training (IET) programs, focused on healthcare, retail sales, food industry, hospitality and early childhood education. The 2022 Colorado Talent Pipeline Report identified these industries as in-demand and areas of growth supporting Colorado’s economic recovery. Some grantees developed partnerships with local workforce centers, community colleges (some of which have adult education grantees on site), and employment partners. All IELCE grantees offering IET in 22-23 utilized staff to develop curriculum that aligns to the workforce training and had career navigators who helped learners develop educational and career plans to work toward goals.
WIOA partners continued to utilize the Programmatic Accessibility Moodle Course in the 22-23 program year, with over 431 individuals completing the course since 2019. This course was created in partnership with the Colorado Department of Labor and Employment and the Rocky Mountain Regional ADA Center and focuses on how to evaluate and improve access to a site and its services for individuals with disabilities.
In 22-23 the AEI team continued to host three Moodle courses in partnership with the Colorado Workforce Development Council. The “Remote Worker Certification for Supervisors and Leaders” and “Remote Worker Certification for Workers” Moodle courses focus on equipping workers and supervisors with the skills needed to work in remote environments. The “Colorado Career Conversation” Moodle course focuses on supporting individuals engaging in career conversations with students and job seekers to understand which careers are in demand, explore careers in depth, and articulate the path(s) to enter those careers.
Members of the AEI team presented on Title II during Colorado Department of Labor and Employment (CDLE) Disability Program Navigator training in March 2023. Members of the AEI team also continued to meet with staff at the CDLE and the Colorado Department of Higher Education to update and ensure Data Sharing Agreements were in place for the 22-23 annual report. Preliminary data sharing conversations have also been held with the Data Trust organized by the Colorado Workforce Development Council and staff at the Colorado Department of Human Services, though no data sharing has yet taken place with these partners.
AEFLA Section 223(1)(b)
Professional learning in the 22-23 program year continued and expanded many of the offerings from the prior year. Each month, six to seven hours of training was provided for instructors and their administrators through Professional Learning to Chew On, Instructor’s Corner, and Learning Network online meetings. These trainings were developed and facilitated by trainers from Hamline University and Literacy Minnesota and the state of Indiana. Reading activities in these trainings included phonemic awareness, phonemes, phonics, fluency, comprehension, inference, decoding, and building vocabulary. Math, NRS Table 5 outcomes, intake and orientation practices, assessment, IET and contextualized instruction, learner persistence, culturally responsive teaching, and teacher observations and evaluations were also included in these trainings. The trainings also included a focus on the College and Career Readiness Standards for Adult Education and the English Language Proficiency Standards. Designers’ Club and Directors’ Talk continued to be offered monthly as 1-hour online meetings. Designers’ Club was offered in collaboration with the Rocky Mountain Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) Center and Colorado Department of Labor and Employment.
AEI again offered an online and no-cost version of the EDU 134 course which covers the College and Career Readiness Standards for Adult Education and the English Language Proficiency Standards, a required component in earning Colorado’s Adult Basic Education Authorization (ABEA). The course specifically covers: listening, speaking, reading, writing, pronunciation, vocabulary, and syntax. AEI also added EDU 133 to its online ABEA offerings. The course introduces how to provide literacy and numeracy skills instruction to adult learners below the 12-grade equivalency.
AEFLA Section 223(1)(c)
AEI disseminates instructional and programmatic practices through professional learning events (described above), in weekly “AEI Updates” email communications, and via Office Hours webinars. The Office Hours webinars provided training, best practices, and resources from subject matter experts. Topics included: goal setting, career pathways, the Colorado Talent Pipeline Report, statewide digital equity and literacy initiatives, and data analysis. AEI also hosted two hybrid regional meetings to provide targeted regional assistance based on grantee request. The first half of each hybrid meeting was combined with AEI’s Office Hours. Content included instructional leadership, strategies to increase teacher and learner retention, orientation and intake processes, distance learning, cultivating learner belonging, EDI, and assessment informed instruction.
To address adult education’s role to provide access to employment, education, and training services as a required one-stop partner, the AEI team continues to seek collaboration with the Colorado Department of Labor and Employment, the Colorado Department of Higher Education, and the Colorado Department of Human Services.
To continue increasing access to digital literacy and technology, AEI again purchased Northstar Digital Literacy and partnered with the Colorado Department of Labor and Employment to further provide digital training throughout the state. Local workforce centers also benefit from AEI’s Northstar Digital Literacy membership using the assessments and tools in local one-stops. AEI hosted a bi-monthly Northstar Community of Practice, training, and one-on-one sessions to facilitate successful digital skill implementation.
AEFLA Section 223(1)(d)
AEI conducted an annual risk assessment of grantees to determine risk but did not conduct onsite monitoring based on the results due to continued COVID-related restrictions. AEI conducted quarterly monitoring calls with all grantees to ensure alignment with AEFLA requirements and to identify best practices and innovative activities in programming. This collected information was provided to grantees in follow-up reports and during Office Hours. At the request of grantees, in-person monitoring occurred during these quarterly calls. Additionally, grantees received quarterly data performance reports displaying their key NRS data with trends, prior year comparisons, performance target reminders, and key recommendations.
In the 22-23 program year, AEI continued to monitor grantee data monthly to identify any concerns about enrollment, post-testing, and measurable skill gains (MSG). AEI utilized a custom virtual grantee dashboard in the statewide data system, LACES. This monitoring was used to provide technical assistance to grantees to support improved performance and accuracy in data reporting. AEI also increased awareness around the importance of data by highlighting specific data topics in each bi-monthly Office Hours webinar and during quarterly Data Talks webinars.
AEI oversaw the implementation of five IET programs in the 22-23 program year. The team worked with grantees to ensure compliance at every level: industry selection, development of shared objectives, and the implementation of co-enrollment. The IET toolkit AEI used in 22-23 focuses on alignment between the IET program and the CCRS. AEI also defined and documented its IET toolkit review and approval processes to aid grantees in progressing from IET design to IET implementation.
AEFLA Section 223(a)(2)
In 22-23 AEI again funded a statewide subscription to Northstar Digital Literacy and implemented a Community of Practice focused on implementation and integration of this tool, and other technology, into instruction. Resources and best practices were shared with grantees to encourage integration of digital skills into contextualized ABE/ASE/ELA instruction. Trainers from Hamline University, Literacy Minnesota, and Indiana provided targeted professional development to instructors on the essential components of reading. AEI provided nine hours of IET Workgroup meetings where programs had opportunity to focus on learner intake and orientation practices, outreach and recruitment of new learners, program design, IET MSG outcomes, data processes, and state specific data useful in IET development aligned with State priorities.
Performance Data Analysis
From April through May annually, monthly data close out webinars and procedural resources were provided to grantees. At the local level, grantees were required to conduct end-of-year data reporting no later than the second Friday in July. Although data entered in LACES by grantees was monitored monthly for errors, AEI staff ran a final diagnostic report of learner data after the second Friday in July. Any errors identified were sent to grantees for correction in LACES by the end of July to officially close out the data reporting. Once the data was finalized and frozen, grantees were required to complete an Annual Performance Report (APR). The APR required local grantees to analyze enrollment, post-testing, and MSG outcomes. This analysis covered all program types, Educational Functioning Level (EFLs), classes, and included a prior year comparison to identify areas of strength and areas needing improvement. Grantees were encouraged to document in the report outliers and anomalies as well as any plans for further research and improvement.
Grantees have access to mostly finalized Table 4 results in LACES upon the completion of their data close out in July annually. Due to current limitations with data matching partners, Table 4 postsecondary entrance MSGs and all Table 5 employment and postsecondary credential data are not available to grantees during data close out. Instead, grantees receive final aggregate program level Tables 4 and 5 after AEI submits data to the NRS. During professional learning and technical assistance events throughought the year grantees are encouraged to compare their Table 4 & 5 data to statewide totals and the performance of other AEFLA-funded programs.
The AEI team continues to share current, year-to-date grantee MSG rates quarterly through Office Hours meetings and AEI updates to provide more opportunities for grantees to visualize where their performance ranks across the state. Each also receives an individual report each quarter to show how their data compares to statewide totals and averages on a series of progress measures and outcomes including enrollment, retention to 12 hours, average instructional hours, post-testing rates, and MSG rates by level.
Participants increased from 3,715 in 21-22 to 4,127 in 22-23, with 10 out of 14 grantees increasing their participants in the 21-22 program year; and we anticipate continued gradual growth over the next year as impacts of the last competition for funds and the pandemic lessen. Just 6 of the 14 grantees exited fewer learners without a gain in 22-23 than compared with 21-22. The focus on retaining learners through graduation or completion continues to be a focus of statewide technical assistance and training.
Statewide, the MSG rate increased just slightly from 44.43% in 21-22 to 44.48% in 22-23. We anticipate this was actually higher as we were unable to receive college entrance match data from the Colorado Department of Higher Education for the 22-23 program year which typically increases the statewide MSG rate by 1-2%. Twelve of 14 grantees met or exceeded the 40% MSG target for the 22-23 program year. Community Educational Outreach, a correctional education provider with various locations across the state, and Metropolitan Stat University of Denver, offering Family Literacy in Denver, both fell below that target at 31.76% and 34.94%, respectively. Neither grantee has been subject to required technical yet but this may change pending the results of the 22-23 risk assessment.
Post-test EFL gains once again made up the majority of MSGs in 21-22 with 88% of MSGs coming from post-testing. Post-testing remained level in 22-22 at 69%. High school diploma and equivalency gains made up 12% of all MSGs. IET MSGs made up 1% of all MSGs in 22-23. Overall, we saw an increase in MSG rates for ABE learners but with significant decreases specifically at Levels 1, 5, and 6. The decreases at the higher levels may have been impacted by the lack of post-secondary enrollment match data. For ESL we saw small decreases in MSG rates at nearly all levels with a significant decrease at Level 6 which is likely due to few IET programs being offered and a lack of participation in those programs by learners testing at ESL levels.
Statewide, Colorado exceeded our 22% employment in the 2nd quarter after exit target as well as the associated $5,800 median earnings in the 2nd quarter after exit target at 24.00% and $4,756.00, respectively. In credential attainment Colorado fell just short of the 17.7% target at 16.55% in 22-23. We expect we would have met this target if post-secondary enrollment and credential attainment data had been available from the Colorado Department of Higher Education.
For the 25% employment in the 4th quarter after exit target, we once again did not meet the target with just 15.15% of learners in the cohort being employed 12 months after exit. Of the cohort, 49% of learners reported a Social Security Number (SSN). Currently, this is the only match criteria the Colorado Department of Labor and Employment is willing to match on which increases the challenge in meeting employment targets. The AEI team needs to conduct more research, where possible given limited data sharing, into why learners are employed more frequently at 6 months after exit than at 12 months after exiting programming.
Work continues with grantees to focus on increasing these exit-based outcomes through stronger relationships across WIOA partners, in-house career coaching services, the development of more and more diverse IETs and workforce training, and expanding the match criteria and increasing the frequency of data matches. AEI continues to work with grantees on processes for collecting acceptable forms of supplemental wage information, especially with learners who are not able or willing to report an SSN, and in the 23-24 program year grantees will be conducting follow up surveys for Table 5 outcomes to be used in addition to match data. AEI has also added Table 5 targets to the state’s risk assessment and monitoring tools.
Integration with One-stop Partners
For WIOA Title II, the Colorado Department of Education (CDE) is the required one-stop partner responsible for administering or supervising policy for adult education and literacy activities in the State. As outlined in the jointly developed Colorado Policy Guidance Letter#: WIOA-2016-02, Change 2, published on May 11, 2017 by CDLE, CDE delegated its one-stop partner responsibilities to each of the AEFLA-funded local provider and set the expectation (through grant agreements) that each provider negotiate and sign an MOU that addresses the service delivery elements required by WIOA with the local workforce development boards (LWDB) in each local area in which adult education services are provided. Each required one-stop partner is responsible for identifying the career services that are relevant to their programs and making those services available through the comprehensive workforce center. The majority of local programs report providing access to career services through the one-stop delivery system via direct linkage through technology to provide and receive referrals between partners. Programs also report cross-training on services for workforce center staff and vice versa. The physical presence of one-stop partners tends to occur at intake and orientation and through the provision of special workshops to address workforce preparation skills. Little co-location occurs in Colorado.
In 22-23 AEI collected new and updated Memoranda of Understanding (MOU) between local workforce development boards and grantees. These outline the infrastructure agreements with the centers, per the Colorado One-Stop System Policy Guidance Letter#: WIOA- 2016-03, Change 1 published on May 2, 2017.
Integrated English Literacy and Civics Education
IELCE Funds and grants
AEI held the competition for 2020-24 in 2019-20 and the competition materials, including the Request for Applications, were reviewed and approved by the U.S. Department of Education Office of Career, Technical, and Adult Education, as outlined in the Corrective Action Plan in response to the October 2018 virtual review. The request for proposals was released on January 31, 2020. Eligibility confirmations (for demonstrated effectiveness) were due February 24, 2020. Due to COVID-19, the competition was temporarily paused and eligible providers were required to submit applications by June 8, 2020. Intents to Award were released on July 27, 2020. Grantees were evaluated on their applications which required demonstration of effectiveness, evidence of need in local areas, proposed instructional services, satisfaction of IET components and integration with the local workforce system. Six grantees were awarded IELCE funding and received funds for 2022-23 totaling $917,622.
Training activity
All six IELCE grantees completed AEI’s required IET toolkit in program year 22-23 and have approved IETs. Five grantees offered IET programming to IELCE learners, of those, four enrolled IET participants. Two AEI staff members lead the oversight and monitoring of the IELCE program in Colorado.
AEI used section 243 funds to establish IET programs. A combination of Section 243 and Section 231 funds were used for one IET in 2022-23. All IELCE grantees participated in the monthly online IET Workgroup to support continuous improvement in the development and implementation of IETs. In 22-23 five of the six IELCE grantees completed AEI’s required online IELCE course. The course must be completed once per grant cycle. AEI staff provided onsite technical assistance to two grantees struggling to refine their single set of learning objectives in the healthcare and early childhood education fields.
Through quarterly monitoring conversations and the monthly IET workgroup, grantees have identified continuous and new areas of challenge in implementing IETs. The first challenge was recruiting interested participants from the target population whose goals align with IELCE. It may be that learners are struggling to see the value in certification and/or that they are unable to meet the requirements and time commitments of IETs. A new challenge presented was consistent instructors from grantees’ workforce training providers, as many experienced staff turnover. AEI structured two of its monthly IET Workgroup meetings around these topics to provide technical assistance related to combining learner feedback with local and state data to select in-demand industries and to share and discuss learner recruitment strategies and best practices. IETs offered in 2022-23 included early childcare education, certified nurse aide, food industry training, hospitality fundamentals, and the National Retail Federation’s certificates.
IELCE Section 243(c)(1)
In 22-23, 687 adult learners participated in IELCE programs administered by six grantees. There were 21 participants enrolled in IETs: Childhood Development Associate (3), Food Services (9), Retail Fundamentals (3), Certified Nurse Aide (1), Hospitality Fundamentals (5). 12 of the 21 participants enrolled in IETs achieved an MSG other than EFL gain or secondary school diploma/equivalent. Six were Progress Toward Milestone MSGs and seven were MSGs via passing technical/occupational skills exams.
In 22-23 one IELCE provider leveraged federal and state adult education funds to develop and implement an IET in a new industry, Hospitality, and found valuable support through a local Hospitality Sector Partnership and from local employers. Through this initiative, learners achieved multiple credentials. All IELCE grantees offering IET have career navigators who help learners develop educational and career plans to work towards goals. The navigators not only help learners connect with services, but help them identify what steps need to be taken to reach goals. AEI is hopeful that the IET Workgroup will result in more diverse, high quality IETs offered and more participants in 2023-24.
IELCE Section 243(c)(2)
The competition for the 2020-24 grant cycle included the review of local applications by their respective local workforce development boards. Applications were reviewed for alignment with: regional needs, strategies and goals identified in the local plan, proposed activities to reduce barriers to employment, and one-stop partnership responsibilities and referral processes. The boards were given the opportunity to make recommendations to promote alignment during the review process.
AEI staff collaborated with the Colorado Workforce Development Council (CWDC) to provide training to IELCE recipients focused on accessing statewide data and resources for IET development. This collaboration allowed AEI to advocate for and increase visibility of IET and workplace education programming, specifically how they support statewide workforce initiatives. Additionally, during 22-23 AEI began exploring collaboration opportunities through Registered Apprenticeship Programs (RAP), by connecting with local workforce center staff, learning about RAP processes and building connections.
Adult Education Standards
In 22-23, no changes were made to Colorado’s adopted standards for adult education. Adult Education providers in Colorado use the College and Career Readiness Standards (CCRS) and English Language Proficiency Standards (ELPS). Both the CCRS and ELPS have been shared with the Standards and Support Unit at the Colorado Department of Education and were determined to be in alignment with Colorado’s K-12 standards which can be found here: https://www.cde.state.co.us/cdeadult/grantees/handbook/standards
The Colorado Adult Basic Education Authorization (ABEA) provides training in CCRS and ELPS standards. To earn the ABEA, instructional staff must complete four college courses provided by institutions of higher education (EDU 131, 132, 133, and 134). Instructional staff also have the option to complete the course requirements through prior learning assessments, observation, and free online versions of the courses hosted by AEI. The content of the EDU 134 course focuses specifically on the ELPS by connecting content that is relevant to English language learners.
AEI requires each grantee to identify a staff member to serve as the grantee’s local Professional Learning Coordinator. AEI offers training to local Professional Learning Coordinators on how to observe standards in classrooms, and requires grantees to outline their processes for observation annually in their local Professional Learning Assurances and associated plan.
Programs for Corrections Education (AEFLA Section 225)
Community Education Outreach (CEO) was the only provider using Section 225 funds in 21-22. Their programs only offered Adult Basic Education services in 22-23. CEO’s services are provided within the community corrections system. Though CEO has access to overall recidivism rates for specific program sites, they are unable to disaggregate data to the subset of their program’s AEFLA participants. AEI has not been able to track rates of recidivism on correctional education participants in 22-23 or in prior years. The Colorado Department of Corrections (CDOC) defines recidivism as a return to prison or inmate status in Colorado within three years of release, which can be for either new criminal activity or a technical violation of parole, probation or non-departmental community placement. The team has met with CDOC but has not yet been able to execute data sharing agreements that would allow the tracking of prior year participants at this three-year mark to determine how many recidivated. Based on exit exclusions reported in LACES for correctional education participants in 20-21, 21-22, and 22-23, so far seven percent of correctional education participants recidivated.