rience or confidence , family responsibilities with lack of childcare or transportation or lack of community awareness and scope of local ABE programs and services . ABE programs must be sensitive and strategic in addressing these common adult student barriers while focusing on providing high quality instruction .
Local businesses , post-secondary training programs / colleges , local K12 schools , churches , cultural centers , and community support services can increase access to ABE by directly supporting or referring potential students to ABE . These organizations and community members help open accessibility to ABE programming by increasing community awareness and / or becoming ABE partners .
Educating adult learners in our communities provides the entire community with benefits that go beyond achieving a static goal of earning a high school credential . Our community organizations and members can expect results from ABE programs that meet their needs , such as businesses who are seeking employees who have basic skills , job related training , communication skills , and social skills ( West Virginia Adult Basic Education , 2009 ).
Metro North ABE Works to be Accessible
Deliberate efforts are made to leverage funding and partnerships that foster maximum student and community participation . Metro North ABE provides services to over 4,000 adult learners through year-round programming at conveniently located sites during daytime and evening hours .
Metro North ABE currently hosts ABE programming at district / school locations , a church , three local jails , the
Anoka County Human Services Center , two colleges and leased community space . We also periodically offer services at a homeless shelter and several libraries .
We have class sites placed in a variety of community settings across our partnering school districts . Some Metro North ABE communities are urban in nature ; others are suburban or on the fringe of rural . The co-location of the Blaine Learning Lab with the Anoka County Workforce Center in Blaine results in many referrals and strong learner traffic .
There is a high concentration of English language learners at both the Columbia
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Heights / Fridley and Blaine sites . Because of the larger numbers of learners attending these sites , managed intake , assessment and enrollment is implemented as a successful model of delivering services .
Our sites in St . Francis and Elk River have active drop-in sites to reflect the more sparsely populated area they serve . They offer a full range of classes from ABE to ESL and beginning literacy to college prep in a “ one room school house ” model with minimal managed enrollment options .
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Instruction at all the Metro North ABE programs is relevant to adult learners and community needs . Within literacy , math , ESL , or basic skills instruction learners are improving digital literacy skills and professional or soft skills . Instruction supports students ’ successful transition to employment , post-secondary education or training , and / or increased engagement in the community .
Local programs partner to offer instructional support to career training in health care , food service , manufacturing , office administration , and childcare . Sites also offer classes that help students understand and navigate such things as getting a driver ’ s license , applying for a job , understanding how to support their children in school , or applying for college . Methods of instruction are based on best practices to enhance adult learning . Staff are well trained and have access to materials that support adults with unique learning needs .
Outreach efforts are directed to maintain community partnerships and referrals . Consortium and local outreach is designed to ensure that the availability of ABE services is well known in our local communities by potential students , potential volunteers , support agencies , student referral sources , local workforce centers , businesses , and post-secondary education / training organizations . Together , we can do more for our adult learners and community as a whole .
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SPRING LAKE PARK # 16 FRIDLEY # 14 COLUMBIA HEIGHTS # 13
Resources :
Minnesota Adult Basic Education . ( 2017 ) Annual Report retrieved from www . mnabe . org .
West Virginia Adult Basic Education . ( 2009 ). Marketing , Recruitment , Retention , and Followup in ABE Programs .
Metro North Adult Basic Education | Ph : 763-433-4200 | www . MetroNorthABE . org OCTOBER 2017 5