Literacy Pittsburgh has been working closely with our colleagues across Pennsylvania to build support for the Adult Education and Workforce Recovery Fund recently sponsored by Senator Bartolotta in the Senate and Representative Struzzi in the House.
If enacted, the Recovery Fund will enable adult and family literacy providers to apply for one-time grants to expand capacity with new and innovative programming to help more Pennsylvanians get back to work. Digital literacy, career services, innovative education and training programs, and tuition assistance efforts can help upskill job seekers and meet employers' need for more skilled workers.
We cannot afford to leave any Pennsylvanian behind, and adult education plays an essential role in helping low-skilled adults get and keep life-sustaining jobs, most of which require training beyond high school. However, nearly 700,000 working-age adults in Pennsylvania (and nearly 60,000 in Allegheny and Beaver counties) do not have a high school diploma and many more lack the literacy, numeracy, and problem-solving skills to get and keep the good jobs Pennsylvania’s employers need to fill.
The COVID-19 pandemic has hit these Pennsylvanians hardest with sharp declines in employment. In addition, disruptions in K-12 schooling during the pandemic are expected to swell the ranks of Pennsylvanians without a high school diploma.
Adult education organizations are often the only option for these job seekers. We have the programs, expertise, and commitment to support and prepare adults for better futures. Literacy Pittsburgh and other agencies across Pennsylvania are ready to bridge the educational gap experienced by so many and help them stage their post-COVID comeback.
Help us build support for this important investment by contacting your legislators through the Educate & Elevate platform.
Literacy Pittsburgh (formerly Greater Pittsburgh Literacy Council) helps create better lives through learning. Recognized as a national leader in adult and family literacy, Literacy Pittsburgh is the largest provider of adult basic education in Allegheny and Beaver Counties. Last year, Literacy Pittsburgh helped more than 4,000 individuals acquire the skills needed to reach their fullest potential in life and participate productively in their communities. Literacy Pittsburgh provides free, personalized instruction in workforce readiness, high school diploma test preparation, digital literacy, English language learning, math, reading, and family literacy through one-to-one and small class instruction. Founded in 1982, it serves local adults through numerous neighborhood locations and its Downtown Pittsburgh Learning Center.
