ProLiteracy Praises Additional Federal Funding

Federal appropriations pact increases state grants for adult literacy programs

Syracuse, NY
Nov. 6, 2007

ProLiteracy Worldwide President and CEO David C. Harvey today praised Senate and House appropriations committee conferees for agreeing to boost federal funding for adult basic education (ABE) and literacy programs. The $12.5 million in additional aid to state grants included in the FY 2008 Labor, Health and Human Services, and Education appropriations bill marks the first budget increase for ABE and adult literacy programs in six years. The funding is distributed under the Workforce Investment Act (WIA), Title II (the Adult Education and Family Literacy Act).

“This increase means that thousands more adults will get the reading, writing, math, or English-as-a-second-language instruction that they need to find a job, get a better job, help their children do better in school, or just be able to read a newspaper without help,” Harvey said. “ProLiteracy and its 1,200 member programs in communities across the country thank the chairs from the Senate and the House committees—Sen. Arlen Spector (R-PA), Sen. Tom Harkin (D-IA), Rep. David Obey (D-7th district, WI), and Rep. James Walsh (R-25th district, NY)—for recognizing the fact that we need to address the problem of having millions of adults in the U.S. unable to read much better than the average grade school student.”

Harvey said he is especially pleased by the support from Congressman Walsh, who represents the congressional district where ProLiteracy is headquartered. ProLiteracy, the largest organization of adult basic education and literacy programs in the world is housed in Syracuse, N.Y.

A national survey of the reading, writing, and math skills of people over age 16 in the U.S. showed that 30 million people—14 percent of the country’s adult population—do not read well enough to understand a simple newspaper story, read a menu in a restaurant, or use a TV guide to find a program’s airdate. Federal funding, however, has remained stagnant since 2001; combined public and private spending funds services for less than 10 percent of all adults who need them.

The increase is half the $25 million ProLiteracy called for in a letter to legislators recently, and Harvey said he is disappointed in the 25 percent cut the bill calls for in funding for Even Start, programs that help the poorest and most marginalized families improve their literacy skills. But he noted that an increase in federal appropriations will lead to an increase in state appropriations and that the additional monies are a “move in the right direction.”

“ProLiteracy will continue to work for additional appropriations, until the federal investment in adult literacy is at least $1 billion,” Harvey said.

About ProLiteracy Worldwide
ProLiteracy Worldwide provides professional development, advocacy, accreditation, and grants to the people and programs that teach adults to read, write, do math, and in the U.S., speak English as a second language. In the U.S., ProLiteracy supports a network of 1,200 adult basic education and literacy programs in all 50 states and the District of Columbia; internationally, it works with 125 partner programs in 65 developing countries of Asia, Africa, Latin America, the Middle East, and Eastern Europe. Its publishing division, New Readers Press, develops and distributes materials used to teach older teens and adults from basic literacy to GED levels. ProLiteracy supports one million students each year.