Raising incomes and increasing opportunity hinges critically on access to post-secondary education and training. If Pennsylvania does not expand access to higher education to more of its citizens, the authors argue, the Commonwealth's economy will suffer and living standards will lag growth elsewhere. With a modest and smart investment,…

With the aging workforce and the increase of older adults, educational needs of the workforce in aging services are broadening. The pilot study used a survey to examine the types of educational opportunities and needs of professionals providing services to older adults in eastern Ohio and western Pennsylvania. Respondents (25.9%) reported learning…

The Pathways to Advancement initiative was launched by the National Governors Association Center for Best Practices (NGA Center) to help governors and their policy advisors examine options and develop strategies for expanding working adults' access to and completion of postsecondary education. In September 2003, the NGA Center issued a request for…

Due to federal budget cuts in 2005-06, 11 family literacy programs in Pennsylvania switched from federal Even Start to state (Act 143) funding. Simultaneously, state welfare requirements stipulated that in most circumstances adult education is not an allowable work activity for welfare recipients over age 20. This study examined how these policy…

From 1989 until 1998 the U.S. Department of Education administered the National Workplace Literacy Demonstration Program. During that period, over $130 million supported some 300 projects where adult education programs partnered with thousands of businesses, agencies, and organizations to provide work-based skills to employees. While only seven…

The purpose of this research was to describe the status of and factors that influence adult learning and to provide information to help policymakers foster adult learning programs in rural Pennsylvania face a unique set of challenges and obstacles. These include serving a diverse group of rural adults who need a variety of services, a changing job…

The chief factors in State administration of public education are the State board, the State superintendent, and the professional staff of the State departments of education. Several valuable studies have been made of the State board and the State superintendent. It is the purpose of the present study to supplement these with an investigation of…