Ruth Dunn, 72, of Berkeley raises her hand to add her point of view to a discussion about the Oakland reaction to the "not guilty" verdict in the George Zimmerman case during an adult education class on current events. The class for older adults is held at the Jewish Community Center in Berkeley. July 18, 2013. Credit: Lillian Mongeau, EdSource Today

Ruth Dunn, 72, of Berkeley raises her hand during a electric current events class for older adults at the Jewish Community Center in Berkeley. Credit: Lillian Mongeau, EdSource Today

An effort to narrow adult teaching's cadre mission is being met with resistance from advocates for older adult and parent instruction programs, which would lose funding nether a budget compromise crafted by supporters of adult educational activity and Gov. Jerry Chocolate-brown.

"A lot of people think supporting older adult and parent ed programs is a lost cause," said Kristen Pursley, who teaches English as a 2nd Linguistic communication courses at Due west Contra Costa Adult Education. "But we call back they are besides important to requite up."

The programs accept typically been offered by adult schools, which themselves were the focus of a upkeep fight in Sacramento this year when Chocolate-brown attempted to shift oversight of the programs from K-12 districts to customs colleges. Brown relented every bit part of a budget compromise, deciding instead that districts must keep their adult educational activity programs adrift for the adjacent two years while working with their local community colleges on a plan to streamline the courses past developing regional consortia to oversee the programs. The governor has proposed spending $500 one thousand thousand on adult education in 2015-xvi, with current programs being given priority for the money. But he is clear that older developed and parent instruction classes will non be part of the mix.

Senate Bill 173, introduced past Sen. Carol Liu, D-Glendale, enacts the compromise, providing funding to 1000-12 districts only for adult school classes offer elementary and secondary basic bookish skills, English as a second language or training for citizenship; brusk-term vocational programs with high employment potential; and programs for disabled adults. Customs colleges could offer ESL and citizenship classes for free, simply the campuses would have to charge fees for all other classes.

Robert Oakes, Liu'southward legislative director, says she had to look at the master purpose of adult education in an era of diminished resources.

"Nosotros want to focus on the knowledge and skills people need to participate in the workforce and civic life," he said. That view is supported by reports from both the Legislative Annotator'due south Part and the California Department of Education, which recommend limiting the focus of adult education.

Just George Porter, who teaches older adult classes for the Berkeley Adult Schoolhouse and is chair of the Committee on Crumbling in Berkeley, disputes such arguments. Seniors may not be in the paid workforce, he said, but they contribute economically and are active in gild – volunteering, supporting their grandchildren, and taking part in local community and political issues.

"Simply considering y'all're former doesn't hateful you are no longer a productive member of social club," he said.

With the large generation of baby boomers offset to retire, older adult programs are seen every bit vital to assistance keep seniors participating in gild every bit well equally mentally and physically fit, which can provide larger societal savings in medical costs, Porter said. Past 2030, almost one in five Californians will be over age 65, according to the California Department of Aging.

Older adult programs

Older adult programs offer a multifariousness of courses aimed at keeping seniors mentally and physically fit. For case, West Contra Costa County's older adult classes, held at a church in El Cerrito on Mon mornings, include Spanish, German, current events and line dancing. Virtually older adult classes are gratis or offered for a nominal cost.

Instructor George Porter leads an adult education class for seniors on current events at the Jewish Community Center in Berkeley on July 18, 2013. Credit: Lillian Mongeau, EdSource Today

Instructor George Porter leads an adult instruction class for seniors on current events at the Jewish Customs Center in Berkeley on July 18. Credit: Lillian Mongeau, EdSource Today

Porter teaches a two-hr current events class for older adults each Th afternoon at the Jewish Community Center in Berkeley. The dozen or then participants who met one contempo Thursday ranged in age from the early 60s to 97. Discussions covered a broad range of topics, from the verdict in the Trayvon Martin case to Syria.

"The simply social events in my life at this time are the classes," said 73-year-old Shelly Davis, who is recovering from cancer and the recent death of her mother. "It is the loftier point of my calendar week."

Davis has been commuting from Richmond for many years to attend classes on Mondays and Thursdays, including the current events class, at the community center.

"Often when you become to my historic period, your friends have died and you lot finish upwardly alone," she said. "You tin can give life to people when you share your time, conversation, noesis, and kindness with them. I could write a book about how meaningful these classes are for me."

Parent education classes

Parent teaching classes teach parents how to help their children succeed in school and include topics such as how to engage children in reading equally well as in positive disciplinary techniques, acrimony management, and how to prevent older children from joining gangs.

"Parent didactics classes are non frills," Due west Contra Costa's  Pursley wrote to the Senate Educational activity Committee. "Classes like these tin can literally relieve lives."

When districts cut funding for adult education during the recession, some programs started charging fees to keep classes going.

Kenneth Ryan, who teaches parent education for Due west Contra Costa Adult Teaching, said fees didn't work at his adult schoolhouse, which similar many throughout the state caters to low-income families.

When the school offered parent pedagogy classes for $100, "parents in our community couldn't beget it," Ryan said, and the district wasn't willing to fund the program on its ain. Currently but one district-funded form – with a waiting list – is offered on acrimony management, which is often ordered by the court for parents in danger of losing their children.

Parent education programs ultimately benefit school districts, Ryan argued, because parents tin can do a better job of supporting their children academically. However, districts accept limited funds and lots of needs.

"Ane of the reasons we desire dedicated funding from the state is that it's really hard for us politically to go upwards against wealthier families who want the schoolhouse district to spend its money on class size reduction," Ryan said. "The communities we serve don't accept as much political power."

'Standing discussions'

SB 173 breezed through the Assembly and Senate education committees and is at present scheduled to be heard on Aug. vi in the Assembly Committee on Higher Education. Advocates for older adult and parent teaching programs are hoping the pecker will be amended to include funding for their programs.

Advocates have caught the ear of at least one senator, Ted Lieu, D-Redondo Beach, who voted for the beak but has since started a petition to urge his colleagues and the governor to continue to support older adult programs.

Dawn Koepke, a lobbyist who represents two statewide adult pedagogy organizations, the California Council for Adult Pedagogy and the California Adult Education Administrators Clan, says the groups take to uphold their finish of the compromise with the governor in order to ensure long-term funding for adult education. Given that the assistants is "determined" about narrowing the focus of adult education, Koepke said SB 173 should be amended so that districts could use developed instruction funding for older adult and parent didactics programs until 2015-sixteen, when the regional consortia plans are set to be implemented. That would give districts two years to discover funding from other sources for the programs, she said.

Oakes, from Liu'south office, said the senator is open to hearing what the advocates are proposing.

"We definitely are interested in standing the conversation," he said.

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