SUPERIOR SERVICE |
SUPERIOR QUALITY |
CONSTANT INNOVATION |
ACTIVE PARTICIPATION BY ALL |
| INTRODUCTION The Altoona Area School District - Community Education Center - was established in 1969. For over 30 years, the Center has provided educational opportunities in Blair County. Throughout the past ten years, the Center's enrollment of adult learners has exceeded 1,000 each year with over 200 participants earning GEDs annually. The Center also provides basic computer literacy classes. In addition to adult basic education, the Altoona Area School District has implemented numerous employment programs since 1965. The Community Education Center is centrally located in Altoona at 200 E. Crawford Avenue. All programs and material are provided at no charge to the participants. GED ProgramThe General Equivalency Development (GED) test measures achievement in writing skills, social skills, science, literature and the arts, and mathematics. Free classroom instruction and free materials are available to persons who wish to prepare for the GED test. The Center offers:
GED sites currentlyavailable: Computer Instruction and Internet Access
Classes are offered to non-native English speakers who want to learn to speak, read and write English. Books, cassettes, and computer programs are also available to study for citizenship, the TOEFL test, and the drivers test. EARN - Employment Advancement and Retention Network* The EARN program is designed to assist individuals eligible for Temporary Assistance to Needy Families (TANF) and/or food stamps with a variety of services leading to permanent employment. EARN provides assistance in the areas of:
*All referrals for the EARN program are made by the Welfare Office. Family LiteracyThe Pennsylvania Family Literacy Program teaches parents and young children to work together, helping moms and dads become teachers in their children's lives. Eligible families are those "most in need" in terms of income, employment, and schooling. Participating families must commit to all four program components: 1. Adult Education Improving reading, writing, and math skills Obtaining a GED Developing or improving workplace skills 2. Children's Education Increasing school readiness, language, and literacy skills Increasing motor and social skills 3. Parent Time Learn child development/school readiness Leaning about community resources 4. Parent and Child Together Time Reading, writing, talking, listening, playing Pennsylvania Literacy Corps This program, a collaboration between Penn State's Altoona Campus and the Altoona Area School District, links Penn State students as tutors with adult learners who are enrolled in the district's ABE/GED/ESL programs. PA Lit Corps was created by the state to develop and improve literacy skills of adults. In addition, the Penn State students, most of whom are education majors, gain valuable teaching experience. ELECT (Education Leading to Employment and Career Training) ELECT is a joint effort between the Departments of Public Welfare and Education. The focus of this program helps pregnant and parenting youths complete their education. A case manager offers encouragement while the youth attends classes at the Community Education Center to earn a GED.
A joint project of the Departments of Public Welfare and Education provides adult education services to Temporary Assistance to Needy Families (TANF) clients. The project aims to help individuals develop the skills to move into and retain jobs that pay self-or family -sustaining wages. Adult educational services are intensive, 15-24 hours a week. Instruction in adult literacy, adult basic education, GED and high school diploma preparation and English as a second language is geared to not only to build literacy and numeracy skills rapidly, but to provide educational services within the context of preparing for employment and building parenting and household management skills. Referrals to MOVE UP are through the Welfare Office. The Family Resource Center The Family Resource Center believes that the most effective way to ensure the healthy growth and development of children is to support families and the communities in which they live. The FRC offers many programs for the family and the whole community: Parents as Teachers Program, Making Parenting a Pleasure Program, and the After School Homework Help Program. Additionally, the FRC will help clients with information and referrals to Blair County service agencies. All programs are free and there are no income guidelines for participants. The Parent-Child Home Program The Parent- Child Home Program of Blair County is a research-based home visiting program that promotes language, literacy, and school success through reading, playing and verbal interaction between parents and their children.
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