Adult Literacy

1. Adult Literacy DeSoto County Arcadia, Florida

2. Current Literacy levels in DeSoto CountyBased on 2000 Census: 25 years and olderPopulation of 21,222 • Less than 9th grade education 4,121 (19%) • 9th to 12th grade- no diploma 3,615 (17%) • Therefore: 7,736 adults or 36% of the adults in DeSoto County could benefit from literacy services

3. That’s depressing news… …so what does this mean to the adult who lacks necessary literacy skills?

4. There are fewer jobs available for those with poor reading, writing and math skills • 1950 – 60% of the workforce was unskilled • Today…less than 20% • One study suggest that those who drop out of high school qualify for only 10% of the jobs

5. High school graduates earn about 42% more than those with less than a high school diploma • In Florida, the unemployment rate for the 2001 high school graduates was 17.7% compared to 35.9% for the high school dropouts.

6. Okay, staying in high school is important, so what does this mean to me…the employer?

7. It is estimated that 20% of America’s workforce have low basic skills • American business is estimated to lose over $60 billion in productivity each year due to employees’ lack of basic skills

8. Workers with low basic skills miss more days due to illness and take more time to recover from medical absences than their more literate counterparts.

9. 50% of Fortune 500 companies underwrite employee basic skills training at an annual cost of $300 million per year. • Smaller companies often do not offer basic skills training and the limited literacy skills of employees cost business and taxpayers $20 billion annually in lost wages, profits and productivity.

10. As workers’ basic skills improve, so does worker retention • Employer-sponsored training raises the workers’ wage and improves their employability more than other form of training • Better educated and trained workers are less likely to quit, are less likely to be laid off, and experience shorter unemployment spells , all of which improve their long-term earnings.

11. Okay, you’ve convinced me that literacy for adults is important…what is being done in our community to help the adult who needs basic literacy training?

12. The School District of DeSoto County offers…

13. Reading, writing, math and language acquisition classes FREE to the adult • GED classes and GED testing are offered FREE to adults in our county** • GED Testing is offered each month…during the day and evening

14. Vocational training classes ( Nursing and Secretarial programs) • Continuing education courses ( Welding and software applications) • Community education courses ( Spanish and Sign Language)

15. When… • Monday – Friday 8 a.m. – 2.30 p.m. • Tuesday and Thursday 5 p.m. – 8 p.m. Adult classes follow the same schedule as the K-12 program

16. Where? • Family Service Center 310 West Whidden Street • St.Paul’s Catholic Church

17. Again, tell me why this is important to me?

18. Adults need adequate literacy skills necessary to function successfully in our community…this is essential to all of us if we expect our economic base to grow and flourish with new business • it improves the quality of our workforce, our product productivity and our employee retention • breaks cycles of poverty of children and families in our community

19. Okay…okay…I get the picture…what can I do to help?

20. Spread the word • Encourage your employees and others to take the time to improve their literacy skills • Volunteer to help someone learn to read or learn to speak English • Celebrate the success of your employees and others who succeed in their goals

21. And most importantly… • realize that the literacy level of the adults in our community is essential to all of us and become an active advocate for adult education!

22. Workforce Education School District of DeSoto County 310 West Whidden Street Arcadia, Florida • 993-1333 (863)993-9181 raye.southwell@desoto.k12.fl.us