2. Millions of adults need access to postsecondary education and training to advance their careers and support their families. National Necessity

3. Accelerating Opportunity transforms Adult Basic Education to ensure that more adults can access and succeed in postsecondary education and training. Innovative Solutions

4. States and colleges will scale and sustain programs so that many more adults have access to marketable credentials and family-sustaining careers Lasting Impact

5.  By 2018, only 36 percent of total jobs will require workers with just a high school diploma or less  Since 1979, investments in adult education and workforce development programs have declined in real terms by more than 70%.  Postsecondary credentials are the gateway to family-supporting wages that those credentials are critical to breaking the intergenerational transmission of poverty in America.  93 million adults with basic or below basic literacy  13% of adults ages 25-64 have less than a high school credential  29% have a high school credential but no college. A National Need for Pathways from ABE to Marketable Credentials

6. No High School Diploma Speak English “Less Than Very Well” High School Diploma No College 18,229,340 5,005,943 5,177,127 51,365,340 8,226,214 Adult Education Population (Age 18–64), 2006 Source: U.S. Census Bureau, 2006 American Community Survey (Public Use Microdata Samples); prepared by National Center for Higher Education Management Systems (NCHEMS). Unduplicated population = 88,003,964. From Reach Higher, America The Report of the National Commission on Adult Literacy (2008) 88 Million Adults Have at Least One Education Barrier

7. Programs lack supports and are ill-equipped to meet the needs of non- traditional students The “black hole” of developmental education: Low completion rates for underprepared students Remediation not customized to career pathway requirements Lack of alignment with career/technical credential programs postsecondary entrance requirements Traditional ABE/GED Programs Developmental Education Postsecondary Career Programs Multiple Loss Points Low rates of program completion and credential attainment Disconnected Educational Pathways

8. Accelerating Opportunity’s Solutions

9. Accelerated skill-building integrated with credit coursework Support through gate-keeper courses Intensive transition counseling Comprehensive supplemental services Intensive counseling Flexible program options Job placement More Adult Learners Succeeding in ABE to Credential Pathways Articulated Career Pathways Stackable Credentials with Labor Market Value Accelerated and Integrated ABE and GED programs Career exploration Contextualized learning Skill-building for postsecondary/career success College and career counseling Streamlined Adult Education Pathways

10. Improving Student Experiences and Outcomes What low-skilled, non-traditional students typically face: Emerging Solutions: Confusing array of career programsIntegrated instructional models, college prep & career pathways General education focus as the default for programs and services Programs and services specifically geared to career pathways Long remedial education sequencesAcceleration, compression and dual- enrollment strategies Inadequate or inaccessible support services Array of support services, including intrusive advising Programs not designed with career advancement in mind Programs designed around labor market opportunities and needs