Hello All, Please share this information with your networks. Thanks much, Carol Carol Clymer, Ed.D. Co-Director Institute for the Study of Adult Literacy Goodling Institute for Research in Family Literacy 403 B Keller Building Penn State University University Park, PA 16802 (814) 865-5876 (814) 863-6108 (fax) email: cdc22@psu.edu<mailto:cdc22@psu.edu> Career Pathways and Adult Basic Education in High-Need Cities: A National Researcher-Practitioner Partnership Background Adult education agencies in Houston, Miami, and Chicago are participating with Penn State in a new adult education researcher-practitioner partnership, under a two-year award from the federal Institute of Education Sciences (IES). The project will explore how adult basic education and literacy (ABEL) providers in three high-need cities are integrating career pathway components into their services. The research project will gather comparative information about the fast-developing career pathways field and explore promising practices that city agencies are implementing. This project is timely because career pathways are a critical component of workforce education in the recently reauthorized Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act and other state and local initiatives. Research partners include Penn State University’s Institute for the Study of Adult Literacy, Houston Center for Literacy, Miami-Dade County Public Schools, and Chicago Citywide Literacy Coalition. The Research Approximately 175 ABEL providers in the three cities have been invited to complete a comprehensive survey of practices and outcomes to map the career pathways landscape in each city. This is the first crucial step to understand the kinds of career pathway services currently being offered for adult learners who wish to increase their employment prospects and/or pursue a postsecondary degree. Focus group interviews and case studies of selected organizations will also enable researchers to learn more about how career pathways programs are developed and the policy context in which they operate. The information gathered is intended to set the stage for long-term research by first understanding promising practices that can be implemented to better serve lower-skilled adults and immigrants. Preliminary findings will be reported at the COABE conference April 10 to 13, 2016 in the session, A New Research Partnership: Career Pathways and Adult Basic Education in High-Need Cities. For more information about the IES project—“Career Pathways Programming for Lower-Skilled Adults and Immigrants: A Comparative Analysis of Adult Education Providers in High-Need Cities” —go to http://adultpathways.psu.edu/ and the IES website<http://tinyurl.com/opf9ysv>. Or contact the Principal Investigator, Dr. Esther Prins, at 814-865-0597 (email: esp150@psu.edu<mailto:esp150@psu.edu>). Co-Principal Investigators: Sheri Foreman Elder (President and CEO), Houston Center for Literacy Mark Needle (Educational Specialist), Miami-Dade County Public Schools Becky Raymond (Executive Director), Chicago Citywide Literacy Coalition Dr. Carol Clymer (Co-Director), Institute for the Study of Adult Literacy Dr. Blaire Toso (Associate Director), Institute for the Study of Adult Literacy [cid:1b0d6bcc-c309-4638-9bce-1351552450ca@psu.edu]