The State Council for Adult Literacy Education Services (SCALES) is a bipartisan body created within the State Employment and Training Commission by Public Law 1999, c. 107, to facilitate state and local policy development, planning and oversight in consultation with stakeholders in the area of adult literacy education. 

SCALES focuses on improving the literacy delivery system for adults and older youth.  In carrying out its role, the Council is responsible for developing a comprehensive, broad-based State Literacy Plan, appropriate performance standards, system-wide impact measures, statewide benchmarks to evaluate adult literacy services, and advocating for professional development and information sharing for practitioners and policy makers. Robert Santare, SETC member and President of Champion Fasteners, Inc. is Chair of the Council. 

 Key Action Items

 Equipped for the Future (EFF)

SCALES adopted EFF standards for New Jersey’s adult literacy system.  EFF was developed by the National Institute of Literacy (NIFL) to define the skills and knowledge adults need to be successful in their roles as workers, family members and citizens.   

Work Readiness Credential:  To ensure all workforce system customers have an opportunity to build solid work readiness skills, New Jersey is one of nine states to implement the National Work Readiness Credential model, which has been benchmarked to employer standards.  Local One-Stop Career Centers are testing participants to determine if they have acquired these essential literacy skills during their training.

Literacy Program Funding Guidelines:  SCALES provides input on the guidelines under which literacy programs receive WIA Title II funding and general operational criteria and outcomes for these programs.  SCALES successfully advocated for a unified assessment strategy, documentation for a referral process between literacy programs and other One-Stop partners, professional development funding for grantees, and acquisition of the Work Readiness Credential as an acceptable outcome.

Teacher Standards: In conjunction with the New Jersey Department of Labor and Workforce Development (LWD), standards for adult education instructional staff were developed that delineated minimum qualifications required for instructional staff in WIA Title II and Workforce Learning Link (literacy) programs.  

Ubiquitous Literacy Services:  A critical issue for adult literacy is how to increase access to literacy services for the significant number of adults who need to improve their skill levels.  The current place-based literacy model can only serve a small percentage of the low skill population.  SCALES is taking the lead in crafting a vision and strategy for a ubiquitous literacy system that incorporates the use of online technology. 

Transitions from Adult Secondary Education to Postsecondary Education: Facilitating transitions from adult secondary programs to postsecondary education and training has been adopted as a critical issue.  There is consensus within SCALES that New Jersey should improve its focus on helping learners develop both work readiness and college readiness skills and that the goal of the adult education system must extend beyond the high school credential to completion of at least one year of postsecondary education and the acquisition of a industry-recognized certification.   

Adult High Schools:  There are three options for adults in New Jersey to earn a high school diploma: complete 30 college credits, pass the GED exam, or complete an adult high school program.  Access to the latter option is continually shrinking as districts choose to use funding for other priorities.  SCALES is preparing a report that will more clearly define the significance of a high school diploma for the adult population and the strategies essential for meeting this workforce need.  2010 goals include:

§         Issue a “white paper” that outlines a strategy for successfully transitioning adult learners to postsecondary education and improving their work readiness skills.

§         Facilitate the piloting of a Learner Web distance learning project in the State and evaluate its fit within the ubiquitous adult literacy concept.

§         Facilitate development of an adult literacy web portal that provides information about programs, etc.