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Adult education program reports improved outcomes, expanded certificates and workforce pathways
Summary
The district's adult education program reported stronger attendance hours, increased GED/diploma completions and development of integrated training (paraeducator and 911 dispatcher) certificate offerings; staff noted performance benchmarks exceeded targets in 2023-24.
Robbie Cornelius, presenting the adult education update to the Fayetteville Public Schools board on Jan. 23, reported performance gains, expanded certificate issuance and plans to broaden integrated education-and-training courses.
Cornelius said weekly attendance hours for the program topped 10,000 and that demographic shifts included increased participation from Haitian-born residents and growth in the African American student cohort. He reported that in 2023'4 the program achieved 124.64% of negotiated benchmarks (the district must meet roughly an 87.4% threshold to qualify for baseline funding), meaning the program met and exceeded performance targets and qualified for additional funding tied to exceeded benchmarks.
Program highlights included 18 participants earning an Arkansas High School Diploma so far in the current year (with the number expected to rise into spring), issuance of 24 workforce certificates through the "WAGE" program (Workforce Alliance for Growth in the Economy) and an active ParaPro integrated education-and-training course preparing paraprofessionals for Praxis testing. Cornelius said the next ParaPro semester begins Jan. 28 with classes at the library from 1 to 4 p.m.
Cornelius reviewed how the GED (General Educational Development) test functions in Arkansas: students take paid GED Ready pretests ($6.99 per subject or $22.99 for all four); state subsidies reduce the fee for the actual GED test to $4 if the ready-test threshold is met. He said the state provides funding to offset GED testing costs and that scholarships are available for students who cannot afford testing fees.
The adult education program is developing an integrated training pathway in public-safety telecommunications (911 dispatch) in coordination with Fayetteville and Benton County police and the U of A police. Cornelius said the proposed curriculum would combine digital literacy, workplace skills, public-safety telecommunicator certification, CPR and FEMA training and would offer free classes with certificates to improve job placement and credentialing for program participants.
Cornelius closed with spring dates and community events and invited board members to adult-education ceremonies and the May multicultural fair.
Board members asked clarifying questions about credentialing timelines and program funding; Cornelius said state performance reporting for the prior year was recently received and that program staffing is being augmented with credentialed career-services providers to better track employment outcomes after students exit the program.
