The following Adult Education programs have been designated as Promising Practices.

Adult Centers for Comprehensive Education and Support Services (ACCESS)
Adult students of all education levels trying to improve their academic and vocational skills to obtain or upgrade employment.
The Program	ACCESS agencies provide educational and training programs and support services to meet Adult Education, training, and retraining needs. ACCESS agencies provide adult basic education, ESOL, and high school equivalency instruction; nondegree adult occupational training in areas of labor market need; and life management instruction (e.g., employability skills, parenting, health, and nutrition). Support services help meet the needs of adults and link separate components into a continuum of service. These support services include full-time case management and counseling, comprehensive educational assessment and career counseling, on-site child care, parent education and family literacy programs, job development and placement services, and other support services like transportation, housing assistance referrals, and alcohol or drug counseling. ACCESS agencies and consortia work closely with local departments of social services and the local employment and training community.
Implementation Requirements	Agencies must be eligible and respond to a request for proposals from the SED; applicants should be able to provide all the component services of ACCESS either on their own or in consortium with other agencies. Linkages with other service providers are also required. Training Training and technical assistance by the SED. Major areas include assessment, career counseling, case management, child care, family literacy, job development, and serving adults with disabilities. Generally no cost for training, but agencies are responsible for travel expenses.
Materials	Materials Descriptive materials are provided.
SED approval is required for replication.
Contact:	Glenn Schechtman ACCESS Coordinator Adult Family and Adult Education New York State Education Department Room 307EB Albany, NY 12234 (518) 474-1987

Case Management (CM)
Adults with complex human service/educational needs; training targets professionals who serve such persons.
The Program	CM offers individualized assistance to persons within educational, human services and/or employment and training systems working toward self- sufficiency. The CM process involves ongoing assessment, planning, personal support, resource identification, linkages, and follow-up to individuals with multiple barriers. It operates at both the "client" level, providing assistance to persons requiring service, and at the "systems" level, encouraging collaboration among local, regional, State, and federal agencies. CM is a core component of every ACCESS agency and consortia, and other agencies like JTPA, DSS, and VESID. Training is geared toward support staff and administrators, ideally across agencies that work together in a community. Ideal training focuses on both skills of line staff and interagency collaboration.
Implementation Requirements	Existing or desired intra/interagency collaboration. Training Programs of one hour to many days are available for single sites as well as local, regional, or statewide audiences. Full programs involve initial training and follow-up. Training and technical assistance is free to ACCESS agencies and consortia; prices for others are available.
Materials	Full manual containing background material, forms, resources and supporting documents is available during training. Additional materials are presented at specific workshops.
Contact:	Michael J. Irwin Coordinator-Assessment & Placement Services OCM BOCES Career Training Center 4500 Crown Road Liverpool, NY 13090 (315) 453-4404/(800) 444-4406 fax (315) 451-4676

Comprehensive Career Assessment (CCA)
All adults; can also be used with youth in middle/junior high school through high school settings.
The Program	CCA is designed to help individuals gain information to make informed vocational choices. It offers many tools and techniques for gathering information on career goals and interpreting this information. Tools and techniques, length of service, and feedback mechanism(s) vary depending on needs and agency characteristics. CCA is a core component of every ACCESS agency or consortia. It also helps other community/State agencies like Job Training & Partnership Act (JTPA) agencies, Departments of Social Services/JOBS programs, the Office of Vocational & Educational Services for Individuals with Disabilities (VESID). Programs can offer assessment services, tools and techniques, trained staff, and strong linkages to other community services.
Implementation Requirements	Strong intra/interagency collaboration; space for individual and group assessment/counseling; trained staff (master's level in assessment, vocational rehabilitation, rehabilitation, counseling, psychology, education or related); $5,000-$50,000 for equipment & supplies depending on service levels. Training Statewide, regional, or on- site training and technical assistance are available. Training is free for ACCESS agencies and consortia; prices for others are available.
Materials	A complete assessment manual is available with training and contains background materials, forms, check lists, resource lists, and supporting documents. "A Framework for High-Quality, Comprehensive Assessment," is available on request and may be copied.
Contact:	Michael J. Irwin Coordinator-Assessment & Placement Services OCM BOCES Career Training Center 4500 Crown Road Liverpool, NY 13090 (315) 453-4404/(800) 444-4406 fax (315) 451-4676

New York State's Placement Test for English as a Second Language Adult Students (NYSPLACE Test)
ESOL practitioners for use with Limited English Proficient (LEP) Adults.
The Program	The NYSPLACE Test is an ESOL placement test for adult and continuing education programs. It is valid, reliable, and clear, sensitive to adults, and inexpensive and easy to administer. It takes 10 to 15 minutes to administer and has three sections: The Oral Warm Up: simple greetings and brief commands. The Basic English Literacy Screening: reading numbers, letters, words, and a single sentence or question. The Oral Assessment with Pictures (the main section): There are four illustrated scenarios depicting daily life situations. Students respond to questions about the scenarios. The questions and descriptions get progressively more difficult and correspond to ESOL Proficiency Levels 1-4. There are also fail-safe questions. Only Form B has been approved for general use; Form A is in the process of being refield tested.
Implementation Requirements	The test is administered orally to one student at a time. Training SED recommends administrators of the NYSPLACE Test attend a NYSPLACE Test implementation workshop sponsored by SED, or view the NYSPLACE Test video training tape.
Materials	Student Information and Answer Sheet (SIAS form), Test Booklet, and Picture Cue Booklet.
For information about test development and administration, contact:	Dr. Patricia Mooney Gonzalez Adult ESOL Specialist New York State Education Department Office of Adult, Family and Alternative Education Team, Room 307EB Albany, New York 12234 (518) 474-8700 fax (518) 474-2801
To order tests:	Albany Adult Learning Center 27 Western Avenue Albany, NY 12203 (518) 462-7292

Vision Screening
Adults requiring vision screening
The Program	The program aims to eliminate physical barriers for adults participating in literacy programs. It provides vision screening, optometric referrals, and follow-up services. It identifies those in need of vision correction and aids them in getting the services they require.
Implementation Requirements	Project coordinator, vision screener, screening site, and referral sources. It is suggested that potential funding sources be identified. Training A coordinator and screener must attend two one-day workshops at the developer's site in Albany. Training costs $500 (including Bernel kit) to cover funding mechanisms, vision screening, referral sources, and student recruitment. Travel expenses are extra. Technical assistance and follow-up services are provided.
Materials	Implementation costs vary. Materials cost $70.
Contact:	Rose Lamorella or Pat Gallagher Adult Learning Center City School District of Albany 27 Western Avenue Albany, NY 12203 (518) 462-7292 fax (518) 462-7104

The following Adult Education Program has been Validated by the New York State Education Department.

New York State External High School Diploma Program (EDP)*
English-speaking adults over 21
The Program	A competency-based alternative high school credentialing program for adults who have acquired skills through life experiences and can demonstrate those skills in applied performance tests. The project aims to provide an assessment and credentialing process as an alternative to traditional diploma programs. Graduates report an increased interest in continued learning, job promotions and raises, and increased self-esteem and self-confidence. There is no instruction: it is an assessment system by which adults earn a regular high school diploma. The program has two phases. The first, diagnosis, tests participants on six diagnostic instruments that help identify learning deficiencies in the basic skills. If a deficiency is identified, the student is given a prescription and sent into the community to use available resources. When deficiencies are corrected, the adult enters the second phase, final assessment. Here, the adult must demonstrate 64 generalized competencies in the basic and life skill areas of communication, computation, self-awareness, social awareness, scientific awareness, occupational preparedness, and consumer awareness. The adult must also demonstrate an individualized competency in one of three skill areas: occupational, special, or advanced academic. This system lets adults demonstrate skills through a variety of forms. Graduates are surveyed 10 months later to determine program impact.
Implementation Requirements	Staffing reassignment of existing personnel is possible. Equipment required is ordinarily found in an educational setting. Seven program manuals and one set of training materials must be purchased (contact project for cost).
SED approval is required for replication.
Contact:	Eileen Clinton Questar 3 Rensselaer-Columbia-Greene BOCES Training Center, Schodack Park 1580 Columbia Tpke, Box 8 Bldg 1 Castleton, NY 12033 (518) 477-2431 fax (518) 477-6873

Home Page | About Sharing Success | Nominate A Program

Adult Education Programs | Early Childhood & K-12 Programs | Whole School Reform

Contact Us | Feedback| All About You | Web Board