September is Literacy Month, and Sept. 8, is International Literacy Day. The United States Congress and the Governor of Georgia have issued resolutions in support of National Adult Education and Family Literacy Week for Sept. 10-16. As the largest Adult Education program provider in northwest Georgia, Georgia Northwestern Technical College (GNTC) will be emphasizing its role in raising the level of educational attainment in the adult population during this month.
According to Susan Hackney, vice president of Adult Education at GNTC, approximately 1.5 million Georgia adults, age 25 and older, have never completed high school, and younger adults continue to leave school without graduating. “This is particularly troublesome at this time when a high school diploma and two years of postsecondary education/training are considered required for 21st Century jobs,” said Ms. Hackney. “The current economic recession has demonstrated that the less educated have the greatest percentage of unemployment, while the highest educated have a lower level of unemployment. The same direct relationship applies to earnings.”
GNTC's Adult Education Program is positioned to provide education for adults whose schooling was interrupted in earlier years. They assist adults in acquiring the skills and credentials to validate their level of education through GED Testing, WorkKeys Testing, and admission testing for college. GNTC’s Adult Education program also offers transition counseling to make college a reality. GNTC has academies that target the young adult population and Adult Learning Centers that are located in each county of GNTC's service area. Services are provided to students of all ages and are free through funding from local, state, and federal sources. A team of instructors teach morning, afternoon, and evening classes plus the college offers distance learning opportunities. A Language and Literacy Center in Rome provides assistance to adults who have reading difficulties as well as adults whose first language is not English.