Strengthening collaborations among urban adult literacy 

(adult foundational education) providers, adult Learners, 

and other urban community stakeholders

U.S. urban communities need high-quality, community-oriented adult foundational education (AFE)*

In U.S. cities and urban counties, significant numbers of adults, including out-of-school young adults, can benefit from adult foundational education (AFE)*. These programs (including: adult literacy; adult basic education; adult secondary education; and English for immigrants, refugees and asylees, among other foundational education services) can help learners develop the basic skills (oral and written language, numeracy, digital literacy, and other essential collaboration and problem-solving skills), high school and occupational credentials, support systems, and other assets they need for work, family, community, and lifelong learning roles. But well-planned, -coordinated, and -supported AFE services that are customized to the varied needs of diverse learners require leadership and coordination among AFE providers and the other stakeholders (e.g., employment services, prisoner re-entry agencies, immigration and refugee programs, public health organizations, employers, labor unions, affordable housing providers, and public libraries) with which they partner.

The Urban Alliance for Adult Literacy, formerly known as Urban CAFÉ and now a U.S. national project of ProLiteracy, is a support for urban adult foundational education initiatives. It facilitates growth and strengthening of AFE services, including adult literacy, in U.S. urban communities by:

• Bringing together members of local collaborations (networks, coalitions, initiatives, cooperatives, etc.) of AFE providers serving U.S. cities, metropolitan areas and counties that include urban areas;

• Providing them (via virtual meetings and webinars, a website, an asynchronous discussion group, and possibly professional development and joint projects) ways to share their opportunities and challenges, and strategies and resources to effectively address those challenges; and

• Raising awareness within the AFE field and with others (e.g., policy makers, funders, and others) about the importance and needs of urban AFE services.

* Adult foundational education is a relatively new name for our field that, accompanied by a short definition, enables us to distinguish it from K-12 and credit-bearing higher education. It includes: adult literacy; adult basic and secondary education; and English for immigrants, refugees and asylees. A slightly longer definition also includes digital literacy, family literacy, and preparation for post-secondary education or occupational training. A comprehensive definition, used by the Open Door Collective of Literacy Minnesota, will be found at https://bit.ly/3LAbx45.