National Coalition for Literacy

07/18/2026

Celebrate Adult Education & Family Literacy Week | September 13–19, 2026

Adult Education and Family Literacy (AEFL) Week is an opportunity to celebrate the transformative power of adult education and literacy and to elevate awareness of the millions of adults who are building the foundational skills they need to strengthen their careers, families, and communities.

AEFL Week was launched by the National Coalition for Literacy (NCL) in 2009 to raise national awareness of the importance of adult education and family literacy. Since then, it has grown into a nationwide observance recognized by programs, organizations, communities, and policymakers across the country.

This year, I encourage everyone in the adult education and literacy community to find a way to celebrate and elevate our field. Host an open house. Invite an elected official or employer to visit your program. Share an adult learner's success story. Recognize an outstanding teacher or volunteer. Highlight your program's impact on social media. Partner with a library or community organization. Contact policymakers and share why adult education matters.

Whatever you do, start making your plan now, use September 13–19 as an opportunity to tell our story and remind others that adult education and literacy strengthen our workforce, expand economic opportunity, support families, and build stronger communities.

Please like and share this post and comment here with how you plan to celebrate and elevate adult education and family literacy during AEFL week.

Let's make some noise for adult education and literacy during !

06/16/2026

Yesterday, NCL provided a Leadership Forum promoting skills-based practice at the CASAS Summer Institue. Many state adult education directors as well as national and organizational leaders attended. Jeffrey A. Fantine, Ph.D. Jen Vanek and Lauren Osowski facilitated rich discussion and dynamic activities to help adult educators understand and embrace skills-based practice as we navigate toward an evolving skills-based economy. We all walked away with policy, practice, advocacy and partnership levers to help advance skills-based practice.

And thank you Amanda Winters and U.S. Chamber of Commerce Foundation for being a guest speaker and sharing strategies on how to collaborate with critical partners across a skills-based landscape - as well as perspectives on the skills-based movement, in general.

I wish I had gotten a photo, maybe an attendee did - if you did, please share it here.

…or share a comment if you attended.

04/03/2026

Peter Waite dedicated his career to adult literacy and was a founder of the National Coalition for Literacy. His sudden passing was a heartbreaking loss for the literacy field.

His family indicates in his obituary to make any donations in his memory to the National Coalition for Literacy, which you can do via NCL's website: www.nationalcoalitionforliteracy.org

NCL will designate these donations in his honor, directing them toward a specific initiative that reflects his legacy.

https://www.addisonindependent.com/2026/04/02/peter-arthur-waite-75-of-middlebury/

01/19/2026

Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. was a strong advocate for literacy and education. He believed that education was essential to freedom and that literacy made participation in society possible. King's vision of education was not just about acquiring information and skills but about developing the ability to advocate for oneself and create a more just future. He emphasized the transformative power of education and literacy, which he believed are crucial for civic engagement and meaningful and sustainable employment. King's commitment to literacy and education is reflected in his work and the values he championed, which continue to inspire and influence today.

01/19/2026

BECOME A MEMBER OF THE NATIONAL COALITION FOR LITERACY

Literacy changes lives - and strong advocacy makes literacy possible!

NCL is only as strong as its membership. NCL members build a strong, unified voice for adult education and literacy providers nationwide.

By becoming a member of the National Coalition for Literacy, you join a nationwide network working to elevate adult education and literacy, strengthen support at all levels, and ensure every adult has the skills needed to thrive at work, at home, and in their community.

Your voice helps shape policy, ensure funding, amplify impact, and advance opportunity.

Join us and be part of the movement for adult education and literacy.

Organizational and Individual membership options are available. To learn more, visit NCL's website at www.nationalcoalitionforliteracy.org. To become a member, complete NCL's Membership Form: https://form.jotform.com/253637225632154

01/15/2026

CONTACT CONGRESS TODAY TO PROTECT ADULT EDUCATION FUNDING

Currently, the Senate L-HHS-E appropriations bill has adult education level funded and the House L-HHS-E appropriations bill has adult education funding zeroed out. Negotiations are taking place NOW between the House and Senate on where they will land with adult education (and other) funding.

House and Senate Appropriations Committee leaders hope to release a three-bill package of final FY2026 spending bills on Sunday (January 18th) that will include the Labor-HHS-Education spending bill. This means the rest of this week is the best chance to get Congress to include the funding levels and the spending and administrative guardrails included that will protect adult education funding. NCL is supporting the following funding level and guardrails (that are in the Senate's L-HHS-E spending bill):

•That $729,167,000 shall be for AEFLA, of which $13,712,000 shall be for national leadership activities under section 242.
• [Sec. 313] The Secretary shall award to each State an amount as required under the applicable provisions of AEFLA for each formula grant program to which funds are appropriated in this Act on the date such funds become available for obligation.
• [Sec. 512] None of the funds made available in this Act may be transferred to any department, agency, or instrumentality of the United States Government, except pursuant to a transfer made by, or transfer authority provided in, this Act or any other appropriation Act.

Therefore, NCL is encouraging everyone to reach out to your legislators TODAY!

TESOL is graciously allowing NCL to use their ACT NOW page to contact your legislators electronically to request adult education funding, use the following link: https://tesol.quorum.us/campaign/153162/

Fill in the information and an editable communication that will be sent via email to your senators and representative will pop up. Here's how I edited the communication when I sent it: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1HDe6JmLDk3pl6CH6BLPQd2fFpsTaKf9m/edit

Also, NCL encourages you to reach out to the following members of the House Labor-HHS-Education Appropriations Committee. Ask them to put funding back into their bill for adult education!

Robert Aderholt (AL) – Chair (202) 225-4876
Mike Simpson (ID) (202) 225-5531
Andy Harris (MD) (202) 225-5311
Chuck Fleischmann (TN) (202) 225-3271
John Moolenaar (MI) (202) 225-3561
Julia Letlow (LA) – Vice Chair (202) 225-8490
Andrew Clyde (GA) (202) 225-9893
Jake Ellzey (TX) (202) 225-2002
Stephanie Bice (OK) (202) 225-2132
Riley Moore (WV) (202) 225-2711

I encourage you to use NASDAE's Fact Sheets - both for the U.S. and for the member's state. Let them know how their state will be impacted if adult education funding is reduced or eliminated. https://public.tableau.com/app/profile/kyva/viz/NASDAEAdultEducationFactSheets2023-24DraftV2/ProgramYear2023-24

So, contact legislators today and encourage others to do so, too. REPOST!

Fund AEFLA Title II