PAACE News Winter 2002

Midwinter Conference 2002: Plan Your Time 'Cause There's a Lot Going On

by Karen Mundie, Greater Pittsburgh Literacy Council, PAACE President

Last year PAACE had a lot of favorable comment about the variety and quality of the Midwinter Conference presentations. This year should be even better with a record smashing number of excellent proposals submitted! My sympathies to the team of PAACers who were forced by necessity to winnow these down to accommodate the space and time available. "If there were world enough and time . . ." we wouldn’t have to make such decisions.

In short, there will be so many opportunities for quality professional development that making difficult choices will be a necessity, not just for the conference committees, but also for participants. And the hurly-burly of a busy conference is not the best time to make clear-headed decisions.

As most experienced PAACEers know, you will get a sneak peek at the conference in late December/early January when the Midwinter Conference Tabloid arrives in your mailbox. For your own sake, take a little time to survey the offerings and decide how best to use your time. (Do you want the intensity of a strand or do you want to explore a wide variety of presentation topics and styles?) Remember to check out those Wednesday evening and early Friday morning time slots. Some of the best presentations always nestle there. (You’ll need to plan for an early dinner on Wednesday -- and getting up Friday morning at 8:30 is way too late!) Are you going to apply for Act 48 credit? Read the rules in the Tabloid flyer (and below). If you don’t do it right, you can’t get credit! (Much as we’d like to be of service, our small staff of volunteers can’t honcho your Act 48 paperwork.)

Inserted inside your tabloid will be a conference and hotel registration form. Try to get that in as quickly as possible. We expect a big conference this year and -- though our alternative housing is very nice -- nothing quite beats the excitement and convenience of being on-site in the thick of things.

If you find that somebody in your office has absconded with the registration materials, do not become upset. Just go to the PAACE Web site to download everything you need. Tabloid descriptions will also be available on line by mid- to late December. If you have colleagues who have never been to the famous PAACE Midwinter Conference or haven’t been recently, please encourage them to visit the Web site to see what our conference has to offer. Midwinter is the best opportunity that Pennsylvania offers practitioners and administrators to meet and share with colleagues, to hear from the Department of Education, to find out what PA professionals and volunteers are contributing to the field, and to find out what’s going in adult and continuing education nationally. We’ll see you there.

Midwinter Conference Topics on the Cutting Edge
"Bridging the Gap" ~ February 13-15, 2002
by Linda Herr, Lycoming County Community College, PAACE First Vice-President

This year's PAACE Midwinter Conference certainly has something for everyone! We have strands of sessions geared to practitioners and administrators in Learning Differences, Family Literacy, and Administrators. Presentation topics are varied and are representative of all the divisions and special interest areas.

Participants will have an opportunity to take a sneak peak at Administrator Competencies, examine the impact of program enrollment on 70 learners in educational and career achievement, and find out what's the latest in adult literacy research. We’ll also look at online learning, Web-based activities and how to integrate these tools into the classroom, and how can we as professionals can use Web-based professional development courses to our advantage.

There will be computers, favorite book swaps, a new logo addition to acknowledge CEA, acknowledgement of previous success story recipients, and so much more! Get ready! The conference committee and PAACE Board look forward to seeing you in February.

Meet the Nominees for PAACE Board of Directors

Ballots for the 2002 PAACE board are in the mail. For your vote to be counted, please return the ballot by Friday, February 2, 2002 to:

Barbara Van Horn
Institute for the Study of Adult Literacy
Penn State University
102 Rackley Building
University Park, PA 16802-3202

or fax to Barbara at 814-863-6108.

President: Linda Herr, Lycoming County Literacy Project
(Current First Vice President ascends to President.)

First Vice President: Debra Burrows, West Branch Technology Center, Central Intermediate Unit
(Current Second Vice President ascends to First Vice President.)

Second Vice President: David Manzo
Dave Manzo has a Doctorate in Adult and Continuing Education from Penn State University and Masters Degrees in Public Administration and Education. He has numerous publications and presentations related to adult and continuing education. Dave currently works with Luzerne County Community College as Director of The Corporate Learning Center. The center has undergraduate credit, adult basic education, continuing education, and training and development classes. For the past 25 years, he has worked in adult education as an instructor and administrator, including Adult Basic Education, Workforce Development, Training and Development, Continuing Education, Postsecondary Education, Extension Education, and Higher Education. Dave also has had over 10 years involvement in PAACE, serving currently as Board Secretary, Membership Chair, and as a member of the Editorial Committee for PAACE News.

Treasurer: Mary Hohensee
Mary Hohensee has been the executive director of the Literacy Council of Lancaster-Lebanon since 1990. Before her work with the council, Mary operated her own catering business and worked for many years as a certified public accountant. She is active in the mentoring of new community leaders through Leadership Lancaster and the Spalding Mentoring Program at Franklin and Marshall College. She holds a Masters in Non-Profit Management from Eastern College and an MBA from the University of California, Berkeley. Mary also has completed a one-year term as Treasurer on PAACE’s Board of Directors.

Secretary: Jennifer Wood
Jennifer Wood has been with the Mid-State Literacy Council in State College since 1998, serving first as the Director of ESL Services and then as MIS Manager. Before her work with the council, Jennifer spent five years in the cities of Gifu and Yokohama, Japan, where she taught EFL and co-directed the English department of a Japanese junior college. She has also worked as a database designer and manager for Penn State and for The National Clearinghouse for Alcohol and Drug Information (NCADI). She has a Bachelors in Music from Smith College and a Masters in ESL Education and ISD from the University of Maryland Baltimore County (UMBC). Jennifer has also recently become a program developer for PA WIN.

Western Region Representative: Mary Jendrey
Mary Jendrey has worked in adult literacy since 1986. She began as a volunteer tutor and trainer in various community-based adult literacy programs and, in 1989, became Executive Director for the New Kensington Area Literacy Council. She expanded this program to a comprehensive literacy program — the Alle-Kiski Learning Center, Inc. Mary has been — and continues to be — involved in family and workplace literacy. She has an early childhood development certificate and opened one of the first in-home family day care centers in Pennsylvania. She also is a PA WIN program developer. Mary represents adult education on the Westmoreland-Fayette WIB, serving on the WIB’s Skills Gap and Programs Committees. She is now working on a degree in Business Administration and has completed the one-year Leadership Alle-Kiski Valley training. As Region Representative, Mary is particularly interested in helping PAACE members inform legislators about adult literacy issues on a regular basis.

Acronym legend:
EFL English as a Foreign Language
ESL English as a Second Language
ISD
MIS
PA WIN Pennsylvania Workforce Investment Network
WIB Workforce Investment Board

English as a Second Language (ESL)
by Michael Westover, Catholic Charities Immigration & Naturalization Services, Division Director

The popular ESL Swap Shop, normally held in the Marketplace at Midwinter Conference, will now be online. Watch the mail for postcards with information about how to submit your ideas. So, pull out your best lesson plans to share with other practitioners throughout the state. In the meantime, if you have questions, contact me at mwestover@hbgdiocese.org. It would be nice to see some successful EFF lessons.

The Western PA Regional committee of the Continuing Education Association of Pennsylvania (CEA/PA) kicked off the new academic year by holding its first meeting in September 2001 at the Indiana University of Pennsylvania, Monroeville Graduate & Professional Center in Pittsburgh. Paula Sandusky and Rebecca Sterley hosted the meeting, coordinating a guest speaker from Indiana University of Pennsylvania, Gary J. Dean, Ph.D. Dr. Dean presented on "Surviving and Thriving in Your Organization," which was a great way to focus on the dynamics in our specific areas as we begin another recruitment year.

There were 23 attendees representing ten institutions from Western PA eager to share their reports from the previous recruitment season! The committee also discussed the upcoming year’s goals for becoming more involved with the community through volunteer projects and Pittsburgh-based companies efforts to relocate individuals back to the city.

The CEA committee of Western PA holds monthly meetings and organizes an Adult Expo over a weekend where all participating member institutions come together to offer information to prospective students.

Crunch time for implementing the new GED for January 2002 is getting closer. As the magic date approaches (actual testing will begin after January 15), many practitioners are taking advantage of the trainings being offered around the state. One participant in a six-hour training said she was there because I had scared her so badly in the three-hour overview. As with any change, we are in the worst part of the process, that of the unknown. As we gradually move into the new philosophy of teaching to the whole person, to prepare them not only for taking the test but life in the long run, we will also be more comfortable. Once we reach that point, the change process is complete. So, take heart! We in Pennsylvania are some of the most accomplished professionals in adult education in the country. I know that we will again be looked to by other states to see how to do it right!

The AB/SE Division’s GED Coffees will continue through the winter and into the spring. Those of you who have attended the coffees held so far, thanks! The response has been very positive around the sharing that happens and for the chance to look at materials. Delaware County Community College will be the location for a GED Coffee that will look at the various curriculum materials available and lessons developed by practitioners. This Coffee will be held Friday, December 7. More information will be sent via email.

PAACE Midwinter Conference will have an abundance of excellent sessions on the GED 2002 so I encourage you to plan on attending in February.

As always, if you have questions, concerns or suggestions, please contact me at (610) 857-9157 or at mkpeterson@chesco.com.

Love to read? Willing to share your books? The Family Literacy Division is happy to announce the first annual BRING-A-BOOK TAKE-A-BOOK EXTRAVAGANZA.This event will be held in the Marketplace at the Midwinter Conference and is being organized by Penny Lang. The book exchange table will be staffed by the enthusiastic Technical Assistance group. We are asking that you bring adult literature (that is, books for adults rather than children). Maybe next year we will expand to include children's books. So hunt through your stacks and bring a book. Then help yourself to a book that you've been wanting to read.

PAACE Midwinter Conference attendees who are interested in Act 48 credits can receive 6 hours of credit, but please pay close attention to the instructions! You have to:

The Act 48 evaluation form will be available after 3:00pm on the Thursday of the conference and you will have to specifically request it. If you attend the conference for at least one full day, you are eligible for the Act 48 hours. The PAACE Board wanted to make sure that those of you who are only able to attend Midwinter on Thursday due to other responsibilities would still be eligible.

Look for the bright pink flyer in your tabloid mailing that spells out all the rules.

Those of us working with adult learners preparing to take the high school equivalency exam, as well as adult learners themselves, are scrambling to find out all we can about the "new GED" that begins January 1, 2002. Several new opportunities to lear

n about and prepare for the GED 2002 Series tests are available.

The ABLE Professional Development Centers are offering two-hour, one-day, and two-day sessions throughout the state to orient instructors to the new GED. Participants gain insight into the changes in the test and the changes necessary for preparing students for the new version of the test. Information is presented by Pennsylvania adult educators who have completed National GED 2002 Training. The session includes PowerPoint presentations, discussion, learning activities, modeling of instructional strategies, and brainstorming activities. Participants develop teaching strategies suitable for preparing students for the new GED exam within each of its five content areas, and become familiar with an integrative approach to teaching in which they work with students on lessons that cross multiple areas of the test.

The first online GED 2002 training is now available through the Pennsylvania Department of Education, Bureau of ABLE’s Professional Development System. Preparing for GED 2002 is a joint effort of the ABLE Net Project of Central Intermediate Unit 10 West Branch Technology Center and the South-Central Professional Development Center (SCPDC) at Tuscarora Intermediate Unit #11. Course content is based on the model and materials presented at the GED 2002 National Training Institute last April by Interactive Training Solutions, Inc.

"Preparing for GED 2002 is delivered in an asynchronous mode," explains Debra Burrows, Project Director and PAACE Second Vice-President, "meaning that course enrollees may participate at any time of the day or night that is convenient for them, eliminating any potential for scheduling conflicts." All participation may be done from any computer with Internet access, and all course materials will be available online.

GED Connection is a new multimedia instructional package from PBS LiteracyLink designed to help prepare adult learners for the revised GED exam. It creatively combines video, print, and Internet lessons that can be used with students in both face-to-face and "virtual" classrooms.

GED Connection videos bring the subject matter alive through interviews with authors and scientists, tours of historical sites, documentaries, and demonstrations of real-life applications. The workbook and Web-based lessons further engage learners with models, applications, and test-taking practice. Real-life examples illustrate how people use the skills and knowledge tested on the GED at work, at home, and in their communities.

Attend "The Distance Learning Center Introduces GED Connection for Adults Studying for the New GED Test" at the PAACE Midwinter Conference in February 2002;

Attend GED Connection training in your PDC region available after April 1, 2002.

ABLE’s Distance Learning Center will sponsor a GED Connection train-the-trainer workshop, presented by PBS LiteracyLink, in March 2002. If you are a GED 2002 National Training trainer and would like to become a GED Connection trainer, contact Dehra Shafer, Training Projects Coordinator, TIU Adult Education and Job Training Center, Lewistown, at trn3@aejtc.org or 717-248-4942. Information on the Distance Learning Center and its offerings is available on ABLEsite at http://paadulted.org.

ABLE Net staff include: Rachelle Miller, Staff Assistant; Debra Burrows, Director; Lydia Hale, Facilitator; Linda Hinman, Coordinator; April Leiter, Facilitator; Wesley Miller, Support Technician; Shelley Moore, Facilitator; Ginger Shaffer, Instructional Design; and Greg Stump, Database Development.

For more information on GED 2002, visit the official Web site of the GED Testing Service at http://www.gedtest.org.

One of the workshops that will be presented at the Midwinter Conference highlights two unique collaborations in the Pittsburgh area. Training and education suppliers often find it costly to market their programs to area corporations, and area corporations find it difficult to locate appropriate training and education providers. For this reason, two alliances have been formed in Pittsburgh; one is made up of training suppliers and the other, of training consumers.

The Industry & Education Exchange (Index) is a referral source of education and training programs that meet the workforce development needs of the business and industry in the Pittsburgh region. The Index is dedicated to building long-term relationships with employers through quality training provided through the training providers. The Index is an initiative of the Community College of Allegheny County.

The training providers consist of regional colleges, universities, proprietary schools, and both profit and non-profit organizations. Each of the participating providers brings their own expertise to the Index which, when combined, cover the entire spectrum of training and educational opportunities.

The Airport Corridor Alliance was formed in January 2001 as an alliance of companies, including one private higher education institution, to obtain cost-effective training and education for their personnel. Although some of the member companies have as many as 3,000 employees, all have experienced situations where specific training was needed for just a handful of employees. This can be a real strain on already tight training and development budgets.

In response to members’ requests and needs assessments, the Airport Corridor Alliance secures quality trainers and instructors to deliver programs at member organizations’ locations. The cost to each organization depends on the number of employees they wish to have participate in any program. This is a non-profit association.

To learn more about this Alliance, plan on attending the Midwinter Conference, where this Alliance and several other workshops targeted for Higher Education practitioners will be presented.

Welcome to the following new members!

Joan R. Bone
Jessica R. Zimmerman
Myra Lingle
Tyra S. Gardner
Annabelle Saylor

Our Current Board:

President: Karen Mundie (Greater Pittsburgh Literacy Council)

First Vice-President: Linda Herr (Lycoming County Library System)

Second Vice-President: Debra Burrows (West Branch Technology Center, Central IU 10)

Secretary: David Manzo (Luzerne County Community College)

Treasurer: Mary Hohensee (Literacy Council of Lancaster-Lebanon)

Immediate Past President: Jeffrey C. Woodyard (Tri-County OIC)

Remote Past President: Barbara Van Horn (Institute for the Study of Adult Literacy at Penn State)

Western Regional Representative: Tom Wocjicki (Somerset Co. Career and Technology Center)

Central Regional Representative: Cathy Forsythe (Mifflin Co. Library Literacy Program)

Eastern Regional Representative: Rose Brandt (Mayor's Commission on Literacy)

Program Division Director/Adult Basic and Secondary Education: Mary Kay Peterson (La Communidad Hispana; Southeast Professional Development Center)

Program Division Director/Continuing Higher Education: Mary Anne Varacalli (Delaware County Community College)

Program Division Director/ESL: Michael Westover, Catholic Charities Immigration & Naturalization Services

Program Division/Family Literacy: Ruth Love-Schooley (Lycoming County Literacy Project) and Blanche Lozar

Program Division/Tutors of Literacy in the Commonwealth: Debbie Hrach (Stairways B