GLENDALE : Adult Education Program Gets $15,000

Glendale Community College’s adult basic education program has received more than $15,000 from the state to help pay to train and coordinate volunteer tutors, officials said.

“It’s wonderful,” said Virginia Casady, program coordinator. “All the money that we get is used to enhance the work.”

The program, started in 1982, focuses on helping adults who have an eighth-grade or lower education in English, mathematics and reading and who wish to pursue a high school diploma or its equivalent, officials said. An average of 4,000 students are enrolled annually.

At the start of each school year, college officials usually set aside district funds to pay for teachers, equipment, materials and other staff. By July, they apply to the state to recover a portion of the costs as part of a federal Adult Basic Education Act grant, officials said. The grant pays for a part-time staff worker who trains volunteer tutors and matches them with students, said Lani DeVincentis, dean of non-credit adult education. Money is given to the state education department, which in turn distributes funds to local colleges.

This year, the extra $15,000 for the college was made available because fewer campuses applied for the federal money, Casady said. Glendale trustees formally accepted the funding at a May 17 board meeting.