20 U.S.C. 1201
The purpose of the Adult Education Act (the Act) is to assist the States to—
(a) Improve educational opportunities for adults who lack the level of literacy skills requisite to effective citizenship and productive employment;
(b) Expand and improve the current system for delivering adult education services, including delivery of these services to educationally disadvantaged adults; and
(c) Encourage the establishment of adult education programs that will—
(1) Enable adults to acquire the basic educational skills necessary for literate functioning;
(2) Provide adults with sufficient basic education to enable them to benefit from job training and retraining programs and obtain and retain productive employment so that they might more fully enjoy the benefits and responsibilities of citizenship; and
(3) Enable adults who so desire to continue their education to at least the level of completion of secondary school.
The following programs are authorized by the Act:
(a) Adult Education State-administered Basic Grant Program (34 CFR part 426).
(b) State-administered Workplace Literacy Program (34 CFR part 433).
(c) State-administered English Literacy Program (34 CFR part 434).
(d) State Literacy Resource Centers Program (34 CFR part 464).
(e) National Workplace Literacy Program (34 CFR part 432).
(f) National Workforce Literacy Strategies Program (34 CFR part 473).
(g) National English Literacy Demonstration Program for Individuals of Limited English Proficiency (34 CFR part 435).
(h) Adult Migrant Farmworker and Immigrant Education Program (34 CFR part 436).
(i) National Adult Literacy Volunteer Training Program (34 CFR part 437).
(j) State Program Analysis Assistance and Policy Studies Program (34 CFR part 438).
(k) Functional Literacy for State and Local Prisoners Program (34 CFR part 489).
(l) Life Skills for State and Local Prisoners Program (34 CFR part 490).
The following regulations apply to the adult education programs:
(a) The Education Department General Administrative Regulations (EDGAR) as follows:
(1) 34 CFR part 74 (Administration of Grants to Institutions of Higher Education, Hospitals, and Nonprofit Organizations).
(2) 34 CFR part 75 (Direct Grant Programs) applies to parts 472, 473, 474, 475, 476, 477, 489, and 490, except that 34 CFR 75.720(b), regarding the frequency of certain reports, does not apply.
(3) 34 CFR part 76 (State-Administered Programs) applies to parts 461, 462, 463, and 464, except that 34 CFR 76.101 (The general State application) does not apply.
(4) 34 CFR part 77 (Definitions that Apply to Department Regulations).
(5) 34 CFR part 79 (Intergovernmental Review of Department of Education Programs and Activities).
(6) 34 CFR part 80 (Uniform Administrative Requirements for Grants and
(7) 34 CFR part 81 (General Education Provisions Act—Enforcement).
(8) 34 CFR part 82 (New Restrictions on Lobbying).
(9) 34 CFR part 85 (Governmentwide Debarment and Suspension (Nonprocurement) and Governmentwide Requirements for Drug-Free Workplace (Grants)).
(10) 34 CFR part 86 (Drug-Free Schools and Campuses).
(b) The regulations in this part 460.
(c) The regulations in 34 CFR parts 461, 462, 463, 464, 472, 473, 474, 475, 476, 477, 489, and 490.
(a)
(b)
(c)
(1) Has minimal competence in reading, writing, and computation;
(2) Is not sufficiently competent to meet the educational requirements of adult life in the United States; or
(3) Is not sufficiently competent to speak, read, or write the English language to allow employment commensurate with the adult's real ability.
(1) Is literate and can function in everyday life, but is not proficient; or
(2) Does not have a certificate of graduation (or its equivalent) from a school providing secondary education.
(1) Were not born in the United States or whose native language is a language other than English;
(2) Come from environments where a language other than English is dominant; or
(3) Are American Indian or Alaska Natives and who come from environments where a language other than English has had a significant impact on their level of English language proficiency; and
(4) Who, by reason thereof, have sufficient difficulty speaking, reading, writing, or understanding the English language to deny these individuals the opportunity to learn successfully in classrooms where the language of instruction is English or to participate fully in our society.
(1) The terms mean an adult lacking a fixed, regular, and adequate nighttime residence as well as an individual
(i) A supervised publicly or privately operated shelter designed to provide temporary living accommodations (including welfare hotels, congregate shelters, and transitional housing for the mentally ill);
(ii) An institution that provides a temporary residence for individuals intended to be institutionalized; or
(iii) A public or private place not designed for, or ordinarily used as, a regular sleeping accommodation for human beings.
(2) The terms do not include any adult imprisoned or otherwise detained pursuant to an Act of the Congress or a State law.
(1) The production or processing of crops, dairy products, poultry, or livestock for initial commercial sale or as a principal means of personal subsistence;
(2) The cultivation or harvesting of trees; or
(3) Fish farms.
(1) Inform educationally disadvantaged adult populations of the availability and benefits of the adult education program;
(2) Actively recruit these adults to participate in the adult education program; and
(3) Assist these adults to participate in the adult education program by providing reasonable and convenient access and support services to remove barriers to their participation in the program.