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State Policies to Support Adult Learners' Access and Success

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Alabama

HB406 (2009) proposes an income tax credit for adult workers engaged in education and training for high demand professions.

Alaska

Chapter 36 SLA 09 provides training and employment services for adults who are unemployed or at risk of becoming unemployed due to fluctuations in the state economy or technology advances in the workplace.

Arizona

SB1468 (2009) would allow school districts to offer vocational educational services without regard to students' age or high school graduation status.

Statute 15-1650.01. establishes a task force for retraining disabled military veterans for new occupations.

Statute 15-1808 provides tuition waivers to the child or spouse of a correctional officer, fire fighter, emergency paramedic, national guard member, or member of the United States armed forces killed in the line of duty, or disabled national guard member at any community college or university.

Arkansas

Act 222 establishes the School Leadership Coordinating Council to encourage school districts to work with various departments and leadership groups to increase adults' academic performance.

HB1002 (2009) will create the Arkansas Scholarship Lottery Act to supplement higher education scholarships for underserved students including non-traditional learners with net proceeds from the state lottery.

HB1990 (2009) would require higher education institutions to develop uniform exit standards for remedial courses, and develop alternative approaches to traditional remedial instruction based on best practices in remedial education.

California

AB3 (2009) would establish a Renewable Energy Workforce Readiness Initiative to provide training to low-income adults for green collar jobs.

Codes 981-981.8  provide state financial assistance and other support to veterans seeking postsecondary education.

Codes 69785-69786 authorize state community colleges and universities to coordinate services for student veterans through designated offices and staff members on campus to support them.

SB815 (2009) would extend educational assistance awards to qualifying members of the California National Guard, Military Reserve, and Naval Militia to pursue higher education.

Colorado

Statute 26-2-706.6 enables low-income adults and their families to establish Individual Development Accounts for postsecondary education and training. Sponsoring organizations pay matching funds directly to the education or training provider. Also enables counties to offer job skills education vouchers to adults for short term job training at community and technical colleges.

Connecticut

Statute 164 Sec. 10-20a allows regional postsecondary institutions and education and workforce boards to collaborate in order to establish professional certification programs in high demand industries.

Statute 164 Sec. 10-73a allows the board of education to waive fees to a handicapped adult or to a person sixty-two years of age or older registered for, or enrolled in, adult programs, classes, or activities.

District of Columbia

HR931 The Employment of Returning Veteran's Credit Act of 2009 would provides a tax credit equal to 10% of the wages paid by an employer to eligible veterans during the first two years of their employment.

The Adult Education and Family Literacy Act (AEFLA) provides funding to local organizations that offer adult education programs and services.

Statute 1004.875 allows baccalaureate degree-granting community colleges to be designated as state colleges to meet regional workforce demands.

Georgia

HB162 (2009) would provide HOPE grants to eligible students of the Technical College System of Georgia, the University System of Georgia, or Georgia Military College.

Illinois

SB1796 (2009) proposes to establish the Illinois Hope and Opportunity Pathways through Education (IHOPE) program to re-enroll high school dropouts in programs that will enable them to earn their high school diploma.

Indiana

SB0499 (2009) would require the Indiana Economic Development Corporation (IEDC) and Ivy Tech Community College to emphasize job creation and training for adult workers in environmentally-conscious clean technology and renewable energy businesses.

Iowa

Statute 84A.10 establishes the New Employment Opportunity Program to assist individuals in underutilized segments of Iowa's workforce, including people with disabilities, ex-offenders, and minorities, to gain and retain employment.

Statute 877.7.15 allows Individual Training Accounts to be established through participating service providers for job training services for adult learners and displaced workers.

Kansas

S120 allows program costs under the Investment in Major Projects and Comprehensive Training (IMPACT) Program to include wages for new or retained employees during education or retraining.

Kentucky

HB507 (2009) proposes to establish Metropolitan College to provide postsecondary educational opportunities to employees as part of a combined work and postsecondary education program.

Louisiana

SB703 (2008) would create the Golden Scholars Award program to offer financial assistance for adults age fifty-five years and older who attend public colleges and universities.

Maine

Title 20-A provides transportation to adult education courses.

Maryland

Chapter 379 requires local boards of education to inform individuals without a high school diploma about alternative education programs and GED program requirements and testing locations.

Massachusetts

The WIA Title II "Adult Education and Family Literacy Act" Masschusetts State Plan and Extension to State Plan outline the activities to be funded through Title II, including, but not limited to, Adult Education for the Homeless, Educational Programs for the Incarcerated, Workplace Education Program, and ABE Distance Learning Pilot Project.

Michigan

The No Worker Left Behind initiative funds training for "high-wage, high-knowledge" jobs for displaced or low-wage workers by offering free tuition for approved programs to accelerate career transitions.

Minnesota

Chapter 60 establishes communities for a lifetime for older adults and a task force led by the Board of Aging to explore issues related to them.

Statute 197.75, The Minnesota GI bill, provides postsecondary educational assistance to eligible Minnesota veterans, and to the children and spouses of deceased or severely disabled Minnesota veterans.

Nevada

Chapter 420 provides free tuition for in-state active members of the Armed Forces and in-state veterans at campuses of the Nevada System of Higher Education.

New Hampshire

Law RSA 188-D:18-f-i establishes The Workforce Incentive Program to encourage adult workers to pursue education and training in high demand industries through the provision of forgivable loans and education loan repayment.

New Jersey

S2115 (2008) would provide state aid for adult high school education and adult postsecondary education programs.

New Mexico

Chapter 123 (2009) provides in-state tuition rates for eligible honorably discharged veterans, their spouses, and dependent children.

New York

A01362 (2009) would establish life long learning centers to offer courses for adults age 40 and older.

North Carolina

SB98 (2009) proposes the "No Adult Left Behind" initiative to increase degree/credential completion for working adults by expanding workforce training opportunities for them.

Ohio

Statute 3333.34 creates a system of pre-college and college-level "stackable certificates," which allow adults to earn college credit through nontraditional means such as adult career centers, specialized training programs, and employment experience.

Statute 3333.1.10 establishes the Ohio GI Promise program that enables veterans, spouses, and dependents to qualify for in-state tuition rates at postsecondary education institutions.  The bill also enables veterans to receive benefits to cover the cost of in-state tuition and books and a monthly housing stipend.

Pennsylvania

SB774 (2009) proposes a Postsecondary Education Tuition Reimbursement Program for volunteer firefighters, police officers, and emergency services.

SB21 (2009) would provide green work force training to dislocated workers.

SB78 establishes The Postsecondary Educational Gratuity Program, which provides financial assistance for postsecondary education to veterans, spouses, and dependents.

Rhode Island

S2124 (2008) proposes that the state lottery division conduct an instant game in 2009 called the "Life-long Learning Game" and deposit game revenue for the first two months into a scholarship fund for adult students to be used by the Community College of Rhode Island.

South Carolina

H3103 (2009) proposes that an eligible student enrolled in a state-sponsored adult education program may take the General Education Development (GED) exam free of charge.

Tennessee

HB2029 (2009) would allow counties to adopt and fund financial assistance programs for county residents to help them attend community colleges and other postsecondary institutions.

Texas

81(R) SB 1312 (2009) would establish the Jobs and Education for Texans (JET) Grant Program to allow public junior colleges and public technical institutes to administer adult basic education programs.

HB1935 (effective September 1, 2009) provides grants to higher education/nonprofit partnerships to equip unemployed and underemployed adults with career training for high-demand local occupations.

Utah

R277-705 exempts adult education students from attempting or passing the Utah Basic Skills Competency Test (UBSCT) in order to qualify for an adult education diploma.

Vermont

H313 (2009) proposes to establish a green workforce collaborative to promote career training and employment opportunities for Vermonters in green industry sectors.

Washington

SB5051 (2009) proposes to establish the Washington Energy Efficiency Worker Training program to help low-income adults prepare for jobs in the energy-efficient building, construction, and retrofit industries.

West Virginia

SB273 (2009) would provide a tax credit to employers that support employees seeking to obtain a GED by allowing them a minimum of five hours per week paid release time to study for the test. Also allows postsecondary institutions to offer tuition waivers for full-time employees who have earned their GED.

HB3340 requires the Higher Education Policy Commission, Council for Community and Technical College Education and State Board of Education to maintain a longitudinal education data system that links student records from early learning programs through post-secondary education, entry into the workforce, and beyond.

Email us about policies for adult learners in your state at lifelong_learning@ace.nche.edu.

Please direct questions about this page to:
lifelong_learning@ace.nche.edu
This page last updated on 07/14/2009