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Our mission is to inspire educators so adults succeed and communities thrive. 
Visit our award-winning  Educate & Elevate campaign website to read this month's student success stories! 
Showcase your program successes by submitting your own student or innovation success story!
In This Issue
Our June VIP Vendor Is:
Adult Learners Can Join COABE for FREE!
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COABE has launched an Adult Learner membership option that is FREE to all adult learners. The benefits include access to $60,000 worth of life insurance at no charge, the opportunity to be nominated for our Adult Learner of the Year Award ($10,000 is awarded to the winner), access to their legislators, and much more! Click here for more details.
Adult Education Ambassadors Share Heartfelt Stories with Legislators.
Adult learners from left to right: Dylan Redmon, Natasa Paunovic, Samantha Vega, and MAACCE MD state association president, Melanie Chapman
Natasa Paunovic immigrated to the U.S. in 1995 with her husband, a baby, and another on the way. She had a good education in Serbia, but knew no English. She lost her unborn baby and nearly lost her own life due to language barriers. Her young family relocated to Cumberland. Many obstacles stood in her way of success: isolation from anyone she knew, limited transportation, and cultural and language differences. She was determined to assimilate to the culture and be successful in society.

Natasa sought out opportunities to improve her language skills and her fluency. She initially studied an English dictionary and found informal conversational English learning groups. Her saving grace was meeting a retired school teacher who volunteered to tutor her. A formal solution came when her tutor recommended enrolling in an External High School Diploma Program provided by the Basic Adult Education Center of Allegany College of Maryland. In 1998, 3 years after arriving in the United States, she graduated with a U.S. High School Diploma. In 2004 she enrolled at Frostburg State University and became a social work major. She attended school full-time and continued to work part-time while still raising a young family.

She graduated in 2009 with a bachelor's degree in social work. Afterwards, she worked at Shepherd Pratt Health System serving children with multiple challenges. After seven years, she became a family investment specialist for the Department of Social Services. She works with families who are in need, including immigrants and refugees. She is an outstanding example of an adult learner who continues to learn and serve her community. Do you have an adult learner success story to share? You can submit your story HERE

 
 

COABE led its sixth Capitol Hill Day on May 6, 2019! Participants from 21 states logged 78 face-to-face visits with legislators bringing our total in-person visits to 462 since COABE started organizing legislative visits. Many members also contacted their legislators via email while advocates were on the Hill, raising the total number of legislative connections to 114,602 to date.  
 
We need to continue to raise the visibility of our services. Click the Take Action button to contact your legislators today!
 
 
 
 
 
"Using Games to Differentiate, Motivate, and Engage"
Date: Tuesday, June 4th
Time: 2:00 p.m. - 3:00 p.m. EST
Presented by: Heather Martin and Tara Schwab
 
 
 

Google Webinar Series Session 4: "Google's Applied Digital Skills: Digital Skills for the Office"
Date: Thursday, June 13, 2019
Time: 2:00 p.m. - 3:00 p.m. EST
Presented by: Janet Maragioglio  
 
 
 
Google Webinar Series Session 5: "Google's Applied Digital Skills: Support Resources, Certification, and Next Steps"
Date: Thursday, June 20, 2019
Time: 2:00 p.m. - 3:00 p.m. EST
Presented by: Shahla Naimi  

 
 
"Fostering Metacognitive Skills and Critical Thinking in Your Classroom"
Date: Tuesday,  June 25th
Time: 2:00 p.m. - 3:00 p.m. EST
Presented by: Sarah Goldammer
 
   

The  Carlmont Parents Nursery School  in Belmont has an open position beginning in the fall 2019.  
 
   
Click   HERE  to submit your article for our next edition of the COABE Journal which will focus on the topic of leadership. 

The  COABE Journal seeks to be the resource that adult educators turn to for learning and inspiration. Since the
COABE Journal rebranded and began using a theme format -- first with career pathways and most recently with prison literacy --  we have seen a tremendous response and are hearing from our members that this new practitioner focused theming has been incredibly useful to our members. We are proud to share that over 11,000 readers now download and use the COABE Journal. Get the details and access your copy today HERE.
 

Enroll Your Learners in the 
Adult Literacy XPRIZE Communities Competition
 
Enroll your learners into the XPRIZE-winning app, Learning Upgrade, at no cost when you use the COABE XPRIZE Code 1177.  
 
The adult literacy program that is able to onboard and get the most adults up and running on the app via their android phone, will receive $500. Winners will be selected each month. 

Click  HERE for more details or contact [email protected] for more details. 
Congratulations to Dave Christopher at AMPED, Winner of $1,000!
 
COABE and Google are partnering to deliver Applied Digital Skills Boot
Camps in all 50 states over the next year. The Boot Camps will be held in partnership with COABE's large group members, which are primarily state associations. Check the schedule here to find out when your state is hosting a Boot Camp and to save your seat today!
 
COABE will continue to award $1,000 each month for the next 11 months, so if you have begun using the curriculum in your classroom, be sure to share your success story with us here.
 
David's testimonial: Our program is a multi-generational program with a particular focus on African American low income families. Most of our parents have little or no college education but possess a high school diploma or equivalent  
 
In West Louisville there is, what we refer to as, a Digital Divide. African Americans make up 27% of Louisville's total population, with 85% of those African Americans living in West Louisville. The median income for residents in West Louisville neighborhoods is $8,000 to $14,000 annually, which puts those families at or below the poverty line. Many are the hard-working, working poor.  
 
As an African American male in technology for over 30 years, I am fully aware of the underrepresentation of African Americans in technology. Technology is 68.5% White and a staggering 7.8% Black. Entry level jobs in technology begin at a living wage of $40,000 annually.  
 
With the Digital Divide taking place in predominantly poor and African American communities, there is a fear of technology as well as a shortage of access to and education about technology. We discovered through a partnership with the National Center for Families Learning, a partner of COABE, that we could close the Digital Divide and simultaneously tackle the issue of concentrated poverty in our African American communities.  
 
Google Applied Digital Skills was the perfect entry point for our participants. It gives them the level of comfort with its project-based approach to learning. Once students have completed the Google Applied Digital Skills they go on to the Google IT Help Desk Training.  
 
We have been able to create partnerships with three major corporations that offer jobs in technology. Employees that are responsible for hiring from Humana, Best Buy, and Nuestar meet with our parents weekly to educate them on how to be prepared for careers in technology. These companies review resumes at the beginning and midpoint of the twelve week program and just prior their graduation. They also conduct interviews with our graduates with the intent of hiring them.   
 
Thank you Google and COABE for this awesome opportunity! 
 
COABE is rolling out the award-winning Ambassador Training in all 50 states as we plan for a massive Capitol Hill Day on April 8, 2020 in coordination with our 2020 national conference!
Meet the 2019 COABE Adult Learner of the Year Kenneth Ludolph!
 
Kenneth's teacher submitted his story on our award-winning advocacy website, www.educateandelevate.org, and after careful consideration, he was selected as the recipient of COABE 's 2019 Adult Learner of the Year Award and was honored at  COABE's  
National Conference in New Orleans!  
 
Do you know of an outstanding adult learner? Submit their story here for consideration. The winner will be selected by January 15, 2020 and will be honored at the awards event which will be held in Baltimore, MD on April 6, 2020. The winner will receive $10,000 and travel expense coverage to the conference. 
In 2016, Kenneth Lee Ludolph, Jr. got into some trouble, and it sent him to prison. While he was there, he became very determined to earn his GED® diploma and do something meaningful with his life.
 
Kenneth faithfully studied for his test - first at a class at the Oklahoma State Reformatory and then at the OCTC halfway house, and he passed his high school equivalency test in just a few months. Next, he attended a Career Success Class where he earned a Certificate of Work Ethic Proficiency. He began college studying automotive technology just three days after his June 1, 2018 release from prison. 
 
As he continued to pursue college and overcome obstacles, Kenneth began receiving awards as the 2018 Adult Learner of the Year in Oklahoma and the COABE 2019 Outstanding Adult Learner of the Year. He has now completed one year of college and has a paid internship at an automotive dealership. Kenneth hopes to have his own automotive business someday.
 
Register HERE!

Join us for the first-ever Minds That Move Us Adult Career Pathway Festival in Miami, Florida, August 6-8, 2019, where ten teams from around the country will pitch innovative education and training models that create social equity and economic mobility for youth and adult learners for a chance to win $100k!

The Festival will be hosted by the Institute for Educational Leadership in partnership with COABE and NASDAE and promises to be an entertaining cross between Shark Tank and America's Got Talent, in which teams will present to a panel of judges and an audience comprised of adult learners, employers, practitioners, policy makers, funders, friends, and family will vote for their favorite idea.


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COABE and Amazon are partnering to remove barriers to employment for adult learners. At one time, a high school diploma was essential to be considered for employment at Amazon. But now, thanks to this partnership, adult learners can apply for positions with a wage between $15-$19 per hour, plus retirement package and Career Choice, a program that pays for 80% of their college education. Two years after their hire date, the requirement for a bachelor's degree to obtain a management position will be removed.  
 
Amazon will also conduct field trips should you wish to bring your adult learners to an Amazon site. Contact [email protected] for more details. 
 
Alpha Delta Kappa launched a national public awareness campaign to elevate the profession of teaching here!  COABE participated as one of the 78 co-signing organizations for this campaign.
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