Idaho Governor Brad Little signed a proclamation to celebrate and recognize Adult Education and Family Literacy week during the week of Sept. 18. This recognition was spearheaded by College of Western Idaho (CWI) English as a Second Language (ESL) and Career Pathways supervisor, Trevi Hardy, who also serves as the Idaho State Advocate for Adult Education fellowship, which is involved with the national organization, Coalition for Adult Basic Education (COABE).
Hardy’s role with the fellowship is to increase awareness and advocacy for potential funding for adult education in the Gem State. One way to do this was by submitting a proclamation request to the Idaho government, similar to the national initiative.
Little signed the proclamation on Monday, Sept. 19, with Hardy and Idaho Division of Career Technical Education (IDCTE) present.
“There is a lot of great work happening across the state in adult education, but it is a small piece of the education landscape in Idaho,” said Hardy. “We have about 5,000 students in adult education across the state of Idaho, and we have very limited funding compared to what K-12 has. We do so much work which isn’t always recognized. I was very excited the governor would elevate that work.”
At the proclamation, Hardy and IDCTE were able to honor a CWI student, Asel Orozaly, and current teacher, Edvin Subasic, and introduce them to Governor Little.
Orozaly was able to go through and graduate CWI’s ESL program and Swift Programming. Subasic teaches Adult Education and helped create curriculum for the ESL pilot program, Bridge to English 101.
“I’m so happy we got to share the stories of the teachers who work in the program and the students who accomplish so much,” Hardy said. “This week is an opportunity to continue elevating these stories and spread the good work the team of Adult Education in Idaho is doing.”
