The Great Neck Public Schools Adult Learning Center received $450,000 from the state Education Department, school officials announced on Thursday, which will go toward its high school equivalency and English literacy programs.
The funding stems from a Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act grant, which aims to provide adult education and literacy services to help people who are out of school become literate and economically self-sufficient.
This grant will fund the English as a New Language and High School Equivalency programs from July 1, 2018, to June 30, 2021.
“The Great Neck Adult Learning Center provides a unique opportunity for adult students to improve their English proficiency skills or earn a high school equivalency diploma,” Errin Hatwood, director of the Adult Learning Center, said in a statement. “This multi-year WIOA grant will allow us to continue providing our students with the necessary skills and knowledge to access college and navigate an ever-changing workforce.”
Exact registration numbers for the Adult Learning Center are unclear, but 31 people graduated with high school equivalence degrees and 18 from its English as a New Language program in June.
Also among the center’s courses are a conversation class, book club, citizenship test preparation, computer courses and Crossroads Cafe, according to the center’s website.
“Of equal importance, the award will be used to offset our reliance on school district funds,” Hatwood said.
The grant application, which took approximately four months to complete, was compiled by a team of guidance counselors, teachers, office staff members and the program director at the Adult Learning Center.
The center is located at 105 Clover Drive in Great Neck.
For more information, please contact the Adult Learning Center at 516-441-4950, or visit its website at https://www.greatneck.k12.ny.us/alc.
