We, the undersigned urge all of the 2008 Presidential candidates to respond to five adult literacy policy questions at www.litpresident.org. Your responses will be posted there. These questions include: 1. Will you make adult education one of your education priorities 2. If elected, what steps will your administration take to increase access for new immigrants, the unemployed, underemployed, high school dropouts, and others in need of [literacy] assistance 3. Will you support intergenerational literacy programs (combining adult education and early childhood education) and other efforts directed at improving the literacy or academic skills of parents and other caregivers so they can fully support the education of their children 4. Will you support workplace education services in partnership with employers that will enable currently employed undereducated adults to improve their reading, writing, math, and English in order to compete for increasingly complex jobs 5. In order to overcome the stigma of adults returning to school, will you use your bully pulpit to set the expectation that all adult parents, workers, and community members will enhance their potential by improving their reading, math, and English skills FAST FACTS - ADULT LITERACY There are an estimated 30 million adults whose literacy skills are at the below basic level according to the 2003 National Assessment of Adult Literacy and the skills of another 60 million are at the basic level. These 90 million adults may be in the workforce but are at risk - they have developed coping skills to get by in their current job, but if requirements change or their current job is outsourced and they must find another, they could be in trouble. The health of these 90 million adults tends to be less well on average than that of individuals with higher literacy skills and adults at these low literacy levels find it difficult or impossible to assist in the education of their children in school. DEADLINE On or about December 17, 2007, we will send this petition to each of the 2008 Presidential candidates. Check out candidate responses at www.litpresident.org

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