LITTLE ROCK, AR, January 14, 2015 /24-7PressRelease/ -- On Wednesday, January 7, 2015 Arkansas Adult Education launched a statewide public awareness campaign to draw attention to the considerable number of Arkansans with no high school diploma, just as Arkansans begin contemplating resolutions and goals for the New Year. The campaign highlights the services provided by Adult Education centers to help Arkansans earn an Arkansas high school diploma and get trained for jobs in the 21st century.
Through radio advertising, the campaign, entitled Move Ahead, emphasizes free Adult Education classes and the earning potential after obtaining a high school diploma.
Nearly 25% of all Arkansas counties have the following: 1) a high percentage of adults (25 and older) without a high school diploma, 2) a high number of high school dropouts for the 2012-2013 school year and 3) the greatest decreases in traffic to Arkansas Adult Education Centers.
"We know that earning an Arkansas high school diploma can have a positive effect on income over your lifetime," James Smith, Deputy Director of the Arkansas Department of Career Education, said.
"Our Adult Education centers throughout the state are equipped and staffed to help those individuals who want to move ahead by earning an Arkansas high school diploma and get on a path toward greater financial stability and freedom."
U.S. Census data shows that from 2009 to 2013, high school graduates earned nearly eight-thousand dollars more every year than those without a high school diploma. Also, high school graduates earn $488,000 more over a lifetime than people without a high school diploma.
For more information about Arkansas Adult Education's efforts to increase the number of Arkansans with a high school diploma, contact Stephanie Jackson at 501.492.4900 or [email protected].
About Arkansas Adult Education
Arkansas Adult Education, a division of the Arkansas Department of Career Education, provides basic skills classes to adults with less than a high school education and assists them with earning an Arkansas high school diploma. This is accomplished through basic and general education classes, English as a Second Language classes, correctional education classes and family literacy classes. Arkansans who are unemployed or underemployed and who are seeking to increase their academic and job readiness skills do so through the Workforce Alliance for Growth in the Economy (WAGE) program.
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