EVEN START FAMILY LITERACY PROGRAM

Debra Williams-Appleton
Office of Superintendent of Public Instruction
P.O. Box 47200
Olympia, WA 98504-7200
Telephone: 360.725.6049
E-mail: debra.appleton@k12.wa.us

State Website: www.k12.wa.us

Participation: 570 parents and 853 children participated in the Even Start Family Literacy Program during July 1, 2006-June 30, 2007.

Who is Served: A family must have at least one eligible parent and one eligible child who is under eight-years-old, participating in the program together. The parent must be eligible for adult basic education programs under the Adult Education Act or be within the compulsory school attendance age range. Priority is given to families most in need of Even Start services as demonstrated by the area’s level of poverty, illiteracy, unemployment, homelessness, limited English proficiency, or other similar need-related factors.

Program Description: The Even Start Family Literacy Program is aimed at breaking the cycle of poverty and illiteracy by improving the educational opportunities of low-income families nationwide. The program integrates key services, including:

• Parent literacy training to spur economic self sufficiency.
• Age-appropriate education to prepare children for success in school and life.
• Interactive reading activities between parents and their children.
• Training that enables parents to become full partners in their child’s education.

Other Program Characteristics: This federal grant program provides funds to local entities. Each entity is required to form a partnership among local education agencies and one or more profit/nonprofit community-based organizations, public agencies, institutions of higher education, or nonprofit organizations. The program shall:

• Promote the academic achievement of children and adults.
• Assist children and adults from low-income families to achieve challenging state content standards and challenging student performance standards.
• Use instructional activities based on scientifically developed research on reading and prevention of reading difficulties.

Program History: Congress authorized the federal Even Start Family Literacy program in 1989. The federal Even Start Family Literacy program has 13 projects in Washington State.

Planning Cycle: Competitive grants are awarded for four-year periods across the state in partnership with community colleges and community-based organizations.

Outcome Measures: Outcome measures for adults include improvement in reading, writing, English language acquisition, problem solving, and math skills. Other measures for adults include attainment of a high school diploma or GED, enrollment in postsecondary education, entry into a job-training program, entry into employment or career advancement, and improvement in parenting skills. Outcome measures for children include improvement in reading readiness and reading ability, school attendance, grade retention or advancement, or improvement in achieving the state’s Essential Academic Learning Requirements. There are also outcome measures for program performance.

Funding and Regional Division: Funding is allocated through a competitive grant process statewide.

State Funding: None.

Federal Funding: $1,068,000 (September 1, 2007-August 31, 2008), U.S. Department of Education.

Statutory Authority: This federal program is administered by the Office of Superintendent of Public Instruction.  The program was first enacted in 1988 as part of the federal Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965. Since 1965, the Act has been amended several times. More recently, the program was amended by the Reading Excellence Act of 1999, the Omnibus Appropriations Act for fiscal year 2000, the Literacy Involves Families Together Act, and by the No Child Left Behind Act of 2001.