Some Advice from CCAE

This was sent out August 8, 2015 to CCAE members:

Some Advice from CCAE

As some of you might have noticed the previous message was sent out last year.

(Note from Cynthia:  I deleted the post from this blog.) 

Seems like the important issues then are still the important issues now. Below is updated advice on MOE vs MOC which should be relevant to your current consortia conversations.As Adult Schools move into challenging conversations with our consortia partners we in CCAE realize that if we are to be successful providers of adult education services in this new world we must be successful within our consortia. As such CCAE will be providing advisories that are intended to give the best advice from state leaders of Adult Education within our organization. These advisories are not intended to represent state policy or Ed Code but rather guidance based on the most current information (laws and policies) available and best Adult Ed practices within the state. Our goal is to inform our members of options and recommendations that will ultimately provide the best services for our students and the best return on investment for our state.

MOE is NOT MOC (Maintenance of Effort is NOT Maintenance of Capacity)

Hit the "read more" link to learn more.

Although we worked successfully with and were appreciative of the Governor, Department of Finance and Legislature agreeing to help maintain the capacity of a fragile Adult Education system and providing K12 specific funding for such maintenance, it is important for all of us to keep in mind that the way Maintenance of Effort was determined based on expenditures in 2012-13 resulted in an actual DECREASE in true dollars for Adult Schools and could ultimately result in the erosion of capacity within our Adult Ed system. Specifically, the MOE calculation did not take into account increased costs over the last two years related to STRS, COLAs, salaries, and health care.  With this loss of revenue and the inability to charge fees for ESL, each Adult School will inevitably have to consider reducing programs and services if the costs are not addressed in some way.

So what should an Adult School do?

Since the MOE funding amounts per school district have already been determined, the remaining funds of the $500 million Adult Education Block Grant (AEBG) will be distributed to consortia and funding amounts for each member or partner will be determined within the consortia. Let us be clear - your MOE funds are not up for redistribution to other members but your agency is entitled to more funding from the additional consortia dollars. You should consider your MOE as a base funding amount which can then be added to through consortia dollars. In essence, there are two funding sources within the AEBG - MOE funds and consortia funds.

Considering the potential for an Adult School to lose a significant amount of capacity if the above mentioned costs are not addressed, it is recommended that each Adult School request funds be provided out of consortia dollars to supplement their MOE in order to maintain 2014-15 capacity levels. Once you have addressed this issue and are comfortable that your capacity is preserved the conversation can be shifted to increasing, improving, and streamlining services through your Adult School and what dollar amounts it will take out of consortia funds to accomplish this.

These might be delicate and uncomfortable conversations but keep in mind that non-Adult School members have had these costs addressed through separate, additional funding for their programs. Community Colleges for example continue to receive COLA and growth funding. Also keep in mind that Adult Schools are typically the less expensive provider of services and the most flexible and quickest to respond to address gaps in Adult Education services. You come to the table with a lot to offer so don't cut your school short when it comes to requesting an appropriate share of the consortia dollars.