Elaine Callahan

Henrico County Adult Education

How has the present economic crisis affected your program?

We’re finding that we’ve really got to pay attention to our part-time salaries, so we’re having to increase class size. Last year, we began an attendance policy requiring a minimum of 70% monthly student attendance for every class. The days when we could run a class with four or five students are over. We had a huge in-service last year and followed up again at the beginning of this year, talking to- gether about how we’re all going to have to do more with less – all of us, not this class or that class. We didn’t go to VAACE this year, because we didn’t have the money.

My leadership team and I have sat down and come up with a plan, and we’veput it out there to our teachers.We’ve let them know that we’re in this together; we’re going to do what we have to do together. All said, my staff have really stepped up to the plate to pick up wherever we’re lacking. Many paid their own way to VAACE thisyear.

How has the crisis affected your enrollment? Have you changed the way you recruit learners?

Our enrollment has increased; business closings and layoffs have had a real impact. For example, Viasystems and Qimonda just shut down. Most of those people don’t have a high school diploma or secondary credential, but many of them were making excellent money. Now, they’re finding that jobs they once could have gotten are going to people with college or sometimes Master’s degrees.

Our enrollment hasn’t slacked off. Being inundated: that’s a good/bad problem to have. Again, our teachers have really stepped up. I haven’t heard any complaints about having more students in the classes.

Recruitment-wise, since we’ve got plenty of new folks coming in,we’reshifting towardsbringing non-completers back in, hunting them down, finding them, getting them back. We’ve been partnering with Cox radio and NBC 12, focusing on free GED testing, especially during GED Week, and paying for people who need partial testing. Where have you been able save money or forced to make cuts?

I just came from a budget meeting, and we have to cut our budget by 10%. We’re looking at publishing our catalogue only once a year instead of once a semester as we usually do. That should save us $20,000; we will also have to cut all of our travel.

We’re watching our paper, how many pencils we give out.We provide these to our clientele, but now we’re very conscious of how much we’re providing. Another example of what’s impacting us is H1N1 intervention; we’ve been reallocating some of our county budget funds toward pur- chasing hand sanitizer, etc., because they’ve told us to and because we don’t want to close down.

When a class has to be cancelled, or another emergency requires a change to the budget, how do you re-allocate the funds?

Well, if we had, for example, to close down because of H1N1 for any substantial amount of time, we would reschedule our classes. So, instead of holding a class, say, on Monday and Wednesday, we might hold it Monday- Tuesday-Wednesday. We’re going to do everything we can instructionally, and cut elsewhere if we have to cut.

Have you been able to find any additional funding sources? form new partnerships?

Our partnership with Cox radio and NBC 12 has re- ally helped our recruitment. We also have a new site out at Noelle Apartments: they give us classrooms and the com- puters, and we provide a teacher and a classroom set of books. We have the same arrangement with the Brookhill Goodwill.

Henrico County does give us a budget, and that makes a difference. I don’t have to pay rent, and I can also use resources within the county if I need to. We’ve found, too, that we do have some waste we can cut.

What tips do you have for other programs trying to do more with less?

I don’t think it hurts to go out and canvass for volun- teers and supplies. Ask, “Are you willing to partner with us?” and say, for example, “We need a classroom set of books.” I think there are people out there who want to be a part of us. At the end of last year, we got a check from a woman none of us knew; she knew someone who went through our program and decided to make a donation. Outreach works, and word of mouth from clients works. .: