Office of Adult Education (Is-Past)

The Mayor’s Commission on Literacy gives the following descriptive information:

The Mayor's Commission on Literacy has worked to equip all adults in Philadelphia with the education they need for work, family, and civic engagement since 1983. The Commission was charged to work on behalf of over 80 literacy and workforce development programs to help the estimated 550,000 adults in the city functioning below basic adult education levels to qualify for family-sustaining jobs and post-secondary training and education.

In 2011, the Commission was re-established by Executive Order to:
Advise and counsel the Mayor on ways to promote adult literacy among Philadelphia residents and on public policies that affect literacy efforts;

Provide a forum for discussing policy issues relating to adult literacy;

Promote an awareness of the need for action;

Encourage increased volunteer efforts on behalf of literacy; and

Encourage private sector involvement and support of literacy efforts.

In 2014, the Commission launched [myPLACE℠] , which stands for Philadelphia Literacy and Adult Career Education. myPLACE℠ is a citywide, technology-based system that accelerates adult learning and educates our workforce for 21st-century jobs on a large scale. The Commission also created myPLACE℠ Online Learning, the nation’s first completely online, cohort-based classes in reading, writing and math for low-literate adults. The online offerings have increased the city’s publicly-funded adult classes by 43% at half the cost of face-to-face instruction.