Adult Education & Literacy

2010-2011 Exit Cohort Report

Summary Text

Adult Education and Literacy (AEL) programs funded by the Texas Workforce Commission (TWC) provide English language, math, reading, and writing instruction to help students acquire the skills needed to succeed in the workforce, earn a high school equivalency, or enter college or career training.

On May 18, 2013, Governor Rick Perry signed Texas Senate Bill (SB) 307, 83rd Legislature, Regular Session (2013), which transferred responsibility for adult education from the Texas Education Agency (TEA) to TWC. Detailed information about TWC Adult Education and Literacy programs can be found at the AEL homepage.

Between July 1st, 2010 and June 30th, 2011, 92,899 customers participated in TWC Adult Education & Literacy programs. Females represented about two-thirds of the program enrollment total, and Hispanics represented slightly over 75% of participants.

Fifty-four percent (54%) or 50,019 participants of the 92,899 total enrollments exited these programs during this period. Exiting participants (or "exiters") were identified as being in one of two groups:

(1) Enrolled participants who had not participated in adult education for 90 days and had given no indication of intent to return the following program year; and

(2) Enrolled participants leaving during the last 90 days of the program year who gave a reason for not returning the following year.


31,934 of these exiters provided a Social Security Number (SSN). This subset of SSN-providing exiters forms the 2010-2011 Exit Cohort. All post-exit outcomes in this report describe this group.

Using SSN, AEL program records of the 2010-2011 Exit Cohort were matched with Unemployment Insurance (UI) Wage Records for employment and income data. General Educational Development (GED) Certificate obtainment rates were obtained from TEA GED Unit Records, and postsecondary enrollment data were added by linking to Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board (THECB) Master Enrollment Records.


Abbreviation/Acronym Glossary and Table Legend

A B E

Adult Basic Education


A E L

Adult Education & Literacy


A S E

Adult Secondary Education


C C / C C D

Community College / Community College District


E S L

English as a Second Language


G E D

General Educational Development


Q 4

Fourth Quarter of the Calendar Year


N A I C S

North American Industry Classification System


S B

Senate Bill


S S N

Social Security Number


T E A

Texas Education Agency


T H E C B

Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board


T W C

Texas Workforce Commission


U I

Unemployment Insurance


* * *

Cell Sizes Too Small to Publish; Withheld to Protect Customer Privacy


- 0 -

No Data (Cell Size = 0)


-- (blank)

Not Applicable


- N R -

Not Reported



Breakdown of AEL Program Enrollment by Ethnicity and Gender

Enrollment Ethnic and Gender Breakdown Table One

Hispanics compose slightly more than three-quarters of the AEL enrollment cohort; roughly half of total enrollees are Hispanic women and about 25% are Hispanic men. White and Black/African American are the next two largest ethnicities at 10.5% and 8.8%, respectively. Both of these program enrollee groups have a gender composition close to 60% female, 40% male. Asians compose 4.2% of enrollees and participate at a 2-to-1 female-to-male gender ratio.

The following tables provide the enrollment head count by ethnicity and gender.


Ethnicity Head Count Percentage
American Indian or Alaskan Native3570.4%
Asian3,8654.2%
Black or African American8,2078.8%
Hispanic or Latino70,29775.7%
Native Hawaiian or Other Pacific Islander680.1%
White9,71310.5%
Two or More Races3920.4%
Total92,899100%

Enrollment Ethnic and Gender Breakdown Table Two

Ethnicity Gender Head Count Female % Male % Total %
American Indian or Alaskan Native Female 214 0.4% -- 0.2%
Male 143 -- 0.4% 0.2%
Asian Female 2,564 4.3% -- 2.8%
Male 1,301 -- 4.0% 1.4%
Black or African American Female 4,331 7.2% -- 4.7%
Male 3,876 -- 11.9% 4.2%
Hispanic or Latino Female 47,141 78.3% -- 50.7%
Male 23,156 -- 70.8% 24.9%
Native Hawaiian or Pacific Islander Female 42 0.1% -- 0.05%
Male 26 -- 0.1% 0.03%
White Female 5,676 9.4% -- 6.1%
Male 4,037 -- 12.3% 4.3%
Two or More Races Female 228 0.4% -- 0.2%
Male 164 -- 0.5% 0.2%
Total Female 60,196 100% -- 64.8%
Male 32,703 -- 100% 35.2%
Total 92,899 -- -- 100%

Breakdown of AEL Program Enrollment by Program Type, Educational Level at Entry, Ethnicity and Gender

Program Enrollment and Education Level Breakdown Table One

AEL programs assess students on intake to determine their educational functioning level. Students are assigned one educational level at entry out of four possible levels for Adult Basic Education (ABE), two levels for Adult Secondary Education (ASE), or six levels for English as a Second Language (ESL). Each level describes a set of skills and competencies that students entering at that level can perform in the areas of reading, writing, numeracy, speaking, listening, functional tasks, and workplace tasks.

The following tables provide the enrollment head count for each program and skill level by ethnicity and gender.


Ethnicity Gender ABE Beginning Literacy ABE Beginning Basic Education ABE Intermediate Low ABE Intermediate High ASE Low ASE High
American Indian or Alaskan Native Female 8 38 57 48 8 7
Male 14 35 32 21 5 5
Asian Female 47 170 133 79 27 11
Male 33 100 55 40 13 * * *
Black or African American Female 308 1,061 1,430 955 117 55
Male 372 1,176 1,117 694 149 48
Hispanic or Latino Female 834 3,531 4,917 3,588 641 324
Male 710 2,750 2,811 2,077 449 280
Native Hawaiian or Pacific Islander Female * * * 12 7 11 * * * - 0 -
Male - 0 - 8 6 * * * - 0 - * * *
White Female 170 811 1,568 1,608 460 379
Male 198 832 1,002 1,035 341 343
Two or More Races Female 9 32 64 54 8 5
Male 5 35 43 37 11 8
Total Total 2,711 10,591 13,242 10,250 2,232 1,469
Percentage 2.9% 11.4% 14.3% 11.0% 2.4% 1.6%

Program Enrollment and Education Level Breakdown Table Two

Ethnicity Gender ESL Beginning Literacy ESL Beginning Low ESL Beginning High ESL Intermediate Low ESL Intermediate High Advanced ESL
American Indian or Alaskan Native Female 30 6 5 * * * * * * * * *
Male 21 * * * 6 * * * - 0 - - 0 -
Asian Female 897 372 365 214 211 38
Male 540 181 162 95 66 14
Black or African American Female 215 92 54 21 20 * * *
Male 152 80 56 12 16 * * *
Hispanic or Latino Female 17,042 5,403 5,197 2,698 2,647 319
Male 6,575 3,042 2,349 1,009 963 141
Native Hawaiian or Pacific Islander Female * * * * * * - 0 - * * * * * * * * *
Male * * * * * * * * * - 0 - - 0 - - 0 -
White Female 279 154 101 61 77 8
Male 117 74 45 23 23 * * *
Two or More Races Female 22 17 * * * 9 * * * - 0 -
Male 15 5 * * * * * * * * * - 0 -
Total Total 35,908 9,434 8,349 4,149 4,031 533
Percentage 37.9% 10.2% 9.0% 4.5% 4.4% 0.6%

Breakdown of 2011 Exit Cohort by Employment Status (Pre/Post), Postsecondary Enrollment, and GED Acquisition

Exit Cohort Breakdown Table One

The AEL 2010-2011 Exit Cohort has been matched to both Texas UI Wage Records for Q4 2011, as well as the Fall 2011 THECB Master Enrollment File for postsecondary institutions.

The first three tables present exit cohort members found employed in Q4 2011; the first table is for employed workers not enrolled in postsecondary schools, the second table is for cohort members both employed and enrolled, and the third table shows all employed workers. These groups are then presented by employment status at entry and program type.

The fourth table presents the number of seed records not found in either the Q4 2011 wage records or the Fall 2011 postsecondary enrollment records, as well as rates of GED acquisition, for each combination of program type and employment status at entry.


Employment Status at Entry Program Exit Cohort
Seed Records
Working Only
Q4 2011
Working Only % Working Only
Median Wage
Employed at Entry ESL 4,510 3,073 68.1% $4,820
ABE 6,284 4,263 67.8% $3,760
ASE 857 520 60.7% $3,724
Subtotal 11,651 7,856 67.4% $4,186
Unemployed at Entry ESL 828 2,082 38.6% $3,377
ABE 8,168 3,431 42.0% $2,106
ASE 890 368 41.4% $2,061
Subtotal 11,140 4,603 41.3% $2,280
Not in Labor Force at Entry ESL 2,726 610 22.4% $2,959
ABE 5,549 1,545 27.8% $2,000
ASE 868 268 30.9% $1,990
Subtotal 9,143 2,423 26.5% $2,194
Overall TOTAL 31,934 14,882 46.6% $3,223

Exit Cohort Breakdown Table Two

Employment Status at Entry Program Exit Cohort
Seed Records
Working &
Enrolled
Q4 2011
Working &
Enrolled %
Working &
Enrolled
Median Wage
Employed at Entry ESL 4,510 55 1.2% $3,897
ABE 6,284 205 3.3% $3,375
ASE 857 99 11.6% $2,593
Subtotal 11,651 359 3.1% - N R -
Unemployed at Entry ESL 2,082 24 1.2% $2,276
ABE 8,168 152 1.9% $1,274
ASE 890 40 4.5% $1,936
Subtotal 11,140 216 1.9% - N R -
Not in Labor Force at Entry ESL 2,726 16 0.6% $2,623
ABE 5,549 84 1.5% $1,734
ASE 868 25 2.9% $1,569
Subtotal 9,143 125 1.4 - N R -
Overall TOTAL 31,934 700 2.2% $2,308

Exit Cohort Breakdown Table Three

Employment Status at Entry Program Exit Cohort
Seed Records
All Working
Q4 2011
All Working % All Working
Median Wage
Employed at Entry ESL 4,510 3,128 69.4% $4,800
ABE 6,284 4,468 71.1% $3,741
ASE 857 619 72.2% $3,536
Subtotal 11,651 8,215 70.5% - N R -
Unemployed at Entry ESL 2,082 828 39.8% $3,314
ABE 8,168 3,583 43.9% $2,047
ASE 890 408 45.8% $2,031
Subtotal 11,140 4,819 43.3% - N R -
Not in Labor Force at Entry ESL 2,726 626 23.0% $2,959
ABE 5,549 1,629 29.4% $1,986
ASE 868 293 33.8% $1,955
Subtotal 9,143 2,548 27.9% - N R -
Overall TOTAL 31,934 15,582 48.8% $3,182

Exit Cohort Breakdown Table Four

Employment Status at Entry Program Exit Cohort
Seed Records
Not Located
Q4 2011
Not Located % GEDs
Obtained
GEDs
Obtained %
Employed at Entry ESL 4,510 1,364 30.2% 50 1.1%
ABE 6,284 1,727 27.5% 1,182 18.8%
ASE 857 200 23.3% 514 60.0%
Subtotal 11,651 3,291 28.3% 1,746 15.0%
Unemployed at Entry ESL 2,082 1,223 58.7% 33 1.6%
ABE 8,168 4,361 53.4% 1,453 17.8%
ASE 890 423 47.5% 495 55.6%
Subtotal 11,140 6,007 53.9% 1,981 17.8%
Not in Labor Force at Entry ESL 2,726 2,047 75.1% 65 2.4%
ABE 5,549 3,750 67.6% 1,111 20.0%
ASE 868 501 57.7% 495 57.0%
Subtotal 9,143 6,298 68.9% 1,671 18.3%
Overall TOTAL 31,934 15,596 48.8% 5,398 16.9%

Top Ten Industries of Employment, Q4 2011

Analyzing the cohort's employment outcomes by industry, we see Restaurants and Other Eating Places in the top spot, employing over 17 percent of employed customers overall, followed by Employment Services and Home Health Care Services.


Employment Status Industry NAICS
(4-digit)
Head Count Percentage
Employed Only Restaurants and Other Eating Places 7225 2,500 17%
Employment Services 5613 1,379 9%
Home Health Care Services 6216 746 5%
Elementary and Secondary Schools 6111 654 4%
Other General Merchandise Stores 4529 620 4%
Services to Buildings and Dwellings 5617 432 3%
Grocery Stores 4451 402 3%
Nursing Care Facilities (Skilled Nursing Facilities) 6231 351 2%
Traveler Accommodation 7211 288 2%
Animal Slaughtering and Processing 3116 245 2%
Employed and Enrolled Restaurants and Other Eating Places 7225 132 19%
Employment Services 5613 42 6%
Other General Merchandise Stores 4529 34 5%
Home Health Care Services 6216 31 4%
Grocery Stores 4451 29 4%
Nursing Care Facilities (Skilled Nursing Facilities) 6231 23 3%
Department Stores 4521 21 3%
Clothing Stores 4481 14 2%
Gasoline Stations 4471 14 2%
Elementary and Secondary Schools 6111 12 2%
All Employed Restaurants and Other Eating Places 7225 2,632 17%
Employment Services 5613 1,421 9%
Home Health Care Services 6216 777 5%
Elementary and Secondary Schools 6111 666 4%
Other General Merchandise Stores 4529 654 4%
Services to Buildings and Dwellings 5617 437 3%
Grocery Stores 4451 431 3%
Nursing Care Facilities (Skilled Nursing Facilities) 6231 374 2%
Traveler Accommodation 7211 298 2%
Gasoline Stations 4471 256 2%

Breakdown of Postsecondary Enrollment by Institution Type, Employment Status, Gender, and Ethnicity

Analyzing the cohort's postsecondary enrollment by institution type, we see the vast majority of enrollees (approximately 93%) in Community and Technical Colleges, with about 5% of enrollees in Public Universities and one percent in Private Universities. Breaking down enrollment by employment status, gender, or ethnicity does not present any large departures from this pattern.


Category Identifier Attending Public Universities Attending Private Universities Attending Community/ Technical Colleges Attending Health-Related Institutions Attending Career Schools & Colleges
Employment Status Enrolled Only 29 5 721 - 0 - * * *
Employed and Enrolled 22 8 669 * * * * * *
Gender Female 24 * * * 920 * * * * * *
Male 27 * * * 470 * * * * * *
Ethnicity Hispanic or Latino 29 8 659 - 0 - * * *
White 6 * * * 411 * * * - 0 -
Black or African American 11 * * * 225 - 0 - - 0 -
Asian * * * - 0 - 73 - 0 - - 0 -
American Indian or Alaskan Native - 0 - - 0 - 9 - 0 - - 0 -
Native Hawaiian or Other Pacific Islander - 0 - - 0 - * * * - 0 - - 0 -
Unknown - 0 - - 0 - 11 - 0 - - 0 -
Overall TOTAL 51 13 1390 * * * * * *

Top Ten Institutions of Postsecondary Enrollment, Fall 2011

Looking at the postsecondary institutions in which the exit cohort enrolled, we see Houston Community College in front by a wide margin, enrolling approximately 13% of customers who pursued higher education in Fall 2011, followed by Austin Community College (7%) and El Paso Community College (4%).


Status Institution Head Count Percentage
Enrolled Only Houston Community College 96 13%
Austin Community College 39 5%
El Paso Community College 34 5%
San Antonio College 31 4%
Del Mar College 23 3%
Paris Community College 22 3%
St. Philips College 18 2%
Southwest Texas CC 18 2%
Wharton County CC 18 2%
Blinn College 17 2%
Employed and Enrolled Houston Community College 87 12%
Austin Community College 56 8%
El Paso Community College 29 4%
San Antonio College 28 4%
St. Philips College 21 3%
Del Mar College 19 3%
McLennan Community College 17 2%
NW Vista College 16 2%
Kilgore College 16 2%
Lone Star College Cy-Fair 16 2%
All Enrolled Houston Community College 183 13%
Austin Community College 95 7%
El Paso Community College 63 4%
San Antonio College 59 4%
Del Mar College 42 3%
St. Philips College 39 3%
Paris Community College 36 2%
McLennan Community College 34 2%
Wharton County CC 32 2%
Southwest Texas CC 31 2%

Top Ten Majors for Postsecondary Enrollment

Examining the cohort's postsecondary majors, we see by far the highest number of enrollees pursuing Liberal Arts and Sciences, General Studies and Humanities, covering 38% of enrollees. Registered Nursing and Nursing Administration occupies the second spot with 6% of enrollees.

Major Head Count Percentage
Liberal Arts and Sciences, General Studies and Humanities54838%
Registered Nursing, Nursing Administration896%
Allied Health Diagnostic, Intern463%
Practical Nursing, Vocational433%
Criminal Justice and Correction423%
Business Administration, Management362%
Accounting and Related Service292%
Vehicle Maintenance and Repair292%
Business/Commerce, General282%
Allied Health and Medical Assistant262%