In addition to underfunding both K-12 (42nd in the nation) and higher education, the state of Colorado has the ignominious distinction of being the only state that does not fund adult education (except for the occasional small grant).
That leaves the Durango Adult Education Center to raise almost two-thirds of its budget – $475,000 – from the local community. On Sept. 28, the center held its fourth annual Literacy Luncheon to make its case, and it’s compelling. Terry Bacon once said the center is not only people’s second chance, it’s often their last chance.
The DAEC’s students outperform the state and national averages, with 94 percent earning their GEDs compared to 77 percent in Colorado and 63 percent in the U.S. Higher levels of education means higher income, lower incarceration rates and decreased unemployment, all measurements that benefit not just the students and their families, but the whole community.
Some of the center’s students told their stories, which reflected the many services the center offers.
Gustavo Zavala, a Mexican immigrant who manages a local ranch, headed to the Durango Adult Education Center when his sons headed to college. First he improved his English, and now he’s working on his GED.
Lily Oles watched her father go back to school, raising her entire family’s standard of living.
Katherine Alarcón, an immigrant from Guatemala who has been promoted up the ranks at First National Bank of Durango, came to the center for help earning her citizenship. She became a citizen almost a year ago, and now her new husband is at the center learning English. To get her family here legally, her uncle, the member of the family who was living in the U.S., jumped through immigration hoops for 10 years to get the green card for Alarcón.
Michaela Wilson, 19, went to the DAEC to earn her GED after the death of her father and finding she didn’t “fit into the box” at Bayfield High School. She is now a freshman at Fort Lewis College, with an eye to earning a doctorate. Her mom, Katherine Wilson, also is a student at FLC, working toward a degree in sociology.
It has been my honor and privilege to interview numerous Durango Adult Education Center graduates over the years, and they talk about how welcoming and nonjudgmental the staff is, how committed to their success everyone is and how excited they are about the doors that have opened for them because they summed up their courage and walked into the center to change their lives.
The luncheon, held with a packed ballroom at the DoubleTree Hotel, met its goal of raising $30,000, but of course, the center needs all the help we can give it. Tax-deductible donations may be sent to 701 Camino del Rio, Suite 301, Durango, CO 81301.
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Durango Adult Ed Center Facts (PDF)
