Many Sacramento school districts are severely cutting adult education classes, while others are eliminating entire programs, leaving thousands of adult students wondering what classes will remain this fall.
The cuts come as adult education waiting lists have ballooned across California as unemployed workers look to re-enter the work force with an expanded skill set.
Three of the largest school districts in the Sacramento region are proposing major cuts for the 2010-11 school year:
• Twin Rivers, which serves high-poverty areas in North Sacramento, will reduce its adult education enrollment by nearly 50 percent after cutting its budget from $6 million to $2.8 million.
• Elk Grove Unified will reduce the number of classes in English as a Second Language, GED (General Educational Development), ABE (Adult Basic Education) and high school subjects by as much as 50 percent, going from 67 classes this year to 33 in 2010-11.
• Sacramento City Unified, an urban district that includes some of the area's poorest communities, is re-evaluating its current proposal, which calls for the closure of Fremont School for Adults and Old Marshall Adult Education Center for a savings of $1.03 million.
"It's absolutely heartbreaking," said Julie Scott, assistant principal at Fremont, at 24th and N streets in midtown.
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