Through the Community Adult Learning Program, Alberta Advanced Education provides funding to support the delivery of part-time, non-formal adult learning opportunities in local communities. The Community Adult Learning Program promotes a vision that:

Adults acquire and build on foundational learning skills through vibrant learning communities.

In alignment with this vision, a logic model and outcomes measurement framework have been developed to show the relationship among the resources available for the program, the activities performed, and the results that the program hopes to achieve. The logic model identifies the following four ultimate outcomes to guide the program:

1. Adult learners are proficient in foundational skills.
2. Adult learners participate in further learning opportunities.
3. Adult learners navigate the learning system.
4. Adult learners benefit from learning opportunities within their communities.

The Lifelong Learning Council of Red Deer funds non-profit organizations to deliver non-credit, part-time adult learning programs for barriered learners.

These social and economic barriers may include:

• Low literacy or learning challenges;
• Cultural or social isolation, including English language challenges facing newcomers to Alberta or other barriers to participating in the community;
• Lack of resources or confidence to access information and services to support their own learning, such as participating in learning opportunities for a fee, seeking out information at the library or online, seeking assistance from other agencies;
• Low income, housing, mental health or other personal or family challenges.

Our funding is provided to programs that focus on:

• Adult Literacy
• Numeracy
• English Language Learning
• Basic Computer Skills
• Foundational Life Skills
• Community Capacity Building

Information taken from “Community Adult Learning Program Guidelines”, July 2018.

Our 2019 application deadline is February 1. Our programming year is July 1, 2019– June 30, 2020.

Emerging Needs and Special Project Applications are accepted throughout the year.

Agencies may choose to fill out an Expression of Interest if you are unsure if your programming qualifies, or proceed to the full application if you are confident it does.

The Council staff will review the eligibility of each application. Applications will be reviewed shortly after the deadline by the Grant Allocation Committee. If there is need for clarification or questions to be answered you will be contacted.

Learners must be new students. Our mandate requires we reach many individuals rather than a small group of repeat learners. You will report on how many “unique” learners you serve.

You are required to submit summary evaluations including numbers of learners and program outcomes as agreed to upon receipt of funds. These figures are submitted to our funder, Alberta Advanced Education.

There is no Council membership fee. Agencies will be asked to commit to a ‘Memorandum of Agreement’ which recognizes the agency as a member. The Lifelong Learning Council will require your support and commitment to attend meetings and events. Associate memberships are available to individuals or agencies who support adult learning and the Council but are not eligible for funding.

This checklist is for reference only and not required as part of the application for funding and is used by the Grant Allocation Committee to assess each application.

Is the program:

• For non-credit learning?
• For barriered learners or volunteers?
• Minimum 6-8 participants?
• Part-time? (part-time is generally max. 20 hours per week, 100 hours per course)
• For Red Deer residents?
• For learners over the age of 18?
• Non-sectarian? (open to all)
• Not general interest? (General interest courses are to be cost recoverable and not eligible for funding)
• Addressing learning needs that are currently not being met in the community because programs are difficult to access or unavailable?
• Following a documented curriculum or course outline?
• Not already fully funded by other federal/provincial sources?
• Tuition charge reflects the course fees or the course is targeted to financially barriered learners?
• Running between July 1, 2018 – June 30, 2019?

Which required programming area does this application fall into?

Eligible programming must provide learning opportunities to support any of the following six categories:

• Adult Literacy
• Numeracy
• English Language Learning
• Basic Digital Skills
• Foundational Life Skills
• Community Capacity Building

More detailed descriptions of these categories may be found in our downloadable checklist and in the “Community Adult Learning Program Guidelines”, July 2018.