Historical records indicate that adult education has been servicing the residents of San Jose since the early 1870’s. This long history of service is indicative of the role that the program has played in the educational growth of the city.

Prior to World War I and continuing through the post World War II period, adult education grew and prospered. Meeting the needs of an ever-growing immigrant population was a central focus of the program. However, trade and vocational programs expanded rapidly in the post-war period. In 1967, an agreement was reached by four school districts in San Jose to provide a regional vocational program for high school students. These four districts (East Side Union High School District, Campbell Union High School District, San Jose Unified School District, and Santa Clara Unified School District) formed the Metropolitan Adult Education Program (MAEP). In 1969, Milpitas Unified School District joined the MAEP. This consortium lasted until 1979 when Milpitas withdrew from a portion of the program. Santa Clara followed suit in 1981. Both agencies eventually developed separate educational programs, but remained as part of the vocational training consortium.

In January of 1987, the East Side Union High School District (ESUHSD) followed the lead of Milpitas and Santa Clara and withdrew from the MAEP in order to create its own adult education program. East Side has remained as part of the vocational consortium. The East Side Union High School District Adult Education Program began its independent operation in July of 1988.

The East Side Adult Education Program (ESAEP) is an integral part of the city of San Jose and of the ESUHSD’s educational program. The ESUHSD is located along the eastern foothills of San Jose, California and encompasses a 180 square mile area bordering the "Silicon Valley" extending from Milpitas in the north to Morgan Hill in the south. It is one of the largest high school districts in the state, comprised of eleven high schools, one continuation school and five alternative high schools with a student enrollment in excess of 24,000 for school year 2002-03.

The population of the greater San Jose area has shown tremendous growth in the past fifty years. From a sleepy but bustling area of 95,000 during the early 1950’s, it has grown to exceed 1,800,000 industrious souls. The city of San Jose is currently the third largest city in California (behind Los Angeles and San Diego) with a population of 925,000 (January, 2003). It is the 11^th largest city in the United States. The self-reported ethnic breakdown of the city is as follows: 36.0% White, 38.2% Hispanic, 26.6% Asian/Pacific Islander, 3.3% African-American, and 3.9% Other.

The educational attainment of the citizenry of San Jose as indicated by the US Bureau of Census in 2000 is as follows:

Some High School 10.9%

High School Graduate/GED 18.1%

Some College 20.9%

Bachelor’s Degree 20.8%

The ESUHSD is a reflection of the city of San Jose. It has a diverse population of over 434,000 across a full spectrum of socio-economic strata. While the socio-economic groups are diverse, there remains a relatively large low-income population in the district. The ESUHSD is a district rich in cultural diversity. Over 75 separate ethnic groups are represented within its boundaries with over 80% of the population having a language other than English as its primary language. There are 56 native languages spoken by the residents of the East Side educational community and over 5,056 of its students are identified as limited English Language Learners (ELL). The ESAEP mirrors the district’s diversity, both demographically and socio-economically.

The diversity of the district is shown in the many ethnic grocery stores, restaurants and churches, primarily (Hispanic/Mexican), Vietnamese, Indian and Chinese. Community events vary, some featuring ethnic themes (Chinese Moon Festival, El Cinco de Mayo, Dia de los Muertos, Tet Festival, Ocktoberfest) and some without (Race Car Swap Meet, American Kennel Club Dog Show, Berryessa Art and Wine Festival, Destruction Derby). Residents and visitors enjoy the Mexican Heritage Cultural Center, Raging Waters (water amusement park), Santa Clara County Fairgrounds (county fair and more), events sponsored by the Mexican American Community Service Association (MACSA), tours at Reid-Hillview (small plane) Airport or Mirassou Winery.

Shopping includes Eastridge Shopping Mall, Berryessa Flea Market (world’s largest), and ethnic specialty shops (Tropicana Hispanic Mall, Pacific Rim, Vietnamese shopping enclaves, and Indian markets). Major parks include community gardens (Emma Prusch Farm Park), Chinese Friendship Gardens (Overfelt Park), Youth Science Institute (Alum Rock Park) and extensive bicycle trails (Coyote/Heller Park). The district is also close to downtown San Jose attractions: Sharks Hockey, The Tech Museum, Children’s Discovery and SJ Art museums, HP Pavilion, Center for Performing Arts, and a multitude of culturally diverse festivals and events.

The ESAEP prides itself in that it services the needs of this diverse and ever-growing educational community. Working with limited funds due to state CAP and statutory revenue limit increases, the program continues to service a population far in excess of its state reimbursement. In school year 2002-2003, the program exceeded its CAP by over 311 ADA.

ESAEP is the 19^th largest Adult Education program in the state of California and the largest in Santa Clara County. During the school year 2002-03, the program served nearly 28,000 students in a variety of programs and accumulated an ADA total of 3116.2. CAP for 2002-03 was 2812. Both the ESUHSD and the ESAEP are in a growth mode. The Adult Education Program has shown a 15.2% growth in ADA from 2001 to 2003 and a 23.7% growth since 1999. Over the past five years, the ESUHSD has grown from 22,675 students served to 23,847 while the ESAEP increased from 24,586 to 27,948 students served. One reason for this growth may be that East San Jose offers some of the more affordable housing in this area. That, along with the fallout of a down economy in the "Silicon Valley", is a probable reason for the increase as "downsized" employees seek to reinvent themselves by re-entering the educational milieu.

The ESAEP is located on two primary campuses and at numerous sites throughout the district and community, providing excellent accessibility to all clientele. The two primary facilities are the Independence Adult Center (IAC) located at 625 Educational Park Drive and the Overfelt Adult Center (OAC) located at 1901 Cunningham Avenue.

IAC began its operation in 1988 on the Independence High School campus. From there it transitioned to its present location across from Independence High School. At this location, it was originally housed in twenty portable classrooms. There were also restroom facilities, an administration office, and a student lounge as part of the complex. Limited parking was also available. The administration office, which is still being utilized, is a 6,480 square foot facility that includes a staff lounge, conference room, department chair office, counseling and support service offices, teacher workroom, administrative offices, clerical support staff work stations, staff bathrooms, CalWORKs office, and limited storage space.

Through the dedicated efforts of previous administrations and the passage of Measure A, (a general obligation bond approved by the voters of the East Side Union High School educational community in 1991), funds were raised and allocated for the construction of permanent buildings for the IAC site in 1997. The current IAC is a 39,000 square foot single-story facility. It has seventeen classrooms, four computer labs, a science lab with prep room, assessment center, resource center, career center, bookroom, department chair office, student lounge, and separate restroom facilities for students and faculty. The building is wired for Internet access and the introduction of twenty-first century technology. Classes in High School Diploma (HSD), Adult Basic Education (ABE), Vocational Education, GED, Lifelong Learning (LL), English as a Second Language (ESL), and Community Education are held on the site. Generally, classes are held from 8:50 am — 9:40 pm on Monday through Thursday and from 8:50 am — 3:40 pm on Fridays. Our Community Education Program and Citizenship Program also fill the site to capacity on weekends.

OAC is housed in portables in an area adjacent to William C. Overfelt High School. These portables have been in use since 1985 and were previously occupied by MAEP. An administrative portable building was added to the site in 1991. Currently, the site is comprised of seven modular classroom buildings and a modular office building. All buildings have Internet access capability. There are eleven classrooms, a computer lab, two restroom facilities, a student lounge, and a 3,600 square foot office building. The office building contains the ESL Resource Center, a teacher workroom, department chair office, administrative offices, CalWORKs office, staff lounge, conference room, staff restrooms, and clerical support staff workstations. The ESL Program is the primary activity at this site.

Current plans call for replacement of all portable facilities at OAC and IAC with permanent buildings. Money allocated from the passage of Measure G, a general obligation bond passed in 2002, will be the funding source for these improvements.

The Adult Education Program offers classes in the following departments:

Adult Basic Education (ABE)

English as a Second Language (ESL)

Vocational Education (Voc Ed)

Adults with Disabilities (AwD)

Parent Education

Funding for the East Side Adult Education Program is primarily an apportionment from the State of California. Other funding sources include grants, the community education program, lottery funds, funding for over CAP CalWORKs students, rental fees, vending machines, and some scholarship donations. The primary grants are from the Adult Education and Family Literacy Act (PL 105-220, Sections 225-231) and the Carl D. Perkins Vocational and Technical Education Act of 1998 (PL 105-332).

One Director and two Principals currently administer the ESAEP, each with specific areas of responsibility. There are also three coordinators who assist in the day-to-day operations of the program. Various departments also enlist the support of resource teachers and teachers on special assignment to assist them with instructional/operational issues. The administrators and coordinators constitute the leadership team. The team meets on the first and third Tuesday of each month to discuss issues and problem solve matters relative to the district and the Adult Education program. The administration and coordinators are assisted in their efforts by a counseling staff, a group of department chairs, and a cadre of classified staff.

The Adult Education program is served by a dedicated and hardworking certificated and classified staff. Their ethnic distribution is depicted in the following tables:

Asian 19.7% White 21.4%

Black or African American 5%

Hispanic 15.3% Filipino 6.4%

Black or African American 6.4% Hawaiian/Pacific 1.5%

Other 1%

The students that attend the ESAEP are a diversified group, both ethnically and socio-economically. The ethnic make up in 2002-03 was the following:

Asian 32% American Indian. .05%

Black or African American 2% White 10%

Hawaiian/Pacific Islander 0.5%

Within these groups the following languages were designated as "native language":

English 19% Cambodian 1%

Vietnamese 19% Korean 1%

Chinese 7% Other 4%

The unduplicated count of students who attended Adult Education classes in 2002-03 was 27,948. The numbers in each program were as follows:

High School Diploma/GED 5,418 Parent Education 307

English as a Second language 11,671 Lifelong Learning 2,577

Citizenship 186 Comm. Education 4,443

Adults with Disabilities 1,185

The percentage distribution of students by program is as follows:

Adult Literacy 2% Vocational 6%

High School Diploma/GED 19% Parent Education 1%

English as a Second Language 42% Lifelong Learning 9%

Citizenship 1% Comm. Education 16%

Adults with Disabilities 4%

Within the HSD program, 2,748 students are concurrently enrolled high school students. These students are deficient in credits and are taking courses to fulfill their high school graduation requirements. Students attend these courses only after they have completed a full day in the comprehensive high school education program. In 2002-03 over 24% of the students who graduated from the ESUHSD did so only because of credits earned by completing Adult Education courses.

• Certificates of completion were awarded to 722 students in the Vocational Education Program.

• 26 students from the Lifelong Learning and Adults with Disabilities Programs were awarded certificates of Older Adult Student of the Year.