Adult Literacy in Wisconsin

This information was taken from Wisconsin Literacy, a coalition of adult, family, and workplace literacy providers.

Wisconsin Facts

• 13.3% of adults 18-24 have not completed a high school diploma or equivalent. (U.S. 2010 Census)
• 9.9% (~375,500) of adults 25+ have not graduated from high school. (U.S. 2010 Census)
  • 3.8% of people 25+ have an education level below the 9th grade. (U.S. 2010 Census)
  • 7.2% of people 25+ have completed some high school without receiving a diploma. (U.S. 2010 Census)
  • 31.7% of the foreign-born population 25+ does not have a high school diploma or equivalent. (U.S. 2010 Census)
• ~232,500 adults 25-64 did not graduate from high school. (2010 U.S. Census)
  • ~120,000 are in the labor force. (2010 U.S. Census)
  • ~27,200 are unemployed. (2010 U.S. Census)
  • ~85,300 are not in the labor force (2010 U.S. Census)
• From 2000-2010, the Hispanic or Latino population in Wisconsin increased by 74.2%. (2010 U.S. Census)
• 3.2% (~170,000) of the population in Wisconsin "does not speak English very well." Of this number,
  • 2.0% speak Spanish.
  • 0.5% speak other Indo-European languages.
  • 0.6% speak Asian and Pacific Islander.
  • 0.1% speak other languages. (U.S. 2010 Census)
• 46.4% of the foreign-born population over 5 years old "does not speak English very well." (U.S. 2010 Census)

Wisconsin Literacy Member Facts

The following data pertains to data from the 53 of 62 Wisconsin Literacy member agencies that were able to complete a demographics survey for fiscal year 2010-2011:

• 33 out of 53 members have a waiting list.
• 687 learners are on a waiting list.
• Total literacy programs' annual budget: $6,992,206
• # of paid administrators (FTE): 94
• # of paid instructors: 141
• # of active volunteer tutors: 3,416
• # of volunteer tutor hours: 248,038
• # of active other volunteers, including office volunteers and Board members: 6,914
• # of other volunteer hours: 43,628
• Of the 53 respondents, the following offer:
  ABE classes (17)ABE one-to-one tutoring (44)ABE small group (17)
  Citizenship (27)Computer literacy (26)Corrections program (13)
  ELL classes (22)ELL one-to-one tutoring (39)ELL small group (18)
  Family literacy (15)Financial literacy (0)GED (29)
  Health literacy (25)Math: 32)Workplace literacy (21)
• Literacy programs that have a referral process with their local technical college: 41 out of 53
• Learners from these programs referred to a local technical college in fiscal year 2009-2010: 203
• Learners from technical colleges referred to these programs in fiscal year 2009-2010: 204
• Total number of Adult Basic Education (ABE) learners served: 7,482
• Total number of English language learners (ELL) served: 4,286
• Total number of ABE and ELL served: 11,768

National Facts

• 8.7% reported speaking a language other than English at home "less than very well." (U.S. 2010 Census)
• 16.8% of adults 18-24 have not graduated from high school. (U.S. 2010 Census)
  • 19.5% of males18-24 have not graduated from high school. (U.S. 2010 Census)
  • 13.9% of females 18-24 have not graduated from high school. (U.S. 2010 Census)
• 6.1% (~30,000,000) of adults 25+have not graduated from high school. (U.S. 2010 Census)
  • 36% (~10,700,000) of adults 25+ who have not graduated from high school are foreign born. (U.S. 2010 Census)

For questions about this information, contact Tessa M. Schmidt (608) 267-5077

Last updated on 2/23/2012 9:40:40 AM