Success Stories

F.I.R.E. Works

Collaboration between Abilene Adult Education and the West Central Texas Workforce Center has been really put to the test and survived its first phase of “FIRE”. The program is called F.I.R.E. Works (Financial Instruction and Readiness Education), and it began as a way to integrate services from adult education and the Workforce Center. Abilene Adult Education Cooperative and the Workforce Center wanted to start a partnership because we frequently serve the same client base, and it was felt that there needed to be a more streamlined way for these clients to access the help they needed with both educational services and job seeking. Job seeking clients would be referred to adult education services but there was very little follow through, and adult education students frequently need help with funds to pay for their GED tests and then finding a job once that goal was met.

As a teacher with Abilene Adult Education, I was placed at the Workforce Center to talk to prospective students, refer them to classes, possibly administer TABE tests and/or Official GED Practice Tests (OPT), and to work with the Workforce Center staff and other partners of the Workforce Center. The Workforce Center warmly welcomed me, providing me with a classroom, computer and cabinet for storing my study materials. I attend bi-monthly Partner’s meetings and some training sessions, and I am available for questions and consultations about their clients and prospective students for Abilene Adult Education.

This was working well, but both partners felt that so much more could be done with this collaboration. Amanda Moreno, a Workforce Center facilitator and instructor, and I brainstormed and created the F.I.R.E. Works concept. The idea was to take financial instruction concepts and develop them further to teach essential math, reading and writing skills. The FDIC sponsored Money Smart program is used as the base of the curriculum for financial literacy, and I have created the rest of the curriculum to match the needs of the students and clients. If the goal of the client is to obtain their GED, then this class serves as a wonderful start in GED preparation taught in practical and life applicable lessons. However, if customers already have a high school diploma or GED, it does not exclude them from participation, especially in the financial instruction part of the class.

Once enrolled in F.I.R.E. Works, students are given a TABE baseline and their skills assessed. OPT’s are given when appropriate, and students are encouraged to start their GED testing as soon as they are able. Because of the collaboration with the Workforce Center, students receive careful case management and customer service, and are also assessed for eligibility in Workforce Programs. Services are streamlined and offered immediately to mutual customers of the Workforce Center and Adult Education. This results in GED test fees being paid, childcare assistance and help with job searches.

The courses are held Monday through Thursday from 1:00 – 3:00. Each class session includes at least one module from the Money Smart curriculum, very lively discussions, and applicable math lessons. On Thursdays, the class is devoted to GED and academic skills. Students may enroll at any time and continue to come as long as they wish. The Money Smart curriculum takes ten days to complete, and at this point the GED students are normally ready to transition to other, more permanent classes in the area. The first class got so interested in the financial modules that frequently the class time ran over. They wanted to know as much as they could and were willing to share their own stories about financial mistakes they had made to help other people in class. Everyone, even those with a high school credential, was interested in the math lessons that focused mainly on percents. The Money Smart modules made it very easy to incorporate percents, and it showed how math is used in everyday life. The camaraderie in the class was incredible, and really made for a fantastic learning environment.

The final component of the program is a referral to the local Community Action Program (CAP), which promotes the Financial Resources for Economic Empowerment (F.R.E.E.) asset-building program. A representative from CAP has spoken to several classes of F.I.R.E. Works and extended an invitation to all of them to join the F.R.E.E. classes that would further their education about financial literacy. The F.R.E.E. program sets clients on a path towards economic freedom with a four to one fund matching account that can then be used for a new small business, post-secondary education, or buying a first home.

Because these students had already completed the Money Smart program at the Workforce Center, CAP waived that requirement, and they would only have to attend three classes before being allowed to start their accounts.

Has the program been successful? I think so – the first F.I.R.E. Works classes have had consistent attendance of four to six students in each session, four of which received jobs, fourteen are continuing with GED classes in other locations, three are attending ESL classes to increase their English reading and writing skills, and one is taking advantage of the F.R.E.E. program to start her own business after her recent retirement from the US Air Force. Everyone in this class started with just the goal of getting a job, but F.I.R.E. Works gave them an opportunity to see what else they could achieve, and the motivation and encouragement to get out there and set the world on “FIRE”!

Krista Young is a teacher with Abilene ISD Adult Education, with over fourteen years of adult education teaching experience. Krista has a B.S. degree in Elementary Education, a M.A. degree in Family Psychology, and is currently working towards an M.Ed.degree in Leadership of Learning. When she is not studying, Krista enjoys spending time with her family and traveling.