Section 7: Successes and Challenges

7.1 Provide a brief story of student success that illustrates the power of ABE programming to make positive change for the individuals and communities served. 

7.2 Describe the most pressing challenges the consortium is currently facing. Include any ideas for addressing these challenges but note that it is acceptable to acknowledge and describe challenges even without a proposal for addressing them.

Immigration changes: There are currently very few refugees being resettled into Minnesota (or anywhere in the United States). This means there are very few new students coming to programs. Minnesota has always seen a high number of secondary migration as well, but due to increased immigration enforcement in the state, secondary migration to Minnesota has slowed significantly. 

Immigration enforcement: This year Minnesota has seen a huge increase in the presence of officials from the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement agency (ICE). This presence has made many students afraid to leave their houses or attend school. Some students have been detained and deported; others were detained and released. Several of our agencies offered their programming exclusively online during the months of January and February, and almost all agencies shifted at least some programming to online. 

Uncertainty: So many things feel uncertain right now that it is difficult to do much long-term planning. There are currently uncertainties around the availability of federal funding for ABE, the  availability of funding for government programs that many ABE students depend on, such as Medicaid, SNAP, and childcare subsidies, as well as potential shifts in the way ABE is structured and managed at the federal level. 

Balancing offerings and services: Until fairly recently, ABE was exclusively an in-person program. Now many programs are offering instruction in a variety of modes: in-person, online, HyFlex, hybrid, distance learning, Teacher Verified Model and more. Programs don’t always have additional staff to take on this new programming, meaning that current staff are juggling a greater variety of tasks than before. It can be difficult for smaller programs to offer as many options as bigger programs. It can also be challenging to provide advising, assessment and other services to students who can't meet in person. 

AI: We are seeing students use AI more and more in their own work, and we have also noticed an increase in student cheating using AI tools. It will be an ongoing challenge to help students determine how to use AI tools effectively and ethically, especially as these tools continue to evolve and permeate work and daily life.

Addressing challenges

SPCLC is dynamic and flexible and has a track record of rising to meet many challenges during its long history. However, current immigration-related challenges are going to be impossible to change directly. This will mean focusing outreach efforts on ELLs who have been in the United States longer and on L1 learners. This may mean that programming needs to shift to higher-level offerings and increased job training. It will likely mean fewer students overall, less funding, and difficult staffing decisions. Other challenges will be addressed by being creative and collaborative and adapting to meet learner needs, even as those needs continue to change. We are planning to offer longer-term professional development on AI in the coming year to gain a better understanding of this new technology and its implications for ABE. 

7.3 Explain if, when, and how the consortium addresses diversity, equity, and inclusion, including but not limited to racial equity.

What is the consortium’s vision for addressing issues of equity and inclusion? How is this vision shared amongst providers, staff, and students? If a vision doesn’t exist, how and when will one be developed?

The Saint Paul Community Literacy Consortium recognizes that meaningful, lasting progress in adult education requires directly confronting the systemic inequities that have historically limited access and opportunity for learners — particularly those who are Black, Indigenous, and People of Color (BIPOC), immigrants and refugees, low-income adults, and English Language Learners. These populations represent the core of our learner community, and their success is inseparable from our commitment to equity.

The consortium is committed to embedding diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) — including explicit attention to racial equity — into every dimension of its programs, from hiring and professional development to instructional practices, learner support services, and community partnerships.

The following vision statement has been developed to guide the Consortium’s DEI work and will be formally adopted in the current program year:

“The Saint Paul Community Literacy Consortium is committed to building an adult education community where every learner — regardless of race, ethnicity, national origin, language, income, gender identity, or immigration status — is seen, valued, and supported to reach their full potential. We acknowledge that systemic racism and structural inequities create barriers to learning and advancement, and we accept responsibility for actively dismantling those barriers within our programs, policies, and practices. We commit to centering the voices of learners most impacted by inequity, partnering with diverse communities, and continuously improving to ensure that equity is not an aspiration but a lived reality for all who learn and work with us.”

What equity and inclusion strategies have been implemented?

DEI — including racial equity — is addressed at multiple levels throughout the program year, not as a one-time event but as an integrated, ongoing practice. The following describes the consortium’s current and planned activities:

a. Program Design and Instructional Practice

• Instructors use culturally sustaining pedagogical approaches that affirm learner identities and lived experiences.

• SPCLC tracks disaggregated data by race, country of birth, ethnicity, and home language to identify gaps in access, retention, and outcomes, and uses this data to drive program adjustments.

b. Professional Development for Staff and Providers

• Most consortium staff and provider partners participate in professional development on racial equity, implicit bias, and culturally responsive teaching, aligned with MDE’s Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion (EDI) Center training framework. Relevant trainings are offered on a regular basis and are required as part of the teacher licensing renewal process.

• Consortium members participated in the Minnesota Racial Equity Community of Practice led by Southwest ABE. Staff members studied the LINC's Equity Audit process and are designing an implementation plan. 

• Providers are required to demonstrate commitment to DEI principles as a condition of consortium partnership, and equity expectations are embedded in provider agreements.

c. Learner Engagement and Support

• SPCLC actively recruits learners from historically underserved communities and works with learners to overcome barriers to enrollment such as transportation, childcare, and scheduling.

• Learner support services are designed to address the whole person, including connections to housing, workforce, legal aid, and mental health resources, with attention to racial and economic disparities in access.

• Learners are invited to participate in advisory input processes to ensure program decisions reflect the priorities and experiences of those most impacted.

d. Community Partnerships

• SPCLC maintains partnerships with culturally specific community-based organizations, including those serving East African, Latino/a/x, Hmong, and other immigrant and refugee communities in the Saint Paul area.

• These partnerships inform program design, increase trust with learners, and ensure SPCLC's work is accountable to the communities it serves.

What impacts or changes have happened in the consortium as a result of equity and inclusion work?

Since implementing our Diversity, Inclusion and Equity initiative in 2020, SPCLC has seen an 8.5% increase in native born African American students. In addition, we have increased the success of these learners in making MSGs, with 36.3% making a measurable skill gain in 2026 compared to only 27.7% in 2020. 

7.4 Describe any professional development focused on diversity, equity, and inclusion that the consortium has sponsored and/or participated in.

DEI training participation at the Saint Paul Community Literacy Consortium is universal and role-based: it is guided by leadership who are committed to our DEI mission. All licensed teachers are required to complete professional development that addresses a range of cultural competency topics, including racial, cultural, and socioeconomic diversity; American Indian and Alaskan Native students; systemic racism; gender identity and sexual orientation; religion and language diversity; and individuals with disabilities and mental health concerns. Many SPCLC teachers have completed this training through ATLAS or local school districts. Beyond this baseline requirement, most consortium staff and provider partners participate in annual professional development on racial equity, implicit bias, and culturally responsive teaching.

DEI principles and inclusive access expectations are integrated into staff onboarding so that every new team member enters with a shared language and understanding. Programs also regularly send staff to professional development events such as the Language and Literacy Institute, Regionals, and Summer Institute, where equity-focused PD is a consistent feature.

Hubbs Center spent two years working with the Woke Coach, an organization whose mission is to move participants from allies to active accomplices in combating systemic racism. Over that period, approximately 20 staff — including teachers, administrators, and support professionals — worked together to examine the impact of race on educational outcomes and to develop tools and practices for continued reflection and growth. This kind of deep, sustained engagement reflects a commitment to equity work that goes beyond compliance.

Learners also play an advisory role in shaping this work. Through structured input processes, learners are invited to participate in program decision-making to ensure that the priorities and lived experiences of those most directly impacted inform how the consortium grows and improves.

How do you determine who participates in diversity, equity, and inclusion training?

Staff at all levels and in all roles are both invited and encouraged to participate in DEI training. It is important that all members of SPCLC understand our commitment to this work and that everyone has the tools and resources for self-reflection as well as broader feedback. When there are areas we are falling short (and of course there are!), we hope that staff at all levels and in all roles feel encouraged to speak up so that we can continue growing. 

How is the consortium implementing and applying lessons learned from diversity, equity and inclusion PD participation?

The Saint Paul Community Literacy Consortium translates DEI professional development into concrete changes in how programs are designed, how instruction is delivered, and how learners are supported — moving equity from a stated value to an operational practice.

At the instructional level, teachers apply culturally responsive and culturally sustaining pedagogical approaches that affirm learner identities and lived experiences.

One of the clearest examples of applied learning is Hubbs Center's two-year partnership with the Woke Coach. Rather than attending a single training event, approximately 20 staff — including teachers, administrators, and support professionals — engaged in sustained, structured work to examine how race affects educational outcomes and to develop practical tools for continued reflection. The result was not just increased awareness but the building of internal capacity and accountability practices that staff carry into their daily work with learners.

At the program level, the consortium uses disaggregated data — broken down by race, country of birth, ethnicity, home language, and gender — to identify gaps in access, retention, and outcomes. This data-informed approach is a direct application of equity learning: staff are trained to recognize disparity, and programs are adjusted in response to what the data reveals. 

Learner support services have also been shaped by equity learning, with programs designed to address the whole person — connecting learners to housing, workforce, legal aid, and mental health resources, with particular attention to racial and economic disparities in access. The consortium actively recruits from historically underserved communities and works to remove structural barriers to enrollment such as transportation, childcare, and scheduling.

One important lesson from DEI training is how important it is to have diverse voices at the table and to fully respect lived experiences. While SPCLC staff are not nearly as diverse as the students we serve, it is a continued goal to hire more staff of color and more staff with diverse backgrounds and identities. In the past two years, Hubbs Center has hired two former students as Educational Assistants and another two former students as part-time teachers. 

7.5 What is the procedure for reporting discrimination or other equity concerns in your consortium? How are staff and students made aware of these procedures?

Each program within the consortium has its own individual reporting mechanisms in line with nonprofit law. In addition, the Saint Paul Community Literacy Consortium (SPCLC) maintains a consortium-wide whistleblower form available on our website, accessible to all consortium staff and students, as well as any member of the general public.

This form is intended for use by stakeholders in the Saint Paul Community Literacy Consortium who wish to anonymously express concerns about the integrity of ABE services within our consortium. All submissions are kept fully anonymous.

Submissions are collected and presented to the Executive Committee for further review. The Executive Committee decides the appropriate action to take.