News

Portland Adult Education won the Commitment to Service Award from Community Financial Literacy.   In 1997, Claude Rwaganje attended Portland Adult Education (PAE) to learn English.  Ten years later, he went back to share an idea with then Director, Rob Wood, to address the needs of financial literacy for immigrants.  That was the genesis of Community Financial Literacy (CFL)!  PAE opened the door for CFL to grow into what it is today.  PAE looks forward to continuing its long-term partnership with CFL.

Picture features from left to right: Claude Rwaganje, CFL Executive Director, Michael Wood, CFL Board Chairman, and Bethany Campbell, PAE Director.

PAE’s College Transitions (CT) program offers academic preparation to 40 students per year to accelerate their success in college. Funding at the state level makes this highly efficient program possible and enables students to save their federal financial aid for college completion rather than remediation. A recent CT student expressed what the program meant to her, “Thank you so much. If I’m doing well, it’s all because of PAE, and I’ll never forget that.” Zakia Momand is one of nine CT alums to earn spots on SMCC’s Fall 2015 Dean’s List.

Students at USM are thriving too; both recent CT alums earned straight As in their first semester. A former CT student started at Smith College this fall, and another student awaits admissions news. These students do the hard work, but financial assistance by the Maine Community Foundation is essential. In two years, ten students have received $1,000-3,000 in Rockefeller Scholarships.