National AEFL Week

National AEFL Week

September 14-20, 2025

National Adult Education and Family Literacy Week raises public awareness about the need for and value of adult education and family literacy. Its goal is to increase financial and societal support for access to foundational education programs for U.S. adults with low literacy, numeracy, and digital skills. Advocates across the country use this opportunity to elevate adult education and family literacy nationwide with policymakers, the media, and the community.

AEFL Week Dates and Activities

In 2025, Adult Education and Family Literacy Week will be observed from September 14 to September 20. NCL’s AEFL Week activities will focus on raising awareness of the pivotal role of adult education in enabling equitable access to societal resources, employment opportunity, and full participation in community life.

  • NCL is partnering with The Ohio State University’s press office to conduct a media blitz campaign during AEFL Week to raise public awareness about adult education and family literacy. Various issues relating to adult education and family literacy will be highlighted throughout the week, such as the value of adult education and family literacy services, the impacts of adult education and family literacy on the Nation’s workforce and economy, how literacy influences health and wellness, the importance of financial literacy and numeracy, how AI affects literacy and the way services are provided, and more. These articles will be published by various media outlets across the country throughout the week. When you see these articles, please share them with your networks and on your social media and tag NCL on our LinkedIn and Facebook pages.
  • NCL has worked with Senate and House of Representatives staff to have resolutions recognizing Adult Education and Family Literacy Week passed in Congress during AEFL Week 2025. Senators Collins and Reed and Representatives McBath and Houchin are co-sponsoring these resolutions.
  • The Adult Education and Family Literacy Act (AEFLA), which is Title II of the Workforce Innovation and Opportunity Act, is legislation that provides critical funding for adult education and family literacy services. These services help people attain a high school equivalency credential and acquire the skills they need for sustainable employment. Yet, funding for these critical services is in jeopardy. We encourage everyone during AEFL Week to contact your Senators and Representatives and encourage them to maintain funding for adult education and family literacy.
  • Please visit the websites of NCL’s organizational members to learn about and get involved in other activities happening during AEFL Week to celebrate Adult Education and Family Literacy:

Future AEFL Week Dates

  • 2026: September 13-19
  • 2027: September 19-25

Ways to Participate During aEFL Week

This AEFL Week, take the opportunity to become a more informed, more creative, and more persistent advocate.

  • Commit to becoming an advocate. Find a four-step process for developing your advocacy skills here. 
  • Follow NCL on LinkedIn and Facebook for AEFL Week news and updates.
  • Use the #AEFLWeek hashtag in your social media, on your website, and in your print communications.
  • Download and share NCL’s latest Adult Education Fact Sheet.
  • Check out adult learners’ stories and share them with your learners. Invite your learners to create and share stories of their own successes using digital storytelling.
  • Explore toolkits and other resources from NCL member organizations for planning advocacy around National AEFL Week.

Options for Community Events and Activities During AEFL Week

  • Partner with your local library or community center to host a family read-aloud, where each family chooses a favorite story and family members share the task of reading it aloud to others.
  • Invite representatives from local employers to visit your program to hear from your adult learners about their ideas for work-related skills development. Follow that up with a visit to the employer’s facility, where your learners can evaluate how their ideas could be implemented.
  • Invite your local, state, and federal policymakers to visit your program and meet your adult learners. Senators and Representatives will be in their home states/districts from August 5 through September 6 and from September 30 through November 8. Find contact information for your Representative here, and contact information for your Senators here.

What About Next Week, Next Month, Next Spring?

AEFL Week is also a great opportunity to plan out your advocacy strategy for the next 6 months or more. This AEFL Week, take the opportunity to become a more informed, more creative, and more persistent advocate.

  • Who are your federal and state legislators? What are their positions on adult education, family literacy, digital equity? Plan out a schedule for when you will contact them over the next few months and what you will say. Use the four points of NCL’s asset-focused advocacy framework as the basis for your communications.
  • Find state information sheets for your state on the NASDAE website, and data on literacy and numeracy skills of residents of your county on the PIAAC Skills Map. Share that information as part of your advocacy messaging.
  • Read about exemplary programs and use them to support your ideas for developing your own programs and services. What are some of the strengths and successes of your program and your adult learners? How can you use those to illustrate the value (and return on investment) of adult education?

Background

National AEFL Week originated in 2009 when the National Coalition for Literacy worked with then-Congressman Jared Polis (D-CO), then-Senator Lamar Alexander (R-TN), and Senator Patty Murray (D-WA) to create a Congressionally-recognized designation that would draw attention to the importance of adult education and family literacy. Since then, NCL has sponsored National AEFL Week in September each year on behalf of its members and the field as a whole, and has worked with Members of Congress to have the week recognized through resolutions in the Senate and the House of Representatives.