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Education Resources

   
GED
The Center for Adult Learning and Educational Credentials (CALEC) is the nation’s trusted leader for evaluating education and training attained outside the classroom. They maintain a web page for GED Contacts by state.
General
Catholic Charities USA is the membership association of one of the nation's largest social service networks. Catholic Charities agencies and institutions nationwide provide vital social services to people in need, regardless of their religious, social, or economic backgrounds. Catholic Charities USA supports and enhances the work of its membership by providing networking opportunities, national advocacy and media efforts, program development, training and technical assistance, and financial support.
Adult rehabilitation centers are among the most widely known of all Salvation Army services and comprise the largest resident substance abuse rehabilitation program in the United States. Individuals with identifiable and treatable needs go to these centers for help when they no longer are able to cope with their problems. There they receive adequate housing, nourishing meals, and necessary medical care, and they engage in work therapy, spiritual guidance, and skilled counseling in clean and wholesome surroundings. Residents may be referred or be remanded by the courts. Free temporary shelter is available to homeless men and women in severe financial need. Low-cost housing also is available to men and women living on pensions or social security. Locations are listed by region.
The United Way invests in and activates the resources to make the greatest possible impact in communities across America. The United Way movement includes approximately 1,400 community-based United Way organizations. Each is independent, separately incorporated, and governed by local volunteers.
Staffed primarily by ex-offenders, The Fortune Society is a not-for-profit organization dedicated to assisting ex-offenders and at-risk youth break the cycle of crime and incarceration through a broad range of services which include: counseling, career development, housing, education, substance abuse treatment services, alternatives to incarceration services, health services, and volunteer/internship opportunities. We communicate with prisoners all over the country via the mail, answering questions and providing information for those who are in need of services. We are also dedicated to educating the public about prisons, criminal justice issues, and the root causes of crime. Fortune News, our quarterly journal, is sent free of charge to inmates and contributing members.
OPEN, INC. (Offender Preparation & Education Network, Inc.) is a nonprofit organization founded in Dallas, Texas, in 1979, offering the following products and services:
  • educational materials and programs that are used by correctional agencies to help offenders prepare to live as responsible law-abiding citizens.
  • provides technical assistance and training for correctional staff to improve their effectiveness and job satisfaction.

They also publish INSIGHTS, a quarterly newsletter, to provide a forum where criminal justice professionals can exchange information about innovative and effective correctional programming.
Government
The Office of Vocational and Adult Education (OVAE) website has information, research, and resources to help prepare young people and adults for postsecondary education, successful careers, and productive lives.
An online screening tool to help determine, anaonymously, to what benefits a person may be entitled. It is free, easy-to-use, and completely confidential. The user answers a series of questions, and then GovBenefits.gov returns a list of government benefit programs you may be eligible to receive along with information about how you can apply.
The Employment and Training Administration seeks to build up the labor market through the training of the workforce and the placement of workers in jobs through employment services.
Literacy
America's Literacy Directory is a national database of literacy programs available via the Worldwide Web and the National Institute for Literacy's toll-free number. The ALD connects employers, learners, volunteers, social service providers, and others to current information about literacy programs in all 50 states and the U.S. territories. It is a service of the National Institute for Literacy and its partners: the U.S. Department of Labor, the U.S. Department of Education, and Verizon. A variety of national, state, and local literacy organizations contribute data to the ALD and help to keep the information up to date.
Organizations
The Education Commission of the States publishes several electronic publications, keeps policymakers on the leading edge of what's happening in the states by gathering, analyzing and disseminating information about current and emerging issues, trends and innovations in state education policy. It also presents seminars, workshops and conferences provide policymakers and educators with opportunities to share ideas and learn from one another, as well as experts from across the country. ECS releases numerous print publications each year including and a three-times-a-year periodical, State Education Leader, and a bimonthly report, The Progress of Education Reform. Finally, ECS supports and participates in various networks for legislators, legislative aides, governors' education policy aides and others to promote the sharing of information, ideas and resources at the state and national levels.
The Learning Disabilities Association is the largest non-profit volunteer organization advocating for individuals with learning disabilities. LDA has nearly 300 state and local affiliates in 50 states and Puerto Rico. LDA advocates for the over two million students of school age with learning disabilities and for adults affected with learning disabilities. The state and local affiliates, through their affiliation with the national LDA, work continuously for individuals with learning disabilities, their parents and the professionals who serve them.
Vocational Rehabilitation
This section of the Social Security Administration's website contains information about SSA`s vocational rehabilitation programs, a listing of providers under contract to SSA and contracting and grants opportunities at SSA.
Vital Records
Most programs, government or private, require birth certificates and/or other vital documents. This web page, which is part of the Center for Disease Control, provides the addresses for the state agencies from which these documents can be obtained.