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School History
History of Adult Education in California:
The first recorded adult school was sponsored by the San Francisco Board of Education in 1856. Evening classes were taught in the
basement of the St. Mary's Cathedral. Then as now, many adult students were immigrants. By 1870 the evening adult schools in
San Francisco became a permanent part of the school system. In 1910 a provision to the state constitution required the Legislature
to set aside funds for the support of the public school system. And adult education was part of it. In 1920, California's first Commissioner
of Industrial and Vocational Education, reported that 74,000 adult students throughout California were enrolled in 108 day high schools,
with special day and evening classes for adults, and in 33 evening high schools. During the 1920s California's Americanization program
expanded and became more professional. At the same time adult education programs progressed from serving immigrants to meeting
the educational needs of all adults. A law enacted in 1921 required school boards to establish Americanization classes when 25 or
more people requested them. That mandate for adult education is still a part of the California Education Code (Section 52540). Classes
were conducted in neighborhoods where foreign-born residents lived or worked. Sometimes classes were held in rented store
buildings or community centers. Classes were scheduled at times convenient to the students - morning, afternoon, or evening. California
tradition of education on demand - any time, any place, and any pace - had been established. (referenced from Meeting the Challenge, A
History of Adult Education in California published by the California Department of Education, 1995.)
Watch this space in October for the History of Adult Education in Los Angeles Unified School District.
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© Manual Arts - Crenshaw Education and Career Center
4131 South Vermont Avenue Los Angeles, CA 90037 Phone: (323) 846-3000 - Fax: (323) 234-1310 |
