QUESTION
Council Member Stevens Asks DYCD About Shifts in Adult Literacy RFP Criteria
1:03:52
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174 sec
Council Member Stevens discusses the Department of Youth & Community Development's (DYCD) strategic shift in criteria for Adult Literacy Services RFPs for 2024. The conversation focuses on the move towards equity investment and the use of recent census data to identify high-need communities. She questions the currency and relevance of this data in light of new population trends, such as the influx of asylum seekers, and the impact on program targeting and resource allocation.
Speaker 1
1:03:52
In addition to the NDA's Adult Literacy Services in 2024 release, a literacy service RFP.
1:03:58
This RFP included funding formula based on priorities, neighborhood tab tabulation areas, MATs.
1:04:06
This differs from the previous geographical requirements and literacy service RFPs.
1:04:11
Could you explain the reason for the change?
Speaker 3
1:04:14
Yes, Jared.
1:04:15
You know that we have an an RFP that's at now, so I'm somewhat limited as to what I can say.
1:04:21
But I I can say, do you see this equity investment approach for the RP, drives funding into the highest needs, communities, and accounts for the ways that poverty and other indicators of need have shifted in the past 10 years.
1:04:33
Using the most recent American community survey data by neighborhood tabulation area is made available through the NYC Department of City Planning.
1:04:42
And this approach reflects NYC's commitment, excuse me, it reflects the commitment of both the administration and NYC to equity.
1:04:49
In order to determine which neighborhoods were most in need of adult literacy programs.
1:04:54
USA use the census data.
1:04:56
To identify NTAs with the highest poverty rates, lowest educational attainment, and limited English proficient proficiency.
1:05:04
And the department use census data from 2017 to 2021, which is the most recent data available.
Speaker 1
1:05:15
And so this was a decision that the US made that they said that they wanted to use this data to kind of, like, streamline.
1:05:21
The approaches is a decision that came straight from you guys.
1:05:24
Correct?
Speaker 3
1:05:25
Again, reflecting the agency zone and the administration interest in equity.
1:05:33
We're trying to take advantage of the most recent data.
1:05:36
And using poverty and English language learners also as in the case of adult literacy as as criteria.
1:05:43
To make decisions.
Speaker 1
1:05:45
And so even just thinking about this, and this is this is me just thinking, like, obviously, you said the data was used when the licenses but we know that especially with the influx of asylum seekers and, you know, us being in the middle of that.
1:05:58
These these numbers have changed dramatically.
1:06:00
So how have you guys taken that into consideration?
Speaker 3
1:06:04
I I can carry back your raising the the question and the clarifier to the to the team.
Speaker 1
1:06:10
Yeah.
1:06:10
Because I think that is important.
1:06:11
Obviously, I'm always yelling at y'all to use data, so I can't come back go back on it now.
1:06:16
But I think we also have to make sure that we're also looking at current trends and what's happening currently, and it's different than it was.
1:06:23
2 years ago, and it looks very different, but the data that we're using, and that's saying, like, oh, we're looking at the trends in poverty.
1:06:30
It actually looks different now because we had an influx of so many people coming in to to the city from out of the country.
1:06:37
So I would definitely encourage for us to make sure that we are a seeing much more current data because we know that those things have changed so dramatically in the last 2 years.