California will observe April 6 through April 12, 2025, as Adult Education Week.

The California State Legislature acknowledges that K–12-based adult schools offer quality programs to meet the ever-changing economic and workforce development and lifelong learning needs of our diverse state. The first recorded adult education class in California was held in the basement of St. Mary’s Cathedral in San Francisco in 1856. The class was authorized by the San Francisco Board of Education to teach English to Irish, Italian, and Chinese immigrants. John Swett, who was the first volunteer teacher for the class, later became a California State Superintendent of Public Instruction.

California will observe April 6 through April 12, 2025, as Adult Education Week.

The California State Legislature acknowledges that K–12-based adult schools offer quality programs to meet the ever-changing economic and workforce development and lifelong learning needs of our diverse state. The first recorded adult education class in California was held in the basement of St. Mary’s Cathedral in San Francisco in 1856. The class was authorized by the San Francisco Board of Education to teach English to Irish, Italian, and Chinese immigrants. John Swett, who was the first volunteer teacher for the class, later became a California State Superintendent of Public Instruction.