One of the more overused nouns in the English language is the word "crisis." It's slapped - by politicians, policy advocates and the news media - on almost every problem that comes along, seemingly no matter how small-bore or distant. But the National Commission on Adult Literacy wasn't overreaching last week when it released a report with the title "Reach Higher, America: Overcoming crisis in the U.S. work force."

Don't believe us? Consider these facts:

The U.S. is the only nation, among 30 free-market countries that are members of the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development, in which current young adults are less educated than their parents' generation.

More than 1.2 million teenagers drop out of high school each year. In Indiana, nearly three out of 10 high school students fail to graduate on time.

More than half of the adult work force faces at least one educational hurdle, from lack of a high school diploma to little or no college to poor literacy skills, that blocks moving into the best-paying jobs. Existing adult education programs reach only a fraction of workers who need training to compete in the modern marketplace.

In Indiana, about one in three workers lacks the literacy skills needed to land good jobs.

It's not that the United States isn't producing millions of well-educated workers each year. The nation's university system remains the best in the world. But there is a growing gap between the highly educated and those who lack basic skills. The gap is developing at a time when, more than ever, education is vital to economic and social well-being. In short, we are a nation headed in two directions when it comes to education. Failure to help those on the bottom climb to higher levels will carry a painful price for everyone.

The Commission on Adult Literacy argues that "our failure to address America's adult education and work force skills is putting our country in great jeopardy and threatening our nation's standard of living and economic viability." Again, that's no exaggeration.

To begin confronting these issues in Central Indiana, Indy Reads and The Star's Editorial Board brought together leaders of about 50 community organizations for a Literacy Summit this month. That effort will continue, through a variety of means, in the months ahead.

On the political front, the education level of the work force needs to become a central issue of this year's state and federal races. The nation won't meet the economic challenges ahead unless it enlists and trains a growing army of well-educated workers.

Reprinted from The Indianapolis Star.