A project was conducted to increase the retention of African American men in the Greater Pittsburgh Literacy Council's literacy program. The project's primary objectives were as follows: develop a program in self-esteem, goal setting, and decision making and use it as a "draw" to bring new students into the literacy program; build participants' self-esteem by helping them address the barriers that often prevent students from continuing in education programs; and improve retention of students, particularly African American men, in the literacy program. The self-esteem program, which was called Thresholds, was designed to teach a seven-step decision-making process while simultaneously enabling each client to understand his own thought processes. The program, which was taught with a workbook written on a fifth-grade level, featured one-to-one consultations to help students feel comfortable with the program and the decisions they were making. During the classes, individual experiences were related to Black history. Most students considered the program very valuable, and several credited it with helping them get jobs and/or improving their relations with others. Attendance at the 12-hour program averaged 6-8 hours. (MN)