As written by Tom Markland and published in The Journal on June 2, 2024
CHARLES TOWN – Forty-one students graduated from Jefferson County’s Adult Education program, the program’s largest graduating class in its history. Twenty of the 41 students walked across the stage during a graduation ceremony at Sam Michaels Park on Saturday.
This school year was especially difficult for both students and staff, since the building that housed the program burned down due to a lightning strike last year, forcing students and staff alike to adjust on the fly.
“We had a lot of adjustments and shuffles to make, and the staff did an outstanding, amazing job along with our graduates,” said Ian Hillman, director of responsive education. “They got their work done, got their diploma and so we’re here to celebrate them and all their next steps in life.”
Throughout the year, staff and students worked out of Corner Connection in Charles Town, having to get all new materials, computers and all the other amenities that they had been accustomed to in a school.
Losing so much material is especially difficult for the adult education program since they rely on paper-based materials for many students who don’t have access to an internet connection.
“We lost 10 years of curriculum,” said Beth Ayling, “We lost every book, every scrap of paper and silly things, like we don’t have a testing watch for timing.”
Despite the loss, and all of the obstacles for students in the program, they still managed to assist 41 students earn their GEDs.
“All these students have had significant obstacles, whether that’s an illness, school didn’t work out, they might have children themselves at a young age,” Hillman said. “A lot of them are parents, so several hurdles get in the way, so just signing up for the program is a huge first step.”
“It’s really exciting for them to be able to push through and, you know, stick with it and show that perseverance and grit and work for their teachers and just come in every day ready to learn,” Hillman said.
Ayling agreed, remembering when the students first started coming to the informational sessions, heads down and discouraged. She says coming to those first information sessions, which begin in August, is the most difficult part.
“What is most amazing is to watch the evolution of them,” Ayling said. “Like a caterpillar to a butterfly, they’re holding their head up, getting their hair out of their eyes, speaking a little stronger, voicing a little more confidence what they really might want to do with their lives.”
More information about Jefferson County’s Adult Education program is available online at jeffersonadulteducation.com.