GED program offers graduates a brighter future

People who did not finish high school and need that diploma to get a good job are getting their GED. Some take years to do it, many immigrants struggle with the language but still know they need it. - - Donna Poisl

By Phyllis Coulter

BLOOMINGTON — Luis Alberto of Bloomington knows first-hand that having a diploma makes a difference in getting a job.

But even with a General Educational Development (GED), it’s a challenge to support his family and prevent looming foreclosure of his home.

After a ceremony Friday, another 156 GED (also known as general equivalency diploma) graduates from the DeWitt, Livingston and McLean Regional Office of Education program will have a tool for the future as they begin their journey, school administrators say.

The graduates range from young learners to a grandmother who took almost 10 years to finish. Some have lived here for generations; others are immigrants who may have first learned English as a second language.

Alberto, an aviation mechanic in Mexico, studied English first and earned his high school equivalency in 2000.

“It’s an excellent idea to get as much training as possible, and to continue to study to get more opportunities,” he said.
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