Graduates of remedial education program move on to college
SAN LUIS, Ariz. — The latest graduating class of a remedial education program for high school dropouts has distinguished itself in more ways than one.
The 13 students in the YouthBuild class dedicated more time to community service than any of the 15 previous classes, and they raised more food for charity than the others.
And having returned to the classroom to earn their General Education Development, or GED, certificates, all 13 have committed to continuing their education. All have registered for college-level classes, most of them at Arizona Western College.
“This isn’t the first time that is has happened,” said Jesse Lopez, the coordinator of the YouthBuild program in San Luis. “But this is something to highlight because not all who graduate (from the program) do it. Some decided to go to work after obtaining their GEDs.”
YouthBuild is a nationwide program that helps dropouts between the ages of 17 and 24 work earn high school equivalency certificates while learning skills in the building trades. In San Luis, the program is administered by PPEP, a Tucson-based nonprofit educational organization. YouthBuild requires participants to complete at least 450 hours of community service each.
The members of the 16th class, who graduated earlier this month, collectively contributed 9,045 hours of community service as volunteers with charitable or nonprofit organizations in the Yuma area. That, said Lopez, is a record among all the classes.
Among the organizations benefiting from the community service was the Yuma Community Food Bank, for whom the San Luis students went door to door collecting food. The drive brought in nearly 7,000 pounds of food for the Food Bank, more than what was collected by previous classes, Lopez said.
Among the members of the latest graduating class is Dayanara Falcon. A farmworker who was also working at a call center, enrolled in YouthBuiild with the goal of getting a better-paying job, but over the course of eight months in the remedial education program, she set her sights still higher.
“The program inspired me as a single mother to set an example for my daughter to get an education,” said Falcon, 24. “I don’t want my daughter to tell me someday that she doesn’t want to study. So I decided to continue on to college. Being in YouthBuild motivated me a lot. I know it will be had, but such is life.”
At 18, Falcon dropped out of high school during what would have been her last year. Then at 21, she became pregnant, complicating any plans to go back to earn her high school diploma.
“Now my goal is to finish up with a degree in early childhood education so I can work in day care centers and Head Start programs, and even study toward a bachelor’s degree in that field.”
In the meantime, she credits YouthBuild with helping her get a new job as a cashier in a business.
“In the program we learned to give to others and to the community. They say that all the good you do comes back to you, and that is happening to me.”