Gray-New Gloucester Adult & Community Education awarded five diplomas in a ceremony on Monday, June 7th. While the heat caused a venue change, it didn’t dampen the spirit of the celebration and the students receiving their hard-earned High School Equivalency Diplomas (HiSET, formerly GED). A total of eight students earned either a HiSET or Adult High School Diploma during the 2020-2021 school year.

Director Stephanie Haskins and Program Coordinator Theresa Boynton, and Adult Education Faculty, Maureen Mitchell, Sheila Myhaver and Laurie Wells recognized each graduate in five individual ceremonies. Graduates invited special guests to the ceremony and each received a personalized cake to continue their celebration at home.

Diplomas were presented by Haskins and Boynton to the following graduates who attended the ceremony: Joseph Amend, Eunice Burns, Dayla Davis, Kassandra Mercer, and Leila Nelson. The following students earned diplomas during the 2020-2021 school year and were awarded diplomas in prior ceremonies: Lucas Rogers, Makayla Smart, Zachary St.Clair, and Adam Tarsetti. Students who earned their diplomas during the 2019-2020 school year, and were recognized in individual events were: Crystal Jordan, Devin Julian, Aric Lutz, Jessica Roberts, Hunter Russell.

Kassandra Mercer was recognized as an outstanding adult education graduate, and received the Courage to Grow award from Central Maine Community College. The award provides a scholarship to the recipient for three credit hours of tuition for the upcoming fall semester.

Gray-New Gloucester Adult & Community Education provides individualized programming in a friendly environment to help adult learners achieve their academic, career and personal goals. Programming includes high school diploma and high school equivalency preparation classes, college and career advising, college preparation, career training, as well as personal enrichment classes.

For more information about Gray-New Gloucester Adult & Community Education’s programming visit gngadulted.org or call 657-9612.

This article was submitted by Gray-New Gloucester Adult & Community Education Program as part of the Maine Schools Sharing Success Campaign. To submit an article or a story idea, email Rachel at rachel.paling@maine.gov.