Susan Hinton, Adult High School Leader and Program Supervisor, gave her annual report to the Board of Education and the Director of Schools Thursday night.
Hinton said a total of twenty three students were served during the 2015-16 school year and three graduated. “I had two new students who came in this week. This happens all the time. People are going, coming, transferring and finishing. I had three graduates. I will have a graduate on Monday (May 9) which is included in the three and she is very excited. There has been seventy two credits completed this year in my class. That’s a lot of credits,” said Hinton.
“Every year I have questions from people in the community and I would like to address a few of those. We are not a GED Class. Our Adult High School is strictly regular diploma. We teach the regular classes,” she said.
“The DeKalb Adult High School serves students from age 18 and older and some 17 year olds with special permission who dropped out of school for various reasons or left high school without sufficient credits to graduate and want to come to school in a more flexible setting which enables students (who are working or have families to take care of) to return to school and complete a regular high school diploma,” said Hinton.
How long will it take to complete the class? “This is a frequent question asked by potential students. The amount of time to complete a high school diploma will depend on how many credits a student has on their individual record from previously attended accredited schools. The amount of credits is also dependent upon the year a student started high school and what classes were required during those years,” Hinton continued.
“Some people are able to complete a course per month, but it depends on the hours a student is able to complete classes at school or online. A student is able to complete classes from any online computer as well as attend classes at the adult high school”.
“Interested students should get in touch with the DeKalb County High School Guidance Department. The student must turn in information that will allow the staff in the guidance department to send for previous records of completed classes from any schools attended. Then individually, the guidance counselor will meet with the student and outline a plan of action to complete necessary classes required for graduation,” she said.
“The student must pass each course with a 70 or above to receive each credit and a certain number of subjects must be completed in specific courses. When the student has successfully completed his or her individual program, a diploma is ordered and presented to the student”.
“Each student works at his or her own pace and receives individual attention when possible. Students who do computer classes must meet periodically with the teachers of the Adult High School to receive extra help or make sure the student is on track for completing the course within a reasonable amount of time,” Hinton said.
Hinton read an essay by one of her students. “Coming back to school was a hard decision. My mind was filled with so many ifs. What if I won’t be able to support my family? What if it’ll take forever to get my school work done because of my job? It’s very hard to work at a job and come to school, but hey, it’s totally worth it.”
“I have a 6 year old child and I am expecting another child in the fall and would want to show and prove to my children that school is important in life. I used to not care at all for school because I didn’t see the benefits of it. Now, I actually see the benefits of having a better job with fewer hours and higher pay and being able to spend more time with my family.”
“Without a diploma, there are no better jobs. I used to just go to school because my parents made me. I never really paid attention. Here at the Adult High School, I’m learning. Don’t get me wrong—I’m learning because I now actually want to learn. Mrs. Hinton is a wonderful outstanding teacher. She helps me understand and of course I can’t leave out Mr. Dub who has helped me as well. He has a great personality and sense of humor. We have some awesome teachers at the Adult High School. So I really suggest if you’re planning on coming back to school, I recommend you do, it’s very important. Maybe like I mentioned, you won’t see it now, but later you will. It’s never too late to learn and it’s not a waste of time—it’s putting time into securing a better future for you and your family”.
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