05.31.2017

‘I Did Not Plan to Finish School Early, But I Did It’

By Anifa, Student at Shoreline Community College

I had never accomplished anything in my life on my own until I finished high school. I have worked hard to build a better life for me and my family, but I never thought I would finish school.

My junior year I had to drop out of high school because I could not work and finish school at the same time. I was told I could complete high school and also get my AA degree at the same time through a program called Career Education Options (CEO) at Shoreline Community College. Unfortunately, CEO is a quarterly program, and the quarter had just started. I knew I couldn’t be out of school for a whole three months waiting for the program to start again! So, I enrolled in Shoreline’s Learning Center North (LCN) program which helps with reading, writing and math skills.

I did not plan to get my GED. I thought I was just there until the new quarter started for the CEO program. I began slowly, doing one problem at time. Before I knew it, I was taking my first math practice test. Then, I took my final math test and passed it! Then, I took another test and passed! And, at the end of those three months, I already had my GED! I did not plan to finish school early, but I did it, and I’m proud of it! If I were to go back in time, I would do the exact same thing. Thanks to LCN, I was able to finish school two years earlier than expected.

When I came to America, I was held back four years in school, so being able to catch up two of those years has helped me a lot. I will forever be thankful for that! Now I’m in college—all because of the LCN program! I am proud to say I’m done with high school, and being a college student is what I’m working on right now.

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