Ahem!....An announcement from the school they couldn't shut down.

[Anne Nonniemouse <ShopMathEdu@AOL.COM>]

Dear ARN folks:

For new folks on the list, greetings from the World of Opportunity adult and
young adult education program in Birmingham, Alabama.

For the veterans of the list, greetings from the school they couldn't shut
down.

We are proud to announce that we will be holding a GED completion ceremony
this week for our first student who hurdled this dreadful exam.

There's a certain irony to make this announcement to a list service which is
dedicated to opposition to standardized testing.  The ARN list has an active
following here in Birmingham and within our program.  Nevertheless, the GED
is a real obstacle for adults whose education was derailed due to class, race
and other issues.

So, it is a cause for celebration when a student passes this test.  It is a
great source of pride and joy for our student, his family, his fellow
students, and our community when someone studies for and acompishes this goal.

At 11:45 this coming Thursday, all of the gears at our student's place of
employment will grind to a halt, and all of his co-workers will gather around
the center of the shop floor where the GED certificate ceremony will take
place.  His wife and children will be on hand, and all of the students from
the WOO will also go next door to participate in this joyful event. There
will be a banner, some music (Theme from 2001), and we will even pop open the
sodas!

We just wanted to honk our horns and share a little of this joy with y'all on
the ARN list who have been so supportive of our efforts since the summer when
the school system first closed us down.

Several other students are on the cusp of passing their GEDs as well.
Our enrollment has topped 200 and we are now expanding our humble facilities.
Many thanks to folks on the ARN list, especially Gloria Pipkin (Florida) and
Susan Ohanian (Vermont) [aka: the Ohanian/Pipkin Sisters] who have rallied
other education reformers to write letters in behalf of the student students,
sent us books (and more books), supplies, and financial contributions so that
we could remain open to serve this community.

Here's looking to he future, one step at a time......

Warmest greetings to one and all,
Steve Orel
adult education instructor
Assistant Director, BAC World of Opportunity

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