When the system fails its students

Maple Woods Career Center is a local non-profit organization that supports adults who are trying to finish their education. This center works out of Ravenna and offers classes in Kent and Windham along with the Ravenna location. They work within the ASPIRE program, helping people get prepared for the General Education Development (GED) or HiSet test but also rebuilding their skills and teaching English as a second language. 

“It could be anybody, it could be male, female, young, old, how specific you want to go with it. Anybody can come back and get their diploma, or  just brush up on their skills or basic language skills,” Laure Gauntner ASPIRE Coordinator said. “So we just don’t serve those without their high school diploma we serve both with or without.”

There are two different types of tests offered for those who need a high school equivalency, the completely online GED and the multiplatform HiSet. 

The GED is the online test offered for those who did not complete their high school diploma. It focuses on math, science, language arts and social studies. 

“This program is important because it helps those that were not able to get through high school to come back and get their high school equivalency…” Gaunter said. It’s important to move forward in life to have that high school equivalency to get employment, to move up in employment, to be able to take that next step and possibly attend college training or trade or get a certification.”

Maple Woods has 13 teachers dedicated to helping students take the next step in their education or work career. Classes are now offered online because of COVID-19, however, before the classes were small enough for teachers to be able to help students hands-on. 

The materials and classes are offered for free and there are scholarships available to help pay for the GED fees. 

Students are encouraged throughout the process because without the certification they are limiting themselves in the job market. 

“By 2025,  65% of the jobs that are going to be out there require some type of credential, not necessarily a bachelor’s degree or higher, but some type of credential and that usually starts with at least a high school diploma,” Portage Workforce Administrator Mandy Berardinelli said. “Not every time but a lot of times they want you to have either a high school diploma or the equivalent the GED,”

With unemployment on the rise, student numbers are also dropping and coronavirus is the reasoning behind it. Unemployment in the state is listed as 8.9% according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor and within the Akron area, it is 9.1%. 

“With those that are unemployed, we also help. We also help people like if they want to work on their resume and cover letter. You know, we have teachers that are more than willing to help them get going with that, or if they’d even like to come in, some people are hesitant about filling an online application,” Gaunter stated.

Maple Wood works hard to be the support system these adults need, even going as far as to create a community within the school. In the English learning classes, they have people bring in dishes from their culture to share with the entire class. Likewise, throwing events in which students can bring their children too. 

“The system failed our students the first time around, in one way or another, there’s a myriad reason why people drop out of school, too many to get into,”  David Shea teacher. “Sort of act like I think a safety net because as a society, you have to decide what you’re going to do with people for whom the system is failed.” 

The rate for not having a finished high school education is “10.9%” in Ohio, while the rest of the United States is at “13.30%” according to the 2015 Educational Attainment: Ohio by the Numbers report. 

The center works with Ohio Means Jobs regularly to help students find employment after taking classes for the high school equivalency tests. Students may even come back after graduation to take more courses that focus on higher education.

“They’ll go to work after they get their GED and maybe wait 18 months or something and give us a call and say, Hey, you know, you mentioned about nursing, can you give me more information, we’re more than willing to, you know, help them move forward,” Gaunter said.

With partnerships within the community, Maple Wood has been able to host classes in person at Viking Manufacturing, for ten students where they can work on their english, work vocabulary and citizen information. This is a new learning spot for the center and is currently a blended class uhb because of COVID-19. 

Maple Wood Center works hard with the ASPIRE program to support adults who have been left behind in this country. From not finishing high school to moving here without knowing English, this center works within the community to help. People interested can apply online or in-person for their programs and it is completely free to be a part of their program. 

The steps people take to achieve when the education system fails them https://t.co/7BRBv7uqv8

— Ry-anne? (@ryalocker) September 28, 2020