GED program stirs grads' pride, promise

Ramos

Moya

When 30-year-old Elia Rosicella Ramos took her seat among Del Mar College students at summer session classes this week, it was a day of long-awaited triumph for the single mother of two.
   Ramos' college career would not have been possible had she not earned her high school equivalency with the help of Del Mar's General Educational Development program.
   When Ramos returned home from her first day of college, she was loaded with homework.
   "At one point someone called on the phone to talk, but my daughter said I couldn't come to the phone because mommy was doing her college homework," Ramos said. "She was so proud of me."
   Like Ramos, 31-year-old Jesse Moya earned his GED through Del Mar and also chose to continue his education. He begins classes Monday at Texas A&M University-Corpus Christi.
   Ramos wants to become an
   elementary school teacher, while Moya has his heart set on becom- ing a registered nurse. Both
   will participate in Del Mar's annual GED program graduation ceremonies June 28 at Richardson Auditorium.
   On average, 100 to 120 students graduate from the Del Mar program per year. About 40 percent of them go on to attend Del Mar College within 12 months, said Chris Palacios, coordinator of the GED/English for Speakers of Other Languages program.
   'Life is short'

To learn more For information about Del Mar's General Educational Development/English for Speakers of Other Languages program, call its 24-hour hot line at 698-1756.

   Ramos, who quit high school at 18 to work at a local fast-food restaurant and earn money to get her own apartment, found her lack of a high school diploma a hardship.
   For a while Ramos worked 70 hours a week as a retail manager, leaving her children in the care of her mother and younger sister. But when her younger sister died and her mother became ill, Ramos quit her job to take care of her children and ailing mother.
   "When my little sister died, I realized that life is short, that I needed to pursue my dreams, and needed to find a better way of life for my children," Ramos said.
   Beating embarrassment
   Moya quit high school at 18 to earn money to help his family and for eight years earned good wages working for a refinery contractor. But when he divorced and became a single parent of two, he changed careers so he could care for his sons, now 4 and 6.
   When he took a job as a residents' aide at a local nursing home and went to Del Mar to become a certified nurses' assistant, "it opened up a whole new world for me," Moya said.
   It was then that he began his pursuit of a career in medicine, but even in his own circle of family and friends, Moya said, there hasn't always been full support. A few have suggested he give up his dream of a college degree and return to the refinery work that paid him well.
   "But I've also had lots of people who pat me on the back and tell me to keep on going," Moya said.
   At first, Moya felt a bit embarrassed about college because of his age.
   "I see students a lot younger than me, but I've put all that aside," Moya said. "I know now what I want and I'm going all the way. I'm doing this to be a better person, a better parent and a better role model. What I'm doing isn't for anybody other than me and my kids."