A nearly packed Mello Center saw the first graduation of the season in Pajaro Valley Unified School District Thursday evening with 173 graduates of Watsonville/Aptos/Santa Cruz Adult Education crossing the stage to collect their diplomas, degrees and certificates.
In fields including high school diplomas, GEDs, cosmetology, medical, EKG technicians, certified nursing assistants, pharmacy technicians and US citizenship, the graduates were joined on stage by education officials and other dignitaries.
“Tonight we gather to celebrate a remarkable achievement, a combination of hard work, perseverance and unwavering determination,” said adult school director Nancy Bilicich. “Many of you overcome personal challenges to reach this day; your stories are a powerful reminder that learning is a lifelong journey to pursue your dreams.”
Graduate Areli Martinez said the adult school smoothed the way for her to gain her GED.
“It’s an amazing school and the teachers are friendly; they make you feel confident that you feel that you can do this,” she said. “I had classes where they teach you in English and Spanish; so if there’s a question you don’t understand, you can ask it in Spanish and that really helped.”
Martinez said that she appreciated that classes are offered in the morning and the evening.
She says she will now attend Cabrillo College to study human services, a field of study inspired by her desire to help her community.
“I’m so excited,” she said. “It will be such an inspiration for my daughters. I would like to encourage people to step up and be a better person, especially in this country. We can do a lot of things for our community by studying. We are not just here as immigrants; we are here to help make America great. We are here to support this country.”
