This content was published: June 13, 2011. Phone numbers, email addresses, and other information may have changed.
PCC Sylvania graduates nearly 170 students from its GED program
Photos and story by Kate Chester
The Performing Arts Center at the Sylvania Campus was standing room-only when the campus held its annual graduation ceremony on June 4 for students graduating from its GED program.
After an open microphone session where students – and their friends and families – could speak about this year’s graduates, attendees watched a PowerPoint presentation and the presentation of diplomas, followed by the tassel ceremony and a reception.
Jeremiah Brennan, a Tualatin resident, addresses attendees at the 2011 GED graduation ceremony held on the PCC Sylvania Campus June 4. Brennan was this year’s valedictorian, receiving a top score on the GED exam.
The ceremony is one of the largest GED graduations in the Portland area and the largest of the PCC campuses. It’s also one of the most successful: The graduation rate from Sylvania’s program is 56 percent, with more than 10 percent of graduates earning honors status. Across the country, GED programs average a 15 percent graduation rate.
Students attend comprehensive classes, where one instructor teaches five subjects. To earn a GED certificate, students must pass a test in five subject areas: writing, social studies, science, literature and arts/reading, and math. Those who graduate from the program are offered 12 tuition-free credits in the associate degree program at PCC.
While the student body varies from year to year, in general 70 percent of the students are at-risk youth and 30 percent are adults over the age of 21.
For more information about PCC’s GED program, visit: www.pcc.edu/prepare.
Abdulla Abdulaziz, who lives in Tigard, poses for a photo with his family in front a giant fish from the “Washed Ashore” art exhibit. Abdulaziz is a graduate of this year’s GED class from PCC Sylvania.