Winston-Salem/Forsyth County Schools has launched a new GED preparation program this year, taught in Spanish.
Jessica Martinez was one of about a dozen adults to first participate in the program. She and her classmates gathered inside the media center at Parkland High School for their last session back in May.
It was a little after 5 p.m. The rest of the school’s students and teachers had been gone for hours. And many of the adults in the room had just gotten off work or picked their own kids up from school.
Martinez has three little ones — they were in a classroom down the hall with the other children being watched by a couple of teachers.
In the months before this last meeting, four days a week, two and a half hours a day, she and her peers have been taking classes here at Parkland preparing to earn their GEDs.
“When I arrived in this country, my dream was always to study. I always said that I happened to arrive during the pandemic, so I ended up confined to my own little world," Martinez said. "But that desire was always there within me; I want to study, I want to learn, I want to get out into the world.”
Martinez started taking English as a Second Language, or ESL, classes through the district. That’s where she learned about the new Spanish GED preparation program, where adults study for a series of four tests to earn the equivalent of a high school diploma. The exams can be administered in Spanish.
But it’s a program like this one, free and with childcare, that makes taking those tests a possibility for someone like Martinez — a stay-at-home mom. Still, it was a tough choice when thinking about her kids.
“They were my main obstacle, yet they were also my driving force. I felt torn between them and myself. I had activities lined up for the children all week long," Martinez said. "I kept asking myself whether I should make time for myself to get my GED or keep taking them to their activities so as not to disrupt their routine. That was hard for me."
Ultimately, she decided that if she was doing well, her kids would do well. She could be an example for them.
And Martinez says her children adapted to their new routine better than she expected.
“They know that at 4:30, we’re off to high school. They ask, 'Ma, are we going to high school? Ma, do we have class today?' It’s a nice thing, really nice," she said. "I admit, though, that it was hard at the start."
There were times when the kids got sick, or it was raining, or she was exhausted from managing the household all day.
"So, there are days when I think, 'No, I’m not going today,' but then I look at them and realize they’re watching me," Martinez said. "If I give up today, they’ll think they have to give up, too.”
The district’s Multilingual Learners Department began developing the program last year. Several parents had been asking for it. But Yamil Bullock, the director of the department, knew the commitment would be challenging for them.
“One way to support our families is also try to break the barriers that they have, and one is providing childcare," she said.
She knew the program would need to be free — the childcare, the classes, their books and practice tests. There isn’t another Spanish GED program that checks all those boxes around here.
“They are important for our district. Our families are important," Bullock said. "So that's why we are trying to find ways to make them feel that they belong, that we are trying to cover their needs in any way.”
Once the team figured out how to make all of that work, they assembled a small group of teachers to build a Spanish curriculum for social studies, math, science and language arts — the four GED subject areas. They were able to use federal funding designated for English learner education to pay teachers to work extra hours after school.
Hector Alvarez is one of them. He teaches ESL classes at Winston-Salem Prep, and comes to Parkland in the evening to teach math and science to the adults. It makes for a long day, but he doesn’t mind.
“I come here with love first of all. I come here to share my knowledge. It's not that much, but I can share what I know with all my students," he said. "And they come here, and most of them, they work, and they have a lot of different jobs. So for them it’s a challenge more than for me.”
Alvarez taught at a university in Cuba for more than three decades before moving to Winston-Salem a little over a year ago. He was an English learner too, like his students. With this group, he says he feels free.
“Teaching them in Spanish, that's perfect for me. I love teaching, but in Spanish, it's a nice experience with them," he said. "And they are willing to learn. Incredible, incredible, they are always willing to learn. All the time.”
The team behind the program decided that effort was worthy of a celebration.
On their last day, all of the students brought something to share — Puerto Rican sandwiches, Cuban tamales, donuts and more.
Completing the preparation program was an achievement in and of itself. And the students were beaming with pride, for themselves and each other.
Martinez took the exams at Forsyth Tech the following week — the first of her class to do it. They cost a little over $100. It’s something the school district hopes to cover for participants in the future.
Martinez said she felt at ease and well-prepared. Though as soon as she hit submit, she started retracing all of the questions and answers in her head. She got an email with the results three hours later.
She passed.
"My kids were with me, and they immediately jumped for joy with me, saying 'Congratulations, Mommy!' They ran over and hugged me," Martinez said.
She passed her next three tests too. When it was all over, the first thing she did was tell her teachers and classmates.
"Everyone started congratulating me, and I began encouraging them, telling them it’s possible, that we can all do it since we’re in this together," Martinez said.
Several others have gone on to take and pass their exams too.
And Martinez says having a GED is opening doors for her. She’s going to dedicate this year to taking English courses, starting in August. Then she plans to study finance. She wants to get a job in the field and teach her kids money management skills too.
Another member in the group says she wants to get her license to work in childcare. Others hope to go back into the careers they held in their home countries, but had to leave behind.
Now, they’ve all taken the first step toward those different dreams, together.
