Amber Simpson and Tom Pitcairn are just two examples of students who continued with their education at the Huntingdon Adult Education Community Centre (HAECC) to either do some course upgrades or complete courses they needed for their DES (diplôme d’études secondaires) or entry into CEGEP. The philosophy behind Adult Ed for academics is just that… it is an opportunity for those who, for whatever reason, didn’t quite get to finish high school with the necessary tools or courses to move to the next stage in their lives.
We all mature at different times, but we can all get to where we want to go if we just put our minds to it. “Hard work pays off” says Tom, who after coming to HAECC for some extra courses, will be leaving the very same building with his DEC (diplôme d’études collégiales) from the Champlain College cohort. His advice for other young people is to “use your resources and listen to your teachers, they are full of experience and guidance”. This same advice goes for Amber, whose will soon be finishing her DEC and plans to continue on to university. Adult Education for her was a “final step in getting my DES and opening up numerous doors for other options and more education”. Sometimes you just have to say to yourself “just do it and get it done”.
So if you’ve been thinking about returning to school, think no more; it’s never too late do to something great for yourself!
Joanne O’Hanley (Guidance Counsellor at HAECC)