Student Spotlight: Kimonie

My name is Kimonie; I am 21 years old, I’m from Fort Wayne, Indiana, and I’ve lived here my whole life. I am the youngest out of 3 children, and I work as a CNA.

I came to The Literacy Alliance to get my high school equivalency (HSE) diploma because I dropped out of high school; I went to South Side Highschool right up the street. I was constantly in trouble, never really was at school because I was always getting kicked out, which caused me to fall behind. It made me very depressed caused me to give up on myself completely. A goal I’ve accomplished by coming to the Literacy Alliance was gaining confidence, self-discipline, and most importantly, my HSE diploma. The teachers and other staff helped a lot because everyone pushed me and realized I had potential.

My experience at the Literacy Alliance has been a very humbling one. This was my fourth time attending the Literacy Alliance, and every time I returned, I got the same respect, and no one treated me any differently. The staff and teachers kept reminding me every time they were here for me and that I could do this.

“The staff and teachers kept reminding me…they were here for me and that I could do this.”

Now that I have my HSE diploma, I plan to attend college, preferably at a historically black college, to become a nurse practitioner.

My journey to getting my diploma has been a long one, and now that I have it, I feel amazing. It is a significant weight off my shoulders, and I honestly could not have done it without The Literacy Alliance. My advice to anyone attending/enrolling in The Literacy Alliance is not to limit yourself, go full force, and never let anyone (not even yourself) feel like you cannot do this because you can. You will be reminded of that every time you come to class.