DAEC Alumni Highlight
“First Give Up, Then Win:
A Self-Discovered Truth”
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Chase your dreams. Follow your heart. These are common catchphrases we hear all our lives. They are meant to inspire, but can sometimes mislead, which is why Gabriela Perky avoided them in her keynote address at the 2016 Graduation Ceremony. To achieve her truest passion in life, Gaby first had give up all the chasing and following.
Gaby excelled in high school, but she did not receive the mental and emotional support she needed. She went to the Durango Adult Education Center just to ask some questions about getting her GED.
“For the first time in a long time, I felt seen. I saw the genuine concern, the glow of caring in their eyes, and I knew I was in the right place,” she recalls.
After ably completing her GED in 2009, Gaby accrued course credits at San Juan Community College. She transferred to Fort Lewis College where she worked tirelessly towards her dream of being an actress on the stage. She won a prestigious Irene Ryan Acting Scholarship to attend the Kennedy Center American College Theatre Festival!
At last! All those years of chasing, pursuing, hounding—this was it! But it wasn’t.
“Everyone was so excited, except me,” Gaby admits.
And that’s when she realized whatever she’d been chasing wasn’t her dream after all. She gave up the scholarship and took her first steps into the pure unknown. She sampled lots of classes, discovered a real spark with math, and wound up majoring in business management. Gaby completed her degree in 2015, graduated Cum Laude, and landed a stellar job!
By giving up the race for the prize she’d always dreamed of, Gaby was able to discover her truest self and achieve a life full of unimaginable wonders! |
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Congratulations to our 17 recent GED May Graduates!
Since June 2015, we have been surpassing the
National and Colorado overall GED pass rates
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