SOUTH West TAFE celebrated the achievements of its mature-age VCE students on Friday night.
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A graduation ceremony was held for the first time, with the students undertaking fund-raising as a class project to make the event possible.
The students have re-engaged in education after spending months or even years out of the school system. They ranged in age from 17 to their mid 20s.
Senior educator VCE/VCAL Ken Radley said the graduation ceremony was a fitting reward for the students’ ability and their commitment to reviving their education. “There are some amazing stories of young people who for various reasons became disengaged from education but have seen the value of returning to get a VCE qualification,” Mr Radley said.
“They see that having year 12 will open up the door to further education and employment opportunities.”
Mr Radley said some of the students had been working and some had had children during their break from school.
“Having this course at South West TAFE has given them the opportunity to come back to secondary education. It is helping to turn the tide against our region’s low Year 12 attainment rates,” he said.