photo by: Nick Krug

Graduate Kalila Vega hoists up her 11-month-old daughter Evangeline, who clutches her mother's Kansas State High School diploma during a reception following the Lawrence Adult Learning Center graduation ceremony on Thursday, June 2, 2016 at South Middle School. Vega was one of 91 graduates to receive either a diploma or GED.

When Randy Akin was in the tenth grade, he dropped out of school to get a job and help support his mom and younger brothers. It would be 25 years before he entered a classroom again.

“I had a corridor of doors that just would not open for me,” Akin told his fellow graduates of the Lawrence Adult Learning Center. “Growing up my family, like a lot of families, suffered from alcohol abuse in our home. At an early age my dad wrecked the truck, fought the police, went to jail, left us every time things got tough.”

Akin was one of 91 students who earned their high school diploma or GED from the Lawrence Adult Learning Center, and among about 30 who gathered to celebrate the occasion at South Middle School on Thursday.

Lawrence school board President Vanessa Sanburn commended graduates for the commitment and dedication it took to complete their high school education and expand the opportunities available to them.

“I imagine many of you had moments along this path when you considered giving up so you could put more hours in at work, spend more time taking care of your family,” Sanburn said. “I’m sure there were many important things that were competing for your attention and limited time. But here you are.”

Akin told those gathered that he decided to go back to school when he got to a place in his job where he felt stuck. He said the teachers at the center made great efforts to help him learn, including working with him one-on-one if needed.

“Every time I left school I felt a sense of accomplishment,” Akin said. “I’ve grown a lot since coming to the Adult Learning Center. I’ve never had this many doors in my corridor before, and I’m going to see how many I can open.”

Shine Adams, who earned his GED through the Lawrence Adult Learning Center in 2012, also addressed the graduates. Adams did not participate in graduation at that time and returned as an honorary graduate on Thursday. After earning his GED, Adams attended college and is now the director of Sun Cedar, a non-profit manufacturing organization that offers employment and training to at-risk members of the community.

photo by: Nick Krug

Graduates from the Lawrence Adult Learning Center turn to be recognized by their families and friends at the end of a graduation ceremony on Thursday, June 2, 2016 at South Middle School.

“I dropped out of school in 1992 when I was a freshman in high school,” Adams said. “I resented it, I thought I was better than it. When I came here it was time for me to reanalyze all of my thinking.”

Adams said the staff at the center “met him in the middle” and recognized that he and other students might approach things differently.

“I learned that I could learn, thanks to the staff,” Adams said.

Lawrence schools Superintendent Rick Doll told graduates that even if they took a nontraditional path, it did not diminish the diplomas they were getting ready to receive.

“The credential that you earn tonight is equal to any of the diplomas that we handed out in the multiple graduations that I went to this year in the city of Lawrence,” Doll said.

After the ceremony, graduates in black caps and gowns posed for pictures in the foyer of the school. Graduate Kalila Vega was joined by her family, including her 11-month-old daughter.

“My family always encouraged me to go back and finish so I could do more,” said Vega, adding that she wants to go to college, but isn’t yet sure what she’d like to study. “I still have a lot to figure out, but I made it this far, so I guess it’s never too late.”