[Congressional Record Volume 146, Number 65 (Tuesday, May 23, 2000)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E810]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




   1999-2000 GED GRADUATES--COOSA VALLEY TECHNICAL INSTITUTE ROME, GA

                                 ______
                                 

                             HON. BOB BARR

                               of georgia

                    in the house of representatives

                         Tuesday, May 23, 2000

  Mr. BARR of Georgia. Mr. Speaker, the first graduate equivalency 
diploma (GED) tests were developed in 1942 to help returning World War 
II veterans finish their studies and re-enter civilian life. Then, as 
now, the GED tests measure the academic skills and knowledge expected 
of high school graduates in the United States. The GED program has 
served as a bridge to education and employment for an estimated 13 
million people over its 58-year history. Approximately one in seven 
high school diplomas issued in the United States is based on passing 
the GED tests, and 68 percent of GED test-takers plan to enter a 
college, university, trade, technical, or business school in the very 
next year. During the past 10 years, the number of adults taking 
special editions of the GED tests (audio cassette and braille) more 
than doubled.
  Today I salute the 1999-2000 GED graduates of Coosa Valley Technical 
Institute in Rome, GA. Coosa Valley Tech is an official GED testing 
center, under contract with the Georgia Department of Technical and 
Adult Education and the American Council on Education. Adults who are 
18 years of age and officially withdrawn from school are eligible for 
testing. Those who pass the GED are awarded the General Educational 
Development Diploma, and, in Georgia, most are eligible for a $500 HOPE 
voucher from the State of Georgia to defray costs of continuing 
education at eligible schools.
  The environment of the school is designed to give special attention 
to adults returning to school to resume educational programs which were 
interrupted in earlier years. These adults may be refreshing their 
basic skills to re-enter the job market after a layoff; preparing for 
the GED tests to qualify for a job or educational program which 
requires a high school diploma to enter; or working toward a personal 
educational goal which they have set for themselves. More than 95 
percent of employers in the United States consider GED graduates the 
same as traditional high school graduates when making hiring, salary, 
and promotion decisions.
  Nationwide, statistics indicate more than 800,000 adults take the GED 
tests each year. Those who obtain scores high enough to earn a GED 
diploma outperform at least one-third of today's high school seniors.
  Some prominent GED graduates include: actor Bill Cosby; Wendy's 
founder, Dave Thomas; and U.S. Senator Ben Nighthorse Campbell (R-CO).
  Not only have adults who obtain their GED worked diligently to reach 
their educational goal, many did so while holding down full time jobs. 
Many are mothers or fathers who must care for the needs of their 
children. Most certainly, they are to be congratulated for their 
diligence and hard work in achieving their goals. It is hoped each of 
them will continue to succeed in future endeavors, and statistics 
indicate that will likely be the case.
  It is my honor to place this recognition of the 1999-2000 GED 
graduates of Coosa Valley Technical Institute into the Congressional 
Record of the 106th Congress of the United States of America.

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