For the last 13 weeks, Juan Lopez has been studying for a test that could change his life.
The 26-year-old, originally from Mexico, is nearing the final days of MSU's High School Equivalency Program, or HEP, to earn a Graduate Education Degree, or GED. HEP students will be taking their GED test on April 15 at a testing site in St. Johns.
HEP, which began about three years ago and is the only program of its kind in the state, is a federal education program designed to meet the needs of migrant and seasonal farm workers in pursuit of a GED. The program is funded by the U.S. Department of Education's Office of Migrant Education.
"I've been improving my language a lot to be able to get into college," Lopez said. "Reading and writing are difficult subjects, even for American students."
Each semester about 25 students, many of whom speak English as a second language, go through the program. HEP staff help those in the program through tutoring and preparation for the GED exam. Staff also help them find placement in universities, colleges, vocational institutions, military services, other post-secondary activities or career positions.
But Lopez already has gone down this road before. He earned his degree in Mexico, and he completed three years of college while studying philosophy before he decided to move to the United States to study English and start a new career.
"When you go someplace, you can say that you studied in Mexico, but it's easier for me to validate my studies with a GED," Lopez said. "There's more opportunity here in the United States than in Mexico."
Students in the program also are taught career-development skills, including how to create résumés and prepare for job interviews.
HEP Associate Director Emily Holley said students enrolled in the program are given on-campus housing options so they can have access to university resources such as the Main Library and computer labs.
HEP also is a feeder program to MSU's sister program, College Assistance Migrant Program, or CAMP, which gives financial assistance to MSU students who come from migrant worker families.
Angie Gonzalez, a HEP volunteer, tutors students each week and helps them develop study skills while she answers homework questions. As a CAMP member, she said she understands the difficulties the students are going through.
"I can relate myself to them," she said. "It's hard to get through school, especially coming from a migrant background."
Many of the students in HEP come from migrant worker families and for various reasons, were not able to make it to graduation day. Students said HEP motivates them to achieve their goals.
"With backgrounds like ours, sometimes it's difficult to believe that you can go to college," Lopez said.
HEP student Sergio Dominguez said the program gives members of the Chicano and Latino communities an opportunity to show they can overcome obstacles in their lives.
"A lot of times we're told 'You can't do this and you can't do that,'" Dominguez said. "It's so different to have someone say 'You can do this because I believe in you.'"
Dominguez said many Chicanos and Latinos don't have strong role models to look up to and to push them to aim for a college degree.
"Programs like this give us an opportunity to go back to our homes and become pillars in our community," he said.
Jessica Gutierrez, an HEP student, said earning her GED will give her a sense of pride and she hopes to go on to earn a college degree.
"God has put us here on earth to make something out of our lives," she said. "Life is like a puzzle sometimes you have to find the pieces and put them together to complete our images."
And as Lopez spends the next few days in final preparation for his GED, he's said brimming with confidence that he'll pass the test and begin the next chapter of his life.
"I'm prepared," he said. "I feel very good about it."
