My Experience in Adult Education
Maria de la Luz Garcia attends S. B. Idea’s Family Literacy Academy at
Greenacres Elementary. She is married and has three children. Her
teacher is Julia Clark.
Columbia County Adult Education
During my years of experience in adult education, the
literacy program has been challenging. I have to be smart
and separate time for my family and school. Sometimes it is
really demanding and frustrating, but I will keep going
because for me, being an educated person is very important.
I am from Mexico and I immigrated to United States
seventeen years ago. When I got here, the first thing I did
was start working in a factory because my dream was to
work to have a better life. For a long time I focused on hard
work. Soon, I had fulfilled my purpose. Before too long my
house and my car were paid for in full.
I was happy because I had reached my dream, but then
something tragic happened. My husband had an accident
and he was in the hospital for two months. Those months
were a nightmare for me. I did not speak English. Although
I never had problems communicating in my job, now I had
to communicate with doctors. I didn’t understand what they
were saying or speak the same language. During that time I
understood why it is important to go to school. Through that
experience I thought, “It’s never too late to start studying.” I
started from nothing, but I’m progressing a lot. Being in
Columbia County Adult Education’s literacy program in
Lake City, Florida has been a great experience for me. What
I have learned has helped me to be a better wife and mom. I
have three beautiful children and I want to encourage them
to stay in school. Also, I would like to be a role model to
motivate them to become educated adults in the future.
Maria Rodriguez has great dedication to persevering in the face of life
challenges. Her attendance is praiseworthy. She keeps on “keeping-on”
and has many successes to prove it! As a student with Columbia Career
and Adult Education, we thank Maria for being an outstanding role
model of the benefits of persistence and her devotion to learning.