Meagan Rudd

Meagan decided to leave school shortly after starting the 11th grade. She became a teen mom which was very stressful. She worried about how she would be able to stress the importance of education to her daughter if she had not finished herself. As time went on, she was pestered by a feeling that she had made a huge mistake that would have forever changed the path of her future. Meagan realized that leaving school without a diploma really limited her opportunities to have a career that would support herself and her family. She decided she needed to go back and get her GED ®. She attempted the GED® but didn’t succeed in the first try. Because of a lack of confidence, she felt she couldn’t go back.

Meagan describes the years following that attempt as just “doing” and “getting by”. Finally, she became more dedicated to the idea of completing a high school credential and went to take a pretest at during a MRRAEP class. She found out that she was scoring very high and that there was another option for her called National External Diploma Program® (NEDP). With is program offered by The Mount Rogers Adult Education Program in Bristol, Virginia, she could earn an actual high school diploma from a local school district. She wanted to prove to herself that she could do this and more importantly, she wanted her children to be proud. This meant everything to her.

While working and raising her children Meagan was able to complete the program and earn her diploma! She says she learned a lot about herself during the course of the program. Her biggest challenge was time management. She had not been in school for over 10 years, so she needed to develop the skills to hold herself accountable for the tasks because the NEDP program is self-directed. It also showed her that if she could make this happen then she could also attend college, so she took her hard-earned diploma and went right into college! 

Meagan had a few instructors during her time I the program, but she says one really stood out, Wes Walker.  In Meagan’s words: 

“I think the world of him! His guidance really helped nudge me in the right direction when I was feeling hopeless or less than when things were in review or came back incorrect. Lord knows he fought several battles behind the scenes that I knew nothing about. He is a wonderful asset to the NEDP program in Bristol! I’m so thankful I got to finish with him beside me!”

We are very proud of Meagan and hope that her story will not only make her children proud, but also give the encouragement to others to take the first step and find out how The Mount Rogers Adult Education Program can help you get the credentials you need to brighten your future!