For many students at Indianapolis Metropolitan High School, a free public school for students in grades 9-12, the world often feels defined by the height of city buildings and the rhythm of busy streets. However, thanks to a special afterschool program called Reach for Nature, those horizons are expanding. As part of Goodwill Central and Southern Indiana and the Goodwill Legacy Group, this Indy Met program offers more than just a break from the classroom. It offers a bridge to a world of wonder that many urban youth rarely get to cross.

Life has a funny way of taking us on detours. For Wendi, that detour started early, when she was just 16 years old and she dropped out of high school.

Montez Day knows firsthand that a single moment does not define a lifetime. Today, he serves as the Manager of Goodwill New Beginnings at Goodwill of Central & Southern Indiana, a role he stepped into in 2025 after starting as a facilitator and receiving several promotions since joining the organization in September 2021. But his path to leadership was shaped by years of transformation, education, and an unwavering belief in the power of second chances.

When Goodwill of Central & Southern Indiana and Per Scholas officially partnered in late 2022, they shared a simple but powerful goal: to open doors to opportunity through education. Per Scholas, a national nonprofit that provides no-cost technology career training and job connections, especially for individuals traditionally underrepresented in tech, moved into Goodwill’s corporate offices on West Michigan Street in January 2023. By March, the first cohort of learners had begun, bringing new energy, hope, and possibility into the space.

Ten years ago, a door opened in Shelbyville that changed the trajectory of hundreds of lives. Today, The Excel Center®, Goodwill of Central & Southern Indiana’s free public high school for adults, proudly announces the 10th anniversary of its Shelbyville location.

Behind every number is a person – a parent finding stability, a student earning a diploma, a neighbor securing stable housing. At Goodwill, measurable impact isn’t just something we report. It’s something happening every single day. In 2025, Goodwill’s mission came to life in powerful, measurable ways.

Austin was just one credit short of earning his high school diploma, but at the time, that single credit felt like a mountain to climb. School had never been a place where he felt comfortable or successful. Sitting still in a classroom was difficult with ADHD, and he often questioned whether finishing school even mattered. By his senior year, life had become even more complicated. Frequent moves and an abusive relationship made it difficult to focus on anything beyond simply getting through each day.

When Roddrick’s wife secretly signed him up for orientation at The Excel Center® , Goodwill’s tuition-free high school for adults, he thought she was joking. Decades after leaving school in the ninth grade, he walked into class  ready for a fresh start.

Goodwill of Central & Southern Indiana hosts its full-day Education and Mission Conference (GEM) every year. It’s a professional development event meant to connect mission and education staff across our service area. It provides an opportunity for them to learn from each other and share best practices through presentations and workshops.

When Saja Abbas was in middle school in Iraq, her education came to a sudden halt. The war that began in 2003 disrupted daily life, closing schools and shifting her family’s focus to survival. “I was a kid at home who didn’t understand what was going on,” Saja recalled. “But it was a big impact on my education.”