In July 2017, Goodwill of Central & Southern Indiana awarded nearly $60,000 in scholarships to 22 employees, graduates and program participants to help them overcome barriers to pursuing higher education. One recipient, Nina Sharp, had enrolled at The Excel Center®, Goodwill’s high school for adults, after dropping out 17 years earlier.

If you didn’t know her story, Clarissa Dunn would look like an average, 21-year old college student, but the truth is, she has worked extremely hard to get on the path to higher education. She dropped out of high school her freshman year after becoming pregnant. When she enrolled at The Excel Center®, Goodwill’s high school for adults, she had few transferable credits and was completely starting over.

The challenges and opportunities we all face in life shift our paths. At 15, Magi Wachtel experienced a major shift in her life when her father passed away from cancer.

When Patrick Gnall first joined Goodwill in 2013, he was hired as an associate at the Fishers store. Having recently relocated from another state, he didn’t have a large support system or a professional credential. He experienced social anxiety and lacked direction for his future.

Night School, a documentary film following three adult students working to earn their Indiana Core 40 high school diploma and technical certifications from The Excel Center will be showing for a limited time this June at the Indiana State Museum.

Cheree Sampson and Suton Sykes have always emphasized the importance of education to their four boys, all under age 15. Watching the boys go to school each day, Sampson and Sykes knew it was time to get their high school diplomas so they could take steps toward life goals that include providing a stable environment for their children.

The typical student at The Excel Center® – Goodwill’s high school for adult learners – is between 18-24 years old, but returning to school at the age of 47 isn’t the only characteristic that separates Brenda Leake from most of her classmates.

Although a teenager at the time, when Dominique Daye learned she was pregnant, her priorities became her son and planning for their future. She didn't have a car or a stable living environment, so she moved from Indianapolis to O'Connor House, a home for single mothers and their children located in Carmel, where she stayed for more than 18 months until she could secure a place of her own.

Denise Floyd enrolled at The Excel Center when she was nearly 30 years old. She had previously left high school after falling behind in her classes. Denise supported her family working various odd jobs, but she wanted a career.

When Alia Schleppenbach enrolled at The Excel Center in Lafayette in April 2016, she had no idea her mother would pass away just a few months later.