ATLANTA — Southern Regional Technical College received two awards recently for the success of its GED program.

Some of Georgia’s best, brightest – and even the oldest – GED diploma recipients, as well as the educators and staff who helped them to achieve their goals, were honored during Georgia’s annual GED Awards Luncheon at the Renaissance Atlanta Waverly Hotel.

The event, sponsored by the Technical College System of Georgia’s Office of Adult Education, was held during the Georgia Adult Education Fall Conference in front of nearly 700 conference attendees who gathered to celebrate of the exceptional achievement of the GED recipients and honor the outstanding service provided by the staff of the local GED testing centers.

Southern Regional Technical College (SRTC) was the recipient of two individual awards: Largest Percentage Increase in GED Tests Taken by centers serving 200-400 students and Highest GED Completion Percentage (Medium Program).

“I am proud of our instructors and students for this achievement.  These awards exemplify the quality instruction that SRTC students receive.  Research shows that students attending the Adult Education program have a higher passage rate on the GED test, and SRTC is no exception. Not only are our students prepared for the GED test, but they perform well on the college entrance exam when matriculating into credit programs,” commented Melissa Burtle, SRTC director for adult education.  

In the past 10 years, the TCSG GED Testing Program has awarded 166,378 diplomas. Georgia was the first state to offer the GED test on a computer in December 2011 and the first to implement a complete transition of the GED mobile computer-based testing in corrections facilities in 2014. TCSG has 66 GED Testing Centers and 63 mobile testing sites, providing testing for three Youth Challenge Academies, three Job Corps centers, more than 83 correctional institutions and 11 youth detention centers.

Additionally, the Southwest Regional Certified Literate Program which is part of the state’s Certified Literate Community Program was the recipient of two additional awards: Advocacy Award, GED Testing Scholarships (Multiple County CLCP); and Advocacy Award, Tutor Hours (Multiple County CLCP).

Created in 1990 by the Technical College System of Georgia and the Georgia Council on Adult Literacy, the Certified Literate Community Program asks a community to establish a non-profit collaborative to promote, support and enhance local community literacy efforts. Communities participating in the program analyze literacy needs, create awareness of those needs, ensure that learning opportunities are offered and evaluate progress.

To qualify as a participant in the program, a community must set the goal of reducing its functional illiteracy rate by 50 percent within 10 years. When a CLCP reaches its stated goal, it may apply for the second level of certification as a Certified Literate Community. Eighty-seven counties and two cities have been certified by the TCSG State Board as CLCPs. Fifty counties and one city are CLCP Participants (first level of certification) and 37 counties and one city are Certified Literate Communities (second level of certification).