When Jasmine B. applied to colleges in the Washington, D.C., area, she was ecstatic. She was returning to school to change career paths, with hopes of transitioning from an optician to a registered nurse.
But when she sat in the registrar’s office of the college, she was given terrible news. The online program she earned her GED through over a decade ago lost its accreditation one month before she graduated. Her high school diploma was no longer valid, making her ineligible for college enrollment.
Jasmine was shocked and devastated. She would have to start over.
She immediately enrolled in AoH’s summer National External Diploma Program (NEDP) to work towards her high school diploma. Her brother had previously attended AoH, so she knew it was the place for her.
Establishing herself at AoH brought its challenges. Jasmine found it difficult to stay motivated, with feelings of anger and frustration consuming her mind.
“Starting from scratch, I was like, ‘Do I really want to do this?’” Jasmine said. “‘I should do this. I can stay complacent, and I can stay an optician, or I can follow my gut and become a nurse. Listen to God.’ And after I sucked up and got over my feelings, it was pretty smooth.”
With the help of “her village,” Jasmine balanced school, work, and her kids. She mentions Lead NEDP Advisor/Assessor Dawn Williams, NEDP Advisor/Assessor Elizabeth Early, her mom, her boyfriend, and co-workers as her biggest supporters.
“There would be times when I’d lock myself in my room so my kids wouldn’t come in, so I could do a proctored test and everything. My mom was dragging my kids away from the door like, ‘You can’t go in there,’ and Ms. Elizabeth would just be cracking up…” Moments like these reassured her that she had support.
After spending hours in that room, Jasmine not only received her high school diploma but also completed AoH’s Nurse Aid Training (NAT) to become a Certified Nurse Aid (CNA) in June 2025. She attended both graduations, changing from her gown to scrubs, ready to celebrate. She even spoke at the ceremony in an effort to continue her “year of change” by trying public speaking.
Jasmine’s story inspired others. She’d be featured on National Public Radio’s (NPR) podcast and later receive the national NEDP Changing Lives Scholarship and Fairlawn Citizens Association Ward 8 Scholarship, with the help of AoH’s College and Career Services. In total, these scholarships earned Jasmine $1,500 to fund her post-secondary education. With her scholarships and Pell Grant qualification, she can attend college for free.
“It’s amazing to have one less thing to worry about. When you have kids, the expenses never end.”
Today, Jasmine attends the University of the District of Columbia (UDC), where she is deciding to major in general surgery or cardiothoracic surgery. She hopes to progress from a Registered Nurse (RN) to a surgical nurse practitioner.
Jasmine did not let the decade between her first and last high school diplomas stop her from achieving her dreams, and she encourages others to do the same: “Just do it.”
“You already have the thought in your mind. Just do it and keep going, because once you start, the ball just keeps rolling. You’ve got people here to encourage you. You have a great support system … You can do it.”