Drayton Fondren made the long trip back from Birmingham, Ala. to Senatobia to attend his GED commencement at Northwest Mississippi Community College on June 4. He felt like he had to. “I am doing this for my two children,” the soft-spoken 31-year old said. “I want to show them that no matter how old you are, you can always do better.” Fondren is the father of Tyler, 10 and Christina, 7.

Fondren, like many of the 89 students who received their General Education Development (GED) certificates that night, is looking for a second chance.

He dropped out of high school, married young and began working full-time. “I came up to Coldwater in December 2006 due to personal problems,” he said. He credits his uncle and aunt in Coldwater, Bert and Becky Nicholas for helping him turn his life around. “If it weren’t for them, I don’t know where I’d be right now. They took me in and helped me, got me into church, and encouraged me to get my GED,” Fondren said. “With their help and encouragement, I accomplished a lot in a short amount of time.”

He began his GED classes at Northwest in January and passed the test the first time out on Feb. 28. After passing the test, he moved back to Birmingham to straighten out his personal life, but now wants to come back to north Mississippi to continue his education at Northwest. “I would like to take physical therapy or surgical technology -- anything related to the medical field, because I want to help people,” Fondren said. He is planning to move his family here for a fresh start and hopes to begin his college career at Northwest in August.

For more information about the Adult Basic Education and GED programs at Northwest, contact Guy Purdy at 662-562-3401 or e-mail gpurdy@northwestms.edu.