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GED Testing Center Making The Grade
Nearly 80 percent of the students who have taken their high school equivalency test recently at Ocean County's GED (General Equivalency Diploma) testing facility have passed and earned their state-issued high school diploma.
The success of the facility, which opened two years ago at Ocean County College, was noted recently by Theodore Gooding, chairman of the Ocean County Human Services Council.
In a letter to Freeholder Gerry P. Little, Gooding praised the Ocean County Board of Chosen Freeholders for its insight in opening a centrally located testing center for local residents.
"Without the dedicated leaders such as yourself," Gooding told the board, "this test center would not have existed."
He called the quarterly statistics from the test center "amazing and quite an accomplishment."
The Ocean County test center has the fourth highest pass rate in New Jersey, with 79 percent of the participants taking the test earning a passing grade.
Little said the GED is especially important for residents seeking a better job.
"Education is the key to providing for yourself and your family," he said. "We want to make taking the GED in Ocean County as convenient as possible for our residents."
As a lifelong educator, Freeholder Director Joseph H. Vicari said the test center has also eliminated the waiting list for people looking to take the fivepart examination.
"In the past, residents were waiting up to eight weeks to take the test and many had to travel to a testing site outside of the county," Vicari said. "Our testing center at OCC is easy to reach and has eliminated the wait."
More information on the GED program is available on the Ocean County College Web site at www. ocean.edu.
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