Bolivar County GED Program | St. Gabriel Mercy Center

General Education Diploma

The GED Program was established to assist adults who would like to complete their high school education. The GED test helps adults to assess their high school equivalency skills. It focuses on needed basic skills and subjects which need improvement: reading and writing, math, science, and social studies. The GED exam is a test of reasoning skills, or the ability to figure things out, using new information from the areas of the above subject matter. The exam is taken on a computer showing how the student has mastered sufficiently the goals of a high school education and is ready to pursue college or a career path. The students also learn social skills necessary to become productive citizens.

Students are encouraged to attend classes Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday from 9:00-11:45 AM August through May. Free transportation is provided to and from St. Gabriel Mercy Center. In addition, students are given a snack during their 15-minute break.

The latest technology has been incorporated to assist in GED preparation. Students use the Mercy Computer Lab for training on the Mavis Beacon Typing Program so they can learn to type at least 25 words a minute, which is now required to take the essay test. In the classroom, five laptop computers are available to the students and the Elmo and projector are used in class.

Twice a year students are taken to Coahoma Community College in Clarksdale to be tested. Upon successful completion of the GED, the student’s photo is placed on the Wall of Fame in the GED classroom and in the newspaper, as well as a celebration at the St. Gabriel Mercy Center.