James came to YOOP when he was 17. He had dropped out of high school after some legal trouble left him in debt over $2,000. He understood that he needed to get an education but figured it was going to be easier to get his GED rather than his High School Diploma. “I had to find a job to pay my fine and couldn’t work and go to high school at the same time,” he states.
James attended Yamhill Carlton High school when he got involved with the wrong crowd. There was a certain incident that occurred that led James to be very upset one day at school. He was approached by a fellow student who had said things to James that intensely aggravated him. James decided to leave the situation and walk outside. James walked outside and slammed the door shut behind him, damaging the door of the school. This incident led James to get charged with Criminal Mischief in the second degree. Ultimately this left James with a fine of $1,200 and no probation. James was left with the decision of either dropping out or staying in school. He knew that he was the only one responsible to pay the fine, “I had no income at the time so immediately I knew that I was going to have to get a job.” James figured that going to school for 8 hours a day would not get him closer to paying that fine and ultimately dropped out of High School and got a job at the Mobil Gas Station in McMinnville.
Flash forward to James going down to the Yamhill County Courthouse to pay a portion of his fine where he saw a flyer for YOOP. He called YOOP the next day and was placed on the Orientation Waiting List. James faithfully maintained contact waiting for an opening to attend the Orientation session.
Eager to get started on his GED, James enrolled in YOOP in February of 2020 and was able to get a GED practice test in before COVID-19 put a delay in his plans. James patiently waited until we opened to get back in to complete his GED. James scored above passing in all four of the official GED practice tests and was ready to take his official tests. He passed the first of the four GED tests only to encounter another delay due to wildfires in Oregon and the temporary closing of the testing center in McMinnville. Staff was able to schedule James’s last three tests for the last week of September. He passed all three. James was able to complete his GED in one month. September was an eventful month. In addition to earning his GED, he also passed his Oregon Driver License Test and became a licensed driver, accomplishing another of his goals. If you think this week couldn’t get better for James, it did! He landed a job starting October 5th at Indigo Painting and Contracting where he is painting exterior and interior on commercial job sites. He is working 40 hours a week and is making $15.00 an hour.
Throughout this whole journey, James has been very thankful for the staff at YOOP. He shared, “There is no way I would be where I am today without YOOP’s support. They pushed me to get out of my comfort zone and actually change myself for the better.”
