Youth Finds Success and Confidence with WIOA/DDCC/Get REAL
Leonardo enrolled into the WIOA/Davidson-Davie Community College Youth program, Get REAL, in March 2020. At the time, Leonardo had completed the first semester of eleventh grade at Lexington Senior High School. When the school transitioned to remote learning due to COVID, Leonardo and his parents found he had a hard time adjusting to working without a teacher present and they knew he needed to be in a program where he could receive the one-on-one help he needed. They also liked that he could work at his own pace in the Get REAL program.
At the time of his transfer into the WIOA Youth program, Leonardo had sixteen credits from Lexington Sr. High School and would need six more credits to complete his high school diploma. Leonardo took the CASAS assessment upon enrollment. His scores indicated that he would need extra attention in Math.
During his career assessment with the Career Development Consultant, it was determined that Leonardo was well-suited to careers where he would work with his hands. Leonardo was interested in taking two Continuing Education classes at DDCC, specifically Welding. With the help of the Career Development Consultant, Leonardo enrolled into the welding classes while he continued to work on his high school diploma at Get REAL.
On May 10, 2021, Leonardo completed all of his high school requirements and became an official graduate of the Get REAL program. He started training at Davidson Davie Community College in August 2021, majoring in Diesel Mechanics which will augment his welding certificates. He is sponsored in the training by WIOA/DavidsonWorks.
