OTTUMWA, IOWA -- With unemployment numbers on the rise in many Iowa counties, more and more people are becoming interested in obtaining their GED to become more marketable for potential jobs and employers.
Indian Hills Community College has resources available at two campus - the main campus in Ottumwa and at the north campus near the airport. The facilities cover both sides of preparation for those seeking their GED.
"When you think about the GED it's really two separate pieces," said Carla Beavers, of the testing center at IHCC. "You have the piece where they're getting ready to obtain a GED and then you have the piece where they actually go and do their final testing."
In Iowa, training before taking the GED testing is mandatory, and that service recently moved out to the IHCC North campus. Students an move at their own pace at the year-round facility.
Beavers says the 98 percent pass rate of the GED test in Iowa is indicative of the training programs in place throughout the state.
Additionally, a GED is only the beginning. Beavers and IHCC hope that the certificate begins a process of further education and job training.
"We don't want to think of GED as being the ultimate goal," she said. "We want them to go on and be successful and continue their education if that's what they choose to do."
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