Graduation Speech

“A Journey of a Thousand Miles begins with a Single Step”

Jose Ciprian-Ramirez

July 26, 2018

On September 18, 2017, I started as a student in school at KMCI.  I really didn’t know what to expect, but mostly at that point I didn’t care.  I went through the motion of going to school doing little and getting little out of it.  The first steps of my journey were not very productive.  After a few months that changed.  I passed the Reading test and then the Math.  Momentum was on my side at that point.  Soon, I had passed the other two GED tests as well as completing Employability, Citizenship and Health.  I earned my HSED on July 5th.  Looking back at my journey, I realized that the struggles and the effect have helped me.  It helped me build skills gain confidence and mature.  It also gave me hope for my future.  Now, I can work on learning for a career.

Getting my education completed means the world to my future.  I didn’t graduate just to say that I have a high school diploma.  I graduated so I can have a better future for my family and me.  Also it proves that no matter how bad it gets in life, I should never give up.  I can succeed and do the impossible.  It just takes that one step to get started.

Finally, I would like to end with this quote by Francis Assisi that perfectly sums up my journey:

“Start by doing what’s necessary then do what’s possible; and suddenly you are doing the impossible.”