OSUIT GED graduation highlights adult learners building paths to new college degrees and careers
Tuesday, July 14, 2026
Media Contact: Hicham Raache | Communications Coordinator | 918-293-4678 | hicham.raache@okstate.edu
Sixteen students built a stronger path toward their future when they earned their General Educational Development diploma during a graduation ceremony at Oklahoma State University Institute of Technology.
OSUIT’s Adult Education Family Literacy program held the ceremony on July 7 in Covelle Hall to celebrate its GED graduates. Twenty-five AEFL students completed their GED, with 16 participating in the ceremony, which was attended by proud family, friends and OSUIT faculty and administrators.
AEFL is an OSUIT program that enables students to participate in courses that guide them toward earning their GED.
Kaitlyn Franklin completed the GED and accepted her diploma during the ceremony.
“It’s my next step. It’s a new beginning,” Franklin said.
Franklin earned her diploma thanks to AEFL courses at OSUIT. She experienced another monumental life achievement during that time.
“I actually put in almost two years because I had to take a little break because I had a baby,” she said.
AEFL played a pivotal role in helping Franklin complete her GED.
“They were there, and they provided anything that I needed at all for the class. They really pushed me to finish. There were, of course, challenges, but I overcame them,” she said.
Franklin will capitalize on her GED by attending OSUIT, where she plans to train for a career in cybersecurity.
“I already put my application in, and I should be starting the last day of August,” she said.
Around 40% of AEFL students who complete the GED proceed to OSUIT for higher education, said Fran Colombin, AEFL director and instructor.
OSUIT provides a safe space in several Oklahoma areas for students to earn their GED. The OSUIT campus has been hosting AEFL classes since 1998 and GED graduation ceremonies since around 2005, according to Colombin.
“OSUIT actually sponsors 10 different satellite locations in five different counties to assist adults in those communities with obtaining a high school diploma so they can either continue their education in post-secondary school or open a new career path or improve a career path for higher sustainable wages,” she said.
Oklahoma CareerTech funds grants that enable OSUIT to sponsor AEFL classes in multiple counties, Colombin said.
Students spend an average of six months in AEFL courses to complete their GED. Classes can be taken in person or online, and students can range in age from 16 to any age above that, Colombin said.
Brittany Pope, a former GED graduate who went on to earn her associate degree at OSUIT and a Bachelor of Science degree at Northeastern State University in Tahlequah, spoke during the ceremony about her journey from addiction to studying for a master’s degree.
“It's about deciding that your future is worth fighting for, no matter what your past may look like,” Pope said. “When people see me standing here today, they see someone who earned a bachelor's degree in social work. But what they don't see is the journey that it took to get here.”
Visit the OSUIT website to learn more about the AEFL program.