Continuously serving Kosciusko County since 1854
Warsaw Adult Education (WAE) celebrated its rebranding with a ribbon-cutting Wednesday with the Kosciusko Chamber of Commerce.
Warsaw Community Schools (WCS) Superintendent Dr. David Hoffert said WCS is just one part of WAE. When it comes to funding, it comes through the Department of Workforce Development and the school system. There are different pieces and components WCS is part of and the school corporation is a big supporter of WAE.
“We realize it’s a vital component of our community. It goes past the traditional K-12 education,” Hoffert said.
As WAE Director Leo Patiño came into the director position and put together a team, Hoffert said Patiño wanted to give WAE a little bit more notoriety so people knew what services that were involved with WAE, whether that’s the high school equivalency or English language learner program.
Patiño thinks WAE is one of the biggest best-kept secrets in the area. He noted there’s about 12% of adults in the county that don’t have a high school diploma or equivalent. He said that’s a little less than 10,000 people. However, WAE doesn’t have 10,000 people at their doors because people don’t know about it or understand the feasibility about the program.
Patiño said WAE isn’t meant to take away students from the high schools, as he advocates for people to graduate from high school with their diploma. However, WAE is as an option for people who moved from other countries or who didn’t get an opportunity to “graduate from high school when it was their time.”
Last year, 85 people graduated from WAE and there were 94 the year before, Patiño said.
“(The rebranding) gives us an opportunity to get out there,” Patiño said.
The rebranding and new logo will coincide with WCS’ other logos.
He said the way WAE is going to operate will look a little different. They will still have the same quality programs and are expecting to serve the same amount of people.
Hoffert said WAE is one of the greatest community services out there. When looking at workforce in the area community, WAE is a pipeline to that, whether that’s working on a language barrier that’s out there or giving people a leg up. It is definitely a community initiative.
