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At Manhattan Tech, we believe in second chances, strong finishes, and the kind of grit that gets you where you’re going, no matter how long it takes.  

Korie is proof of that. 

She came to Kansas from Maryland with a few heavy bags: some tough family history, a half-finished senior year, and the kind of life experience most high schoolers don’t see coming. She wasn’t a dropout by choice; life just got in the way. 

“I didn’t plan on leaving school. I just needed to get my stuff together,” she said. 

When she first tried going back to school a couple of years ago, the math didn’t work. Bills had to get paid. “I was working three jobs,” Korie explained. “It was exhausting. I had to make a choice.” 

This time around, things were different. She had a little more support, a partner to split expenses with, and something bigger pushing her forward: a baby on the way. 

“I didn’t know I was pregnant when I started,” she said. “But now that I do, I want to set a good example. I want to help with homework one day. I want to bring my child into something better than what I had.” 

So, she cut back to one job at Texas Roadhouse. She took a pay cut to make room for school. And she put her head down and got after it. 

Every GED test she passed felt like a win. “I didn’t want to fail,” she admitted. “I thought I’d forgotten too much. But each test I passed made me feel like I could do this.” 

There were hard days when when being pregnant and exhausted felt like too much. Days when work and school competed for her energy. But she kept showing up. And she wasn’t alone. 

“All the teachers were kind. Miss Beth checked in on us, made sure we were practicing, studying. We studied together in class. We motivated each other.” 

Now, with her GED in hand and a baby on the way, Korie feels the difference. 

“My cousin’s proud. My boyfriend’s proud. And I feel like I’m caught up in life.” 

She knows not everyone gets the chance to go back. And that’s exactly why she believes programs like this matter. 

“Not everybody grew up in a house that made education easy. Some of us have to work first. We make mistakes, and we learn late. But the opportunity should still be there when we’re ready to take it.” 

To anyone thinking about getting their GED? 

“Just do it. You win some, you lose some, but if you want something, you’ve got to put in the effort. You just have to put in the work.” 

That’s what we’re about at Manhattan Tech. Real people. Real effort. Real outcomes.