"Education prepares people to serve one another better,” says Raul Hernandez, pastor of the Fontana Spanish church.

“Many of our church and community members have degrees from other countries—in accounting, engineering, nursing or dental technology,” Hernandez continued, “but they lack the basic knowledge that comes with a high school degree in the U.S.”

Hernandez and his wife searched for ways their church could help meet this need. Discovering that the usual GED program took too long, they found an alternative education plan from the Westside Education Corporation in Los Angeles. Accredited with the State of California, the school provides teachers for the GED alternative program for a fee of $600 per student. The church decided to host a class, and invited people to enroll in the class.

“This is a new way to reach our community,” Hernandez said. Four of the 20 students who enrolled were not church members. All attended classes at the Adventist church five nights a week for three hours each night. The graduation was held May 21.

Building on this success, the church has scheduled another session for which 16 students have registered.

(For information, call the Fontana Spanish church at 909-428-3270 or 909-823-1228.)