Nearly 30 years after dropping out, Jason Jefferson recieved his GED from his former principal. The City of Tallahassees TEMPO program made it possible.
TEMPO recently celebrated its largest graduating class: 160 graduates. The program aims to close generational poverty and education gaps by supporting students and their families. Residents can sign up here. Watch the video to hear more about Jason’s story.
BROADCAST TRANSCRIPT:
A road that stretched for three decades started at Rickards High School.
That’s where former principal Kimball Thomas and his student, Jason Jefferson, met.
“He cared about the students, and he wanted all of us to do great, Jefferson said.
But at 17, Jason dropped out.
I wanted to do something different, which I regret, he said.
Now, more than 30 years later, they’ve reconnected.
This time, his former principal finally handed him his GED.
It’s so exhilarating for me here today to look at a student who I was his site principal in 94. I became his street principal in 2025 and finally handed him that diploma, said Thomas. He now serves as the Director of Housing and Community Resilience for the City of Tallahassee.
The achievement comes thanks to the City of Tallahassees old TEMPO program. TEMPO stands for Tallahassee Engaged in Meaningful Productivity for Opportunity.
For nearly 8 years now, the program has given students a second chance at education.
In Tallahassee, about 93.7% of adults ages 25 and up have a high school diploma.
That’s according to U.S. Census data. That leaves nearly 7% of adults without one.
“We knew from data that we had a number of kids who have dropped out of school and were unemployed, which is a recipe for disaster, Thomas said.
TEMPO used to be available only for people ages 16-24. Now it has opened its doors to family members of qualified students as well, no matter their age.
Were making and closing those gaps in that generational poverty, Thomas said.
Jefferson was able to take advantage of the program, since his nephew was taking part. They were among the 160 graduates this year. That’s a new record. 100 recieved GEDs.
How did it feel walking across the graduation stage? ABC 27s Brieanna Smith asked.
It felt great. It was a long time coming, Jefferson said.
But Jefferson’s not done yet.
Now, I want to work hard to move up in life, to level up, he said. I stay in contact with Mr. Thomas, you know, he helps me. He keeps me on the right path.
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