MARLEEN LAWYER OF Vergennes took a non-traditional path to earning a high school diploma, which they will receive from Vermont Adult Learning at a ceremony next week.

MIDDLEBURY — On Tuesday, Aug. 20, Vermont Adult Learning will host its graduation ceremony at the Kirk Alumni Center at Middlebury College. The event aims to recognize the achievements of 35 students who have earned either a high school diploma, or a General Equivalency Diploma, or have been inducted into the National Adult Education Honor Society.

Marleen Lawyer, 24, of Vergennes is one of those who got a high school diploma.

Vermont Adult Learning, first established in 1980, aims to providing supportive and professional space for unconventional learning paths. It has served adult students, age 16 and older, who did not acquire a high school diploma due to life circumstances to learn the skills and knowledge they need to prosper in 21st-century Vermont. Now it has centers in seven of Vermont’s 14 counties.

Lawyer welcomed Vermont Adult Learning’s approach to teaching.

“It was the idea of it being less traditional,” Lawyer said.

Lawyer took classes at Lake Region Union High School in Barton for two and a half years before deciding to continue studying through VAL in the Burlington branch. Earlier this year, Lawyer transferred to the Middlebury branch to finish earning credits in a modern technology class and a personal finance class, the latter being a requirement for all VAL students.

“You learn about taxes, and you learn about how to adult with money,” said Lawyer, who uses the pronoun they.

Lawyer enjoyed working with Colleen Wedge, who taught the personal finance course.

“She helped me not be afraid to ask questions,” they said. “For a long time, when I would ask questions, teachers would get annoyed with me. They would be like, ‘Are you stupid?’ But she would be like, ‘It’s not stupid to ask all the questions in your head.’ So she helped me feel more comfortable asking and feeling it’s OK to be curious.”

With encouragement from Wedge, Lawyer conducted a research project about money exchange as the course’s final assessment. They said it was not only an enlightening endeavor but also helped them learn more about how money flows internationally. Lawyer feels proud that the project had been useful.

“I think the teacher said she might include some of that in her lessons since it was fun,” Lawyer said.

The finance course was not the only gateway through which Lawyer started exploring and planning for their future through VAL. A research course on career options is commonly required as a graduation credit.

“I would love to go to cosmetology school,” Lawyer said. “I’m really good at the science stuff, and I’ve done my mom’s hair and nails since I was little, so it’s something I’ve always enjoyed, and I think it would be fun to take it to a more professional level.”

Lawyer found encouragement using a career simulator that VAL provides. The simulator is a set of computer algorithms that maps out the viability of certain career paths. A user enters basic numeric factors like salary level, price of rent and tax rate to get an idea of what it looks like to live in a particular place doing a particular job.

“Basically, I moved out of Vermont in the simulator to a new place, had some savings, and had a slightly broken vehicle,” they said with a laugh. “I lived there for around three months in the simulator, and it showed that I could do it. It was cool just to see that I could actually do it on my own. It’s not impossible.”

Lawyer has also enjoyed their VAL writing assignments. They especially take pleasure in genres like fantasy and sci-fi. The thought of becoming a writer now seems not so out of reach.

“I love creating worlds that are different from ours, that somewhat has parallels,” they said. “It’s fun for me to make characters and feel emotions through them.”

Creativity and imagination are two of Lawyer’s main ways of learning, and the teaching methods they experienced in VAL courses did well in pulling those qualities out and making them shine.

“I really enjoyed being able to use my creativity and not be judged for it,” they said. “Because I really love using my imagination to understand what I’m being taught.”

Having learning disabilities including dyslexia, ADHD and autism, Lawyer recalled many struggles connecting to other people when they were little. VAL became a good match for them since the mode of one-on-one communication and tailored course schedules gave Lawyer more freedom to take breaks and experiment.

“If I didn’t find something cool about what I was taught, it wouldn’t stay, like it would just leave my brain,” they joked.

In retrospect, Lawyer was thankful for the learning experience through VAL, and they encouraged fellow students to stay determined.

“Stick with it! Just keep doing it,” they said. “I think it’s better to take your time than rushing because then you get a better understanding of what you want to do. There were many times I wanted to just give up. But I didn’t. It took me six years, which is a long time, but I took breaks in between, but I got it at the end.”