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When Angie McGee was a senior in high school, a few classes away from graduating, she got pregnant with her first child. Lacking support from her mother, McGee had trouble keeping up with her studies and was forced to drop out of school. Luckily, her Aunt Diana stepped in to offer support, including a place for McGee and her new baby to live. Diana’s steadfast love would prove a powerful and redeeming force. Two decades later, in 2018, it sparked McGee’s decision to sign up for the Adult High School (AHS) program.

“My aunt was the one who told me I needed to go to 99������Ƶ and finish,” McGee said. “She was my biggest fan.”

McGee, 42, just finished her last class at 99������Ƶ in August and received her High School diploma the next day. The mother of seven recalled that when she first signed up for classes, she had struggled to find her place.

“At that time, they had volunteers who would help you study for your GED, but that didn’t work for me,” she said.

McGee talked to staff and learned about a new adult program that would offer a more traditional classroom format. The Adult High School (AHS) program allows students to work at their own pace online, while also taking classes in the subjects needed to fill gaps in their high school transcripts.

Upon being evaluated, McGee signed up for the 12 credits she needed to get her diploma. For the next few years, she worked slowly and steadily, taking classes at 99������Ƶ and fitting in her studies around work as a full-time caretaker for the elderly and homeschooling her children.

When Helene hit, McGee’s life was turned upside down. She and her four youngest children lost their Swannanoa home in the flood and spent several weeks staying with various family members. 99������Ƶ was closed for one month, but when the doors reopened, McGee came back to class determined to pick up where she left off.

“My teachers were concerned and telling me I shouldn’t be there,” she said. “They said, you lost everything, you don’t even have a home, and you’re in class.”

But left without a home, McGee felt grounded when sitting among her teachers and fellow students in a safe, familiar place. She credits her instructors for urging her through and spoke of lasting bonds she made in Summer Robinson’s math class, where seven students from different cultures and backgrounds slowly got to know and care about each other. “We were all going through different stuff,” McGee said. “We had morning sessions, and if someone didn’t show up, we would be concerned. We had everyone’s numbers. We were a strong support system.”

Another class that made a lasting impression was Melissa Henry’s English class, where students read “Just Mercy” by Bryan Stevenson, a book some critics have compared to the classic “To Kill a Mockingbird.”

“It talked about a black man in Montgomery, Alabama, who was wrongfully accused (of murder),” McGee said. “We had speakers come in from the community. We learned racism isn’t just about blacks, but whites too, about the holocaust.”

“That lady is powerful, that’s all I can say,” McGee said about her instructor.

McGee’s support team seems to feel the same way about her. Her advisor, Andrea Runnels, nominated McGee for an academic achievement award in 2021 for persevering with her studies through the pandemic and its challenges.

“Angela wanted to give up more than once, but she hung in there,” Runnels said. “At first, she didn’t pass the final and almost gave up on her goal of earning her diploma. Instead of throwing in the towel, she met with me on Zoom for several hours to prepare for a retest. The second time around, she was successful!”

These days, having weathered both a pandemic and a hurricane, McGee’s life is beginning to feel more settled. She and her children have been living in an Airbnb since November of last year, though she is hoping to buy a home of her own again one day.

Having worked for four years with the elderly, McGee is considering changing directions and exploring becoming a medical coder. “I am lying low right now and talking to a lot of people about training before I make my decision,” she said.

For the present, McGee is enjoying the “overwhelming” feeling of joy that comes with completing a hard-earned dream. That feeling is enriched by the knowledge that her aunt, who died in 2010, is looking down on her with pride.

“I know she’s probably jumping for joy,” McGee said.