At just 18 years old, Morgan Wilson made a decision that would change the course of her life. In February 2025, she enrolled in Goodwill North Central Texas’ Education and Employment (E2) Program with the goal of earning her GED while gaining paid work experience.
Morgan came to the program facing significant personal challenges. She had struggled with consistent school attendance and was unable to recover the credits needed to graduate from her previous high school. With the support of Texas Workforce, she joined E2 to get back on track.
From the beginning, Morgan showed grit and determination. With academic help from her E2 instructor and mentorship from her E2 Youth Specialist, she found the support she had been missing. Her Career Advisor at Workforce Solutions of Tarrant County helped remove transportation barriers by providing travel vouchers, since the GED testing site wasn’t accessible by public transit.
Morgan’s path was far from easy. During her high-risk pregnancy, a family altercation forced her and her young son to leave their home. As a result, she missed a scheduled GED exam and learned she couldn’t reschedule or reuse her testing voucher. Discouraged but not defeated, Morgan leaned on the E2 staff for support. Their encouragement helped her regroup, retest and pass.
While studying for her final exam, Morgan once again experienced homelessness and was temporarily staying in shelters. Still, she remained committed to her goals, kept in close contact with her E2 team, and stayed active in her work experience.
Her persistence paid off. Morgan passed her final exam and officially earned her GED. In just three months, she went from being at risk of not graduating to becoming an E2 Program graduate. She has since been hired at the newest Goodwill retail store on Little Road in Arlington.
Morgan now encourages others to keep going, no matter the obstacles. She said, “Learn from your challenges to work on the path to success.”