Adult graduate Nadine Nembhard dropped out of school at 16 when she fell pregnant, but having had another “taste of education” she’s now hungry for more.An excited Ms Nembhard was among the 44 men and women who donned their caps and gowns for the Adult Education School’s (AES) graduation ceremony at City Hall on Tuesday.Proudly clutching their GED certificates, the students each had very different stories but all shared the belief that it’s never too late to go back to school.Ms Nembhard, 32, of Pembroke, has been working as a cosmetologist for 14 years, but she said she always knew she could “do better and go back to school”.The mom-of-two left school without any qualifications as a teenager.When she signed up at AES in April, she said she had to learn “just about everything” maths, writing and reading.She worked by day at Bliss Hair and Nails on Court Street and went to classes and studied at night.She said: “I’m elated, I’m so ecstatic I’ve done this.“It wasn’t easy. I slept, worked and studied, that’s all I did.“The teachers kept pushing me saying ‘you can do this’, but I wasn’t so sure. I used to be scared by maths, now I’m ecstatic about maths.”Ms Nembhard said she was “elated and excited” to have graduated in front of about ten of her friends, colleagues and clients.But she isn’t stopping there, as she has already registered at Bermuda College to do an associate’s degree in business administration.Ms Nembhard said: “This is just the start. I’m going to get my bachelor’s, my master’s, maybe even my PhD.“I’ve had a taste of education and now I want more, I’m hungry for more.”Her advice to others is simple: “You can’t get anywhere without an education. If you are going to go back to school, just suck it up and start.”Single father Franklyn Furbert of Devonshire didn’t mind that he was the “oldest student” at AES.At 46 years old he hopes he is an inspiration to his 18-year-old son Frankie Jr, who has recently signed up at AES.Mr Furbert, who works as a courier at DHL, dropped out of school when he was 15 because of family obligations.He said: “I just never had the courage to go back to school.“It really didn’t matter that everyone was younger than me as we were all in the same boat, we were all there to learn.”He added: “Now look at me, I’ve got my GED. I’m feeling cool, I’m very pleased.”Mr Furbert started studying maths and English in May and had just three weeks “of complete cramming” until he sat his exams.He is full of praise for the teachers at AES who, he said, saw something in him that he just couldn’t see. In September he will start studying for his associate’s degree in psychology at Bermuda College.Samantha Smith, of Warwick, remembers the day she turned her back on CedarBridge Academy. She was 16 and decided to leave school for family reasons and because she found it difficult to focus in classAt the age of 22 Ms Smith has become the first person in her family to gain their GED. She started studying at AES last year in an attempt to kick-start her career.She said: “I feel very excited. No one from my family has ever achieved a GED, this feels so good.“I just thought, ‘I need to do this’. It was just a matter of finding the time and getting it done.“You need an education to be able to support yourself financially and make a name for yourself.”Ms Smith said she’s had a lot of support and encouragement from the Arthur Morris Group of Companies, where she works as an office assistant. She eventually hopes to go on to college and it is her dream to become a computer programmer.Summer McGlynn of Pembroke is the first to admit that she didn’t really like school, saying: “It just wasn’t my thing.”The 17-year-old previously attended CedarBridge Academy and a boarding school in Vermont but dropped out without any qualifications.However, Ms McGlynn refused to give up and headed to AES, where she passed her GED on her third attempt.She said: “It was hard, I had to work during the day to pay for my school at night, but it’s what I knew I had to do.“It was so much better than school for me. I’m the type of person who needs one-on-one teaching and I’m more technical than book smart.”Ms McGlynn, who is an apprentice at Marine Land Cover Shop, eventually hopes to go to college and would like a career in police forensics. In the meantime she’s looking forward to a birthday and graduation celebratory vacation to Italy, London and Amsterdam.Merle Brock Swan Williams founded AES in 1958; staff continue to work to create a non-judgmental environment.The classes are small and there is a flexible schedule to address every student’s academic as well as social and emotional needs.It is the school’s motto to “transform lives and build communities one person at a time”.Visit the Adult Education School at 16 Dundonald Street, Hamilton, or call 292-5809.