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Grad and new Canadian ready for next stage

Young man credits SD43 adult education program for helping him to graduate
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Four years ago, Arman Torkaman sat in Grade 10 English class at Pinetree secondary school feeling alone and bored.

Today, he’s a high school graduate studying to be a heavy duty mechanic, owns a dog and a 2014 Volkswagen Jetta, which he is paying for with a job at Home Depot in Port Coquitlam.

But the journey to graduation took a few extra years for the young man, now 21, who received his diploma June 23 at commencement ceremonies at Inlet Theatre in Port Moody.

Torkaman said when he arrived at Pinetree from Iran he was 18 and should have been in Grade 12 but he missed a year of school while waiting for his visa to arrive back home and, once in Canada, was put into Grade 10 English to improve his skills.

It was a challenge.

“I’m 18, almost 19, and I already look older, and I have to get Grade 10 English,” he said. “People are working in groups in special projects. I wouldn’t blend, I would sit in a corner. It was a kind of a mess.”

Finally, though, at age 19, things started coming together for the young man when it was recommended he obtain his high school accreditation through the Coquitlam Open Learning and Customized Learning Centre.

The tuition-free adult graduation program allowed him to finish the required number of credits while still working to pay off his car loan. He also became more confident and earned his forklift certification through SD43.

Torkaman says he has no regrets about his parents’ decision to send him and his sister to Kuala Lumpur for high school so their only son could avoid military service. They had hoped to immigrate to Canada but their visas were held up when Canada closed the embassy in Tehran due to troubles there.

Torkaman looks on his high school years as a period of self-discovery. After a car accident set him back financially, he had to spend more time working than studying, but he never gave up on the plan to finish high school.
Now, he credits his perseverance, the support of his parents and the flexible schedule at Coquitlam Open Learning for his graduation.

“There are basically two ways to approach your problems,” he said. “One, you remove it by not thinking about it, or you solve it. At the end, you have to face the consequences.”

Three months ago, Torkaman became a Canadian citizen, and is free to pursue his dreams, including making hip hop music.

Said Torkaman: “Now I can get on with my life.”