[By Mary Leahy]
High school dropouts seeking an equivalency degree have been struggling with the revised GED exam (now called the TASC) that was launched January 1st. The pass rate on the old GED hovered around 72 percent and dipped only slightly after the last major revision to the exam in 2002. The new exam, aligned to the Common Core, is meant to be much harder. And indeed just 53 percent of test-takers have passed. Most have gotten tripped up on the math section which includes more algebra and word problems. The good news: Erica Kopp, selected as an Outstanding Teacher by the New York State Association for Continuing/Community Education in 2013, is a math instructor for Orleans/Niagara BOCES at the Trott Access Center and is ready to help.
Erica grew up in California and also lived in Wisconsin and Illinois. She has a degree in Mathematics from Bakersfield and in Education from the University of Wollongong, Australia. In 2005, the reasonable housing costs attracted to her to Niagara Falls as an affordable compromise to be near a sister in Toronto where the cost of living is much higher. She loved the idea of living in a resort town, but laughingly admits she has yet to ride on the Maid of the Mist! Initially, Erica had difficulty obtaining suitable employment and considered relocating once her savings were almost depleted. After volunteering as a tutor at a community service organization, Erica connected with the GED Program and the rest, as they say, is history.
Her own three children attend public schools. Alexandra graduated from Niagara Falls High School and is a senior at the University of Buffalo where she was pre-admitted to the prestigious program in architecture. Her son Bryce just started NFHS after attending LaSalle Preparatory and UB’s Gifted Math Program. Her youngest daughter Madison is a 6th grader at 79th Street Elementary. Erica has only good things to say about the education received by her family in Niagara Falls. They also take advantage of a multitude of the extracurricular school activities available including sports, ski club, language department trips to Europe and even rock climbing.
A strong believer in community service, Erica volunteers with the local Girl Scout organization and Habitat for Humanity. She is a member of First Unitarian Universalist Church Of Niagara where directs the Children’s Religious Education Program and edits the Powerline newsletter. The Church has also sponsored several Pints for Progress meetings where local projects are funded by those who attend the dinners. Erica believes grassroots movements in Niagara Falls are essential to the revitalization of the city such as the Park Place Market which is across from the Church. She also supports the construction of a skateboard park in the city and shares the ongoing updates with her students on her popular FaceBook page “Math Kopp.”
Posting photos of the daily board math work on social media is just one of the unique methods Erica uses in her TASC classroom. She employs this technique for days when attendance becomes difficult. Erica realizes that a time when a diploma is more important than ever many non-traditional students have social, economic and financial barriers to overcome. Since there is no formal ceremony for receiving a high school equivalency diploma, her classroom coat rack includes caps and gowns. She photographs every student that passes the test and has a graduation celebration for them.
In a struggling city like Niagara Falls, adult education is a catalyst for change. That’s partly because better-educated parents are better able to support their children at school and partly because better-educated mothers are less likely to experience poverty, one of the greatest challenges to educational attainment. Low literacy rates are directly related to poverty and nearly 12% of our county residents are functionally illiterate. According to 2012 census statistics, the approximate population in Niagara Falls was 52,000. That means that over 6,000 adults in Niagara Falls cannot read above a 5th grade level making Erica’s job a difficult one.
According to Erica, many students do appear quite wary of giving it a go. “We’ve seen a lot of anxiety from adult learners.” Through the end of July, nationally just 105,000 students had taken the new test. Previously, in a typical year, 750,000 students took the test. This steep drop was expected because of the format change — but even so, these numbers are obviously disappointing. A High School Diploma or Equivalency is recognized as the key to employment opportunities and Erica encourages those who need to complete this important stage of their education to make that first step by calling (716) 278-8599.
[From education to art, people in Niagara Falls are making fantastic things happen! “Lovin’ Niagara” is a series of articles by contributor Mary Leahy highlighting some of our outstanding citizens. Do you know someone who you feel should be featured? Contact us!]
Erica is a wonderful example of community service