In all of the years Shawneeq Pettey-Ford has been administering the HiSET Test, both as a mathematics teacher/program coordinator at Camden Community College and as ABS Program Manager for Hopeworks, she has never once seen anyone get a perfect score on a subtest of the HiSET. That is, until Miles Watson came along.
Miles got a perfect score on the Social Studies subtest of the HiSET—on his first try! He scored a 20 out of 20. “He is so intelligent,” says Shawneeq.
More recently, Miles passed all five subtests and earned his high school diploma. The actual document arrived in time for his birthday.
“Miles' older brother got his diploma with us,” says Shawneeq. Miles came in October 2020, when he was 16. His scores on the TABE (diagnostic) test were so off the charts, Shawneeq thought, “Wow. Miles, we need to register you now.”
She says Miles would have earned his diploma much sooner had there not been issues with his forms of identification. It also took a long time to get signed consent forms from his family. “The pandemic didn’t help, either,” says Shawneeq. In the interim, Miles went through the training and took lots of practice tests.
When Miles was able to take the five subtests of the HiSET—Language Arts, Writing, Mathematics, and Social Studies—he wanted to do more than just “pass.” He wanted to do his best. So on some tests, even though he got a passing score, he would ask Shawneeq if he could take the test again. “I’d tell him, ‘Miles, you passed!,” and he’d say, “Yeah, but I know I can do better.
“That’s Miles!,” says Shawneeq. “I am so excited to see what his future looks like!”
This month, our partners showed up in a big way to support our young professionals! Aramark Career Exploration DayOur young adults visited Aramark’s Philadelphia HQ for an exciting day of career discovery. From industry panels to hands-on workshops, they gained real-world insights into IT, innovation, and hospitality—and some were already eyeing job openings before the […]
We’re thrilled to announce that tickets are officially on sale for the Hopeworks 25th Anniversary Reception—a special evening honoring the young adults, partners, and community members who have shaped our journey. September 25, 2025Collingswood Ballroom, Collingswood, NJPurchase Tickets Now » This milestone event will include a cocktail reception, awards dinner, and powerful storytelling from the Hopeworks […]
Building a top-performing RCM team from scratch is no easy task, but it's exactly what Pecola King, Hopeworks’ Director of Revenue Cycle Management, has done again and again. When Pecola relocated to Arkansas, she inherited a team with zero billing experience. Within one quarter, she transformed that team into the top-performing RCM unit - hitting every KPI and setting […]
