Class of 2025 student Sam Kennedy, left, with dad Rodger on July 25, 2024. Sam recently graduated from Springfield High School in Springfield, Ore.
Elizabeth Miller / OPB
When Rodger Kennedy was 17 years old, he dropped out of high school. He worked to survive on his own.
Over a decade later, right before Rodger turned 30, he decided to get his GED. He wanted to prove a point to his son Sam.
“I did it to show them that it’s never too late to follow through and finish that goal,” Rodger said.
In this week’s episode, we finish our three-part series on OPB’s “Class of 2025.” It’s a project we created back in 2012 when former Oregon Gov. John Kitzhaber declared the ambitious goal of 100% graduation by 2025.
That’s when OPB decided to document the stories of a kindergarten class on their journey all the way through high school: to capture what it’s like to grow up in the Oregon education system, and all the other life experiences that make us who we are along the way. Thirteen years after Kitzhaber’s State of the State address, 100% high school graduation is no longer the goal.
Today, we tell the stories of the unsung heroes we’ve met along the way: the parents and guardians of the class of 2025 students.
Education reporter Elizabeth Miller tells us the story of Rodger and his son Sam, plus all the other ways parents have impacted their kids in the project.
Listen to all episodes of The Evergreen podcast here.
