The Career Online High School allows adults 19 and older to earn their diplomas through a self-paced online program, available to Long Beach residents who have a library card. Students have 18 months to complete the curriculum, which covers standard high school subjects, including English, math, science and social studies, said Viviana Garcia, who coordinates the program. It also includes a career component, helping students prepare for jobs ranging from child care to commercial driving to hospitality, she said.<\/p>\n
That attracted Coronel to the program. For years, she had been babysitting and wanted a \u201cbetter job,\u201d she said, yet most applications asked for a high school diploma. The program\u2019s childcare career path option seemed like a perfect fit.<\/p>\n
Coronel was able to transfer some of her high school credits toward her diploma, and she finished the remainder of her credits in six months, often spending 10 to 12 hours a day on her courses, she said.<\/p>\n
Since the program began in Long Beach a decade ago, 160 students have earned their diplomas, Garcia said. Yet in recent years, it has grown significantly. Fifty-three students are currently enrolled as students.<\/p>\n
In August, 32 students graduated from the program and participated in a ceremony at the Billy Jean King Main Library \u2014 the largest graduating class in the history of the program, Garcia said.<\/p>\n
Coronel was one of them. When she walked into the library to pick up her cap and gown the day of graduation, she learned that a short speech she\u2019d prepared had been selected to be read as part of the ceremony. She was nervous and surprised, she said, but she stood before the audience, which included her son who took a flight from his college campus and friends who had driven from Bakersfield.<\/p>\n
\u201cToday is a dream come true,\u201d Coronel said, and addressed her children to say, \u201cYou have been my greatest inspiration and my reason to keep going.\u201d<\/p>\n
![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/09\/1788729252_167_img-2747-365099-dldsoqtx-402085-JpgxXE7O-e1788462151605.jpg\")
Martha Coronel celebrates her graduation with her family at the Billie Jean King Library in Long Beach. Photo courtesy of Martha Coronel.<\/p>\n
Now, Coronel is considering pursuing further education at Long Beach City College, and she has referred one of her daughters and another friend to the program, where they\u2019re currently enrolled.<\/p>\n
Garcia often observes students\u2019 confidence develop as they complete the program. \u201cIt\u2019s been beautiful to see,\u201d she said. \u201cSometimes they\u2019re embarrassed to say they haven\u2019t gotten their high school diploma,\u201d she said, but she sees that dissipate when they walk across the library\u2019s graduation stage.<\/p>\n
That happened for Nicky Weeks, another graduate of the program and longtime resident of Long Beach. \u201cIt was life-changing,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n
A parent of five, she said she\u2019d poured everything into motherhood to keep her family afloat, but that meant her own education was delayed, even as she instilled in her kids the value of learning. \u201cI\u2019ve always told each and every one of my children that college may not be for everybody, but education is,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n
When she decided it was finally time to earn her diploma, she started the program and told only one person, because \u201cI did this for me,\u201d she said. \u201cIt was important to me to again finish what I started so long ago.\u201d<\/p>\n
Long Beach adults interested in earning their diploma can learn more and start the process by visiting the library\u2019s Career Online High School page here<\/a>.<\/p>\n