A struggling teen never thought he'd graduate — until his Special Ed teacher arrived home with proof

A single dedicated teacher can make all the difference in a student's life. That was what Kimberly Wimbish, a Special Education teacher at Griffin High School in Spalding County, was for 19-year-old Jamais Howard. She did not give up on him for an entire year and showed up to Howard's house to present him with his cap and gown. The video was shared by Inside Edition (@InsideEdition) and has garnered a total of 168,000 views.

Unconventional classrooms

Jamais Howard was a struggling student who was missing a few credits and thought he would have to wait another year to graduate, but Miss Wimbish had other plans. She went out of her way to help him by conducting online classes and turning unconventional places into their classroom. She would often help him study at the park or a fast food restaurant. "We just had to find a creative way to help him learn, to help him retain all of the information," Wimbish told WSB-TV 2. She also said that there was a stark difference between the student he was at the beginning of the academic year and the one he was at the end of the year.

Shock, then gratitude

However, despite working hard on his grades, Howard thought he did not make it until Miss Wimbish arrived at his house with his cap and gown on May 26, 2017. Howard's gratefulness can be heard in his voice when he thanked his teacher and told her, "Aw man, thank you! I appreciate it, ma'am. I love you so much!" He told the outlet, "I wasn't in class doing right, but God changed my life, like really changed my life." Miss Wimbish was extremely proud of Howard because she "knew the challenges he faced." 

Students with trauma

In 2017, Principal Vonda Viland of Black Rock Continuation High School was the subject of a documentary called 'The Bad Kids.' During her 30 years working in education, she said, "I don’t believe there is a child out there who wakes up each morning, saying, 'I want to fail today.' I have not met one student who wants to be a failure." She believed the decrease in attendance rates was due to the traumas the students had gone through.

She wants to help the kids coming from broken families through high school: "We have to find a way to work together and give these kids the tools they need to break the pattern." Teachers like Miss Wimbish and Principal Viland are rare today. Teachers who see potential in a student and do not give up. On a better note, the 2025 report from the National Center for Education Statistics revealed that the dropout rate in the U.S. has decreased by 3.1%. Currently, it is at an all-time low of 5.4%.

Miss Wimbish's presence in his life inspired him to do better. He shared his future plans with WSB-TV 2, saying, "(It's the) most exciting feeling to graduate and be a better man. I want to teach kids to graduate and do better." He planned to pursue a degree in Sports Medicine in college. 

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