LEWISTON — Two Lewiston Adult Education students who have spent the past year preparing for careers in the medical field will take a well-earned pause to celebrate earning their diplomas.

Questia Kabemba and Balqisa Abdalah will be among the graduates honored at the commencement ceremony to be held at Lewiston High School on Tuesday, June 3, at 7 p.m. The public is invited to attend.

Kabemba and Abdalah became certified nursing assistants earlier in May after completing the Pre-Apprenticeship Healthcare Pathway. They plan to continue their apprenticeship path with local health care facilities while also enrolling in nursing classes this fall at Central Maine Community College in Auburn.

Kabemba, a native of the Democratic Republic of the Congo, completed her High School Equivalency Test, or HiSET, last November. Abdalah, who was born in South Africa, finished hers in May.

Kabemba credited her teacher, Luke Lunt, and her older brother, Serge Kabemba, for encouraging her to pursue her education.

“He told me about most of the programs here because he did HiSET with Luke (Lunt) as well,” she said.

Kabemba appreciated Lunt’s teaching style, saying he offered suggestions rather than orders as she worked through challenges in math, especially fractions and word problems.

Abdalah shared advice for others considering high school equivalency classes.

“If you put in the time and effort, you’ll get it done quicker than you think. Just be patient,” she said.

Kabemba encouraged others not to give in to doubt by ignoring those who claim that adult education classes won’t work for them.

“You won’t know until you come in and try it yourself,” she said.

Lewiston Adult Education offers HiSET for preparation and testing year-round with day and evening classes for anyone seeking a diploma equivalent. For more information, go to lewiston.maineadulted.org.