 Not completing high school is more of a social thing than it was an academic thing. I came out in the 11th grade. Nobody was embracing you. The kids were cruel. It was very difficult to be gay. Even though all these years have passed, I still had that longing to have my diploma. The hard part was determining that I was going to do it, but I definitely didn't do it alone. At age 30, with the help of her mentor, Carissa finished her high school diploma.