Ryan Brennecke / The BulletinDevyne Briggs, 19, a recent graduate of Edwin Brown Education Center and now a full-time custodian at John Tuck Elementary in Redmond.

Devyne Briggs never imagined he would get the opportunity to give back to the school district that trained him.

“I think it’s kind of humorous that I was a student in the Redmond School District and now I’m staff at the Redmond School District,” Briggs, 19, said. “I went from a student to a colleague in less than a week.”

Briggs grew up in Central Oregon and moved to Redmond from Prineville two years ago. He attended a few schools before finally settling on the Heart of Oregon YouthBuild program at the Edwin Brown Education Center in October 2012.

“I was in high school, and I was credit-deficient, meaning I didn’t have enough credits to graduate,” he said. “I tried to just get a job but it wasn’t working out because I didn’t have a GED, I didn’t have a high school diploma. I didn’t have any desirable skills that employers were looking for.”

After seeing a Craigslist ad for the job-training program, Briggs applied and was accepted.

He immediately began a few weeks of on-the-job construction training mixed with classes such as math, reading and résumé-building. At the same time, he was taking a GED preparatory class.

“I went through two weeks of mental toughness,” he said. “From then on I just really grew and learned a lot about job-searching, résumés, filling out applications and learning construction skills.”

One of his first on-the-job training experiences came courtesy of John Holland, the Redmond School District custodial supervisor. Holland, 54, said Briggs approached him about helping with spring-break cleaning duties at Brown Education Center.

“That week I had him come in for two to three days … waxing and cleaning floors,” Holland said.

When Briggs’ bike broke down on his first day of work, Holland gave him a lift. The next day, instead of asking for a ride to work, Briggs walked 5 miles to the center and was sitting on the steps before Holland arrived.

“He showed a real interest,” Holland said. “You don’t typically see that in a lot of youth nowadays.”

Briggs is now a full-time custodian, keeping the classrooms and hallways of John Tuck Elementary clean. He also volunteers with the Title IA reading program at the school, mentoring four first-grade students to help strengthen their reading abilities.

“When he was in elementary school, he was a (reading program) student,” said Mallory Blaschka, Title IA reading specialist at John Tuck. “He is actually instructing one of those reading groups he would’ve been in 10 to 12 years ago. It is a badge that Devyne has worn proudly and that some of the kids needed to hear. They just adore him.”

Blaschka was the coordinator of a special ceremony held June 10 honoring Briggs and his accomplishments. When he received his GED certificate, there was a small ceremony, but Briggs was disappointed to miss out on a true graduation experience.

“He came to me a couple of weeks ago and said it was a bummer because he didn’t get to have a big ceremony,” Blaschka said. “My assistant, Lori, and I made it a point to give him a graduation at Tuck, in front of the people that he’s given his heart to.”

After staging a fake interview to make Briggs a little nervous, Blaschka led him to the gymnasium, where he was given a certificate and deemed “valedictorian of our John Tuck class.” The ceremony included a cap and gown, cake and a handshake with new principal Dusty Porter.

“It was in front of the staff, the students, the whole school,” Briggs said. “I was really blown away. I didn’t expect that to happen.”

Briggs said he’s considering taking a few classes at Central Oregon Community College next spring to eventually become either an assistant instructor with a Title I program or a Grand Canyon tour guide. He said wherever he ends up, he’ll always have a soft spot for Redmond School District and one school in particular.

“John Tuck is my home; this is where I’ve really grown really close to the staff, and they have an incredible community here,” Briggs said. “It’s not the way I would’ve done things, but I like where I am now, and I guess everything happens for a reason.”

—Reporter: 541-633-2117, mwarner@bendbulletin.com