25 More Celebrity Dropouts Who Earned a GED, List No. 2

You could argue that Walter Anderson is the ultimate GED poster child. A high school dropout, Anderson went on to become the publisher of Parade magazine. He writes about his journey in the autobiography, Meant to Be: The True Story of a Son Who Discovers He Is His Mother's Deepest Secret, published by Harper Collins.

Anderson's bio on the Harper Collins website states: "Walter Anderson is chairman and CEO of Parade Publications and an Advisory Board member of Literacy Volunteers of America and National Center for Family Literacy. A high school dropout, he is a national spokesperson for GED and director of the National Dropout Prevention Fund."

Impressive indeed.

Peter Gammons wrote this about Jeremy Bonderman, major league baseball pitcher, for ESPN: As he emerged as one of the nation's best high school pitchers his junior year, he said "I knew if I went to college that it would be to junior college." Scouts suggested to his parents, Gene and Dory, that if he passed the GED as an 18-year-old junior he could possibly be eligible for the draft. The Bondermans worked with the school board, the principal and college advisor. They notified Major League Baseball of their intentions, looking not to pull a surprise and try to become a free agent, but simply make their son eligible for the draft.

When Bonderman indeed passed the GED, the commissioner's office made him eligible for the draft. "I believed this was the best way for me to go," Bonderman said. "Believe me, I thought it out. We talked my future out with a lot of people, especially everyone at school."

Image: OAKLAND, CA - MAY 20: Jeremy Bonderman #38 of the Detroit Tigers bats against the Oakland Athletics at the Oakland-Alameda County Coliseum on May 20, 2010 in Oakland, California. (Photo by Ezra Shaw/Getty Images)

Richard Carmona is an Arizona senator and former U.S. Surgeon General under George W. Bush. His Facebook page states: Carmona was born in New York City of Puerto Rican descent, and raised in Harlem. After dropping out of Dewitt Clinton high school at age 16, he enlisted in the U.S. Army in 1967. While enlisted, he received his General Educational Development (GED), joined the United States Army Special Forces, became a combat-decorated Vietnam veteran, and began his career in medicine as a Special Forces medic.

Image: WASHINGTON - MARCH 11, 2003: U.S. Surgeon General Richard Carmona speaks at the 15th annual National Managed Health Care Congress in Washington, DC. (Photo by Stefan Zaklin/Getty Images)

The All American Speakers bureau has this to say in its bio of comedian D.L. Hughley: D.L. Hughley grew up in South Central Los Angeles and had a rough upbringing, getting kicked out of high school and becoming a member of the notorious Bloods gang. After his cousin was shot, D.L. Hughley turned his life around, got a GED and a job and, after prompting by his wife, LaDonna, tried his hand at stand-up comedy.

Image: LAS VEGAS, NV - AUGUST 05: Actor/comedian D.L. Hughley performs his stand-up routine at The Orleans Hotel & Casino August 5, 2011 in Las Vegas, Nevada. (Photo by Ethan Miller/Getty Images)

2012 Republican Presidential Candidate Jon Huntsman could have been president of the United States after earning a GED. He dropped out of the race. His bio on his campaign website states: During the 1970s, he dropped out of high school and was the keyboard player in a rock band before eventually resuming his studies. He eventually received his G.E.D.

Image: MANCHESTER, NH - JANUARY 07, 2012: Republican presidential candidate former Utah Gov. Jon Huntsman Jr. participates in the ABC News, Yahoo! News, and WMUR Republican Presidential Debate at Saint Anselm College. (Photo by Win McNamee/Getty Images)

The Cyndi Lauper Archive website states: Lauper was accepted in a special public high school for students with talent in the visual arts, but she was held back and eventually dropped out, earning her GED sometime later. At the age of seventeen, she left home, planning to study art.

Image: NEW YORK, NY - DECEMBER 01: Cyndi Lauper attends MAC AIDS Fund volunteers at NYC's LGBT Center to commemorate World AIDS Day at MAC Cosmetics SoHo on December 1, 2011 in New York City. (Photo by Theo Wargo/Getty Images for MAC)

Stock car racer Stephen Leicht's Facebook page states that "at the age of 12, he began racing stock cars, and got his GED to focus full-time on racing."

Image: WEST ALLIS, WI - JUNE 20: Stephen Leicht, driver of the #29 Holiday Inn Chevrolet, waits to qualify for the NASCAR Nationwide Series NorthernTool.com 250 on June 20, 2009 at the Milwaukee Mile in West Allis, Wisconsin. (Photo by Jonathan Daniel/Getty Images for NASCAR)