Elizabeth Saunders always knew she would receive her high school degree some day.But what Saunders, 54, didn’t realize was that when she started as a custodial worker in Cunz Hall in 1979, she would get her GED at Ohio State 18 years later.She began the university’s GED program, or Reach 1, in 1993. She was honored along with the Department of Physical Facilities during the 1997 Governor’s Workforce Excellence Awards Ceremony held Tuesday in the Vern Riffe Center. She expects to receive her GED this summer and attend OSU.”If a person wants to go further in life you have to have that paper,” she said. “I am very happy that I can get my GED through Ohio State.”After receiving her degree, Saunders said she hopes to participate in the OSU Bridge program, an adult-oriented entry program that enables high school graduates to earn their college degrees.”The Bridge program is for older adults who have been out of school for a long time,” Saunders said. “It eases you into the routine of classes.”The Department of Physical Facilities employs 743 people who provide building maintenance and services, roads and grounds maintenance, utility, power and heat for the university. The program is also open to non-OSU employees.Reach 1, based on a 40-hour work week, allows workers to attend school four hours a week while working 36.The award, established by Gov. George Voinovich in 1991, recognizes training programs that improve reading and writing, thinking skills and specific job skills of Ohio’s workers.”These Ohio employers have developed outstanding training programs with their employees and other partners which enhance their productivity,” Voinovich said. “As today’s global economy evolves into tomorrow’s world marketplace, I am pleased to see Ohio companies providing employees with the broad base of skills needed to take us into the 21st century.”The governor praised the efforts of the university, calling the program a model in the state. Likewise, OSU President E. Gordon Gee attributed the success to Janet Pichette, vice president for business and administration, and also to a number of colleagues. “They did an excellent job,” Gee said. “We were one of the few public sector employers recognized for the award.” Pichette said today there are more people in the physical facilities department who are getting the opportunity to earn their GED and the time to do it.David Garick, spokesman for the Ohio Bureau of Employment Services, a sponsor of the awards ceremony, said the statewide programs are created by individual efforts of companies and are based on the needs of the people in each company.”It is certainly fitting that OSU is a leader in education and is committed to their workforce,” Garick said.