Fantasia Barrino, 24, won the third season of American Idol…but now, she’s going after an even bigger goal: a high school education.

“I’ve been talking about it for so long,” she said in a recent interview. Barrino dropped out of school in the ninth grade. “It’s something that I really need to do and that I want to do.”

The singer made headlines recently when she experienced financial trouble. But, Fantasia says she’s doing much better these days. “I had to sit back for awhile and had to get some things settled,” she explained.

Fantasia will be working on releasing an album (her third) as well as her education this year, and could potentially be starring on another reality show in short order. Lately, her production company has been searching for a network willing to take on a Fantasia-oriented series.