Have you ever eaten green chicken? Taken cold showers with other people and been locked in a cell 16 hours a day? That was just part of the horror for Ali N., 15 years old and serving time in juvenile hall. He had been running with the wrong crowd and got arrested and sentenced to […]

There may only be 30 days in June, but the month is chock-full of reasons to celebrate…It’s the month for grads and dads…and we have plenty of both! We are graduating thousands of students this month in more than 20 commencement ceremonies. Congratulations to all our graduating students – and to the dedicated teachers and […]

Maddy R. had a tough childhood, being in foster care, living with various relatives and the ensuing trauma and anxiety that left her feeling lost. “Striving for academic success was the only thing that kept me alive for many years and this school sort of became my way out,” she explained. “I got the one-on-one […]

When you think of bilingual teachers, most people think of Spanish-speakers, but in our network of personalized learning schools 59% of our students are English learners, speaking 52+ different languages… Mayan languages Garifuna and Xinca, Chaldean, Filipino, Armenian, Kurdish, Hmong, Lao, Punjabi, Somali, Lahu, Khmer, Urdu and more. While we have teachers, tutors and counselors […]

For Andrew S., 18, it was the pandemic. He liked going to school to spend time with other students, he loved to learn, and he was close with his teachers. His home life was good with close-knit family, and he enjoyed a great childhood exploring and playing in the woods. But when COVID hit, his […]

Ninth grade is hard. Being 14 or 15 years old and experiencing multiple emotional and hormonal changes is challenging. Now after two years of remote instruction many students entering high school as freshmen must navigate a new, larger school, while finding the schoolwork more difficult, with core classes and standardized tests. Even previous straight-A students […]

It was a chance meeting that brought Hayley Rico to our school. She was 17 years old, taking care of herself and her little brother because their parents who suffered from addiction were unable to properly provide for them. She had been kicked out of school for not attending regularly and was turned away from […]

The transition to high school from junior high was challenging for Serina. The schoolwork became more demanding, and her teachers didn’t take time to understand where she needed help. “Starting high school changed my perspective. Everything got harder and nobody tried to understand where I needed the help. The teachers just wanted to get through […]

Social work is one of the fastest growing professions in the U.S., which is well timed since the demand for mental health support in high schools continues to grow. In this post-pandemic world, teens are experiencing significantly more stress and economic challenges. Our counseling team has created a robust social worker internship program with 10 […]

Ryan Kinchen came to us when he was struggling with a difficult home life. “This school gave me the flexibility to complete my studies on a non-traditional schedule,” he explained. “They helped me develop self-reliant work and study habits that I still use every day.” After graduation, Ryan attended Pasadena City College, something that changed […]