Teens need to see it to believe it…and no one is more aware of that than Alfonso S. As a Student Relations Technician at our school, he meets teens who have struggled in their education or had even dropped out, and he talks with their parents who are often at their wits’ end. He tells them that he was once in their shoes and that it’s possible to find a school like ours that will help them with academics along with life skills and social-emotional support.

Today, Alfonso has a thriving digital media company which creates videos and online marketing campaigns for small businesses. But he wants to give back and share his story with young people struggling in school.

“I tell them about my extreme challenges and let them know that there are opportunities available to help them change their stories,” he said.

“I almost missed my chance to graduate high school because I was 24 years old when I found this school and finally decided to get my act together.”

Fortunately, some of our schools operate through the Workplace Innovation and Opportunity Act (WIOA) legislation enacted in 2014 designed to help get Americans, including youth and those with significant barriers to employment, into high-quality jobs and careers, and help employers hire and retain skilled workers.

Our WIOA schools can serve students up to 24 years old, so Alfonso was eligible when he enrolled – but he needed 80 more credits to graduate. He was in a tight time crunch to finish before his 25th birthday, which was about eight months away. It was just the challenge he needed.

“I had hit rock bottom. I was living in my car, I had no job, my wife left with our son and I felt vulnerable sleeping in random parking lots,” he recalls. “I was highly motivated to change my life.”

He was helped with wraparound services from a local family clinic and community partner Access, Inc. who helped him get an internship and work. But he was laser focused on earning a diploma.

“I couldn’t take any elective classes because I needed all my core subjects, but I studied as hard as I could, determined to graduate on time.”

Our personalized approach was ideal for his situation, allowing him to progress as soon as he mastered a subject. Our trauma-resilient approach helped him deal with the life that had dealt him a plethora of challenges.

Alfonso is forever grateful for all the services and people who helped him get on his feet, and has dedicated his life to giving back, and helping teens get and stay on the right track. He has reunited with his wife and son (who is now 8 years old), and recently welcomed a baby daughter into the family. He is showing his kids how to be a responsible citizen and help others whenever possible.

He offers students he works with the advice he lives by:

  1. Instead of looking for a job title (doctor/nurse), look for a purpose (healer/protector). Then every job that hits your purpose will be meaningful to you.
  2. Try different things. Wouldn’t you hate to get to the end of the road just to find out it was a dead end?
  3. We have taken so much from our community so it’s time to find a way to give back. Find someone you can mentor, write a book, volunteer, etc.

“I don’t want to be reminded how bad my life had been. I changed that and now it’s about preventing the next generation from going through that,” he added. “I have found my purpose.”