ARISE's Class of 2010: "Our Mind Is Set"
Stepping onto his original high school campus as a freshman, Jay figured he had it made. “I thought it was going to be a good school, in the hills, all that,” he recall
s. But despite its lofty reputation, the school’s large size and impersonal environment were a poor fit. By his own admission, Jay underachieved. Halfway through his sophomore year, he came down the hill to a new small charter school, ARISE, arriving far off-track to graduate on time, if at all.
At ARISE, he quickly realized, there would be no slipping through the cracks.
“They really sat down with me one-on-one to see what I needed – even Saturday classes to make up credits.” He took to the personalized, small-school setting, where students call staff members by first name, even the principal.
“There was no more Mr. This, Ms. That,” muses Jay.
This collegial atmosphere is reinforced during weekly Community Meetings attended by all students and staff. These informal but productive gatherings are a far cry from the average school assembly. It’s the rare campus where a student rises to say, in front of his entire school, “I want to appreciate [fellow student] James…just for being James.”
“I feel confident at ARISE,” says Jay, “and don’t feel shy, since everyone knows each other.” Sandra agrees. “This is more of a community.”
Year Three Full of Firsts
Co-Principal Laura Flaxman and staff have emphasized this supportive environment since ARISE opened in 2007 with the goal of seeing a college-minded senior class graduate. “There are so many firsts,” says Flaxman. “It’s the first graduating class for us as a school, and next year we’ll have our first ARISE students enter college.” Most importantly, she says, “100 percent of those kids will be
the first in their families to go to college.”
Sandra, a senior like Jay, also came to ARISE as a sophomore after struggling to hit her stride at another Oakland school. She speaks of how tangible a
Arise Senior Sandrand out front the college focus is at ARISE. “Before, it was just like, ‘Oh college, I wanna go.’ But it wasn’t something really real that you feel,” she says. “Here, they really want to help us. We talk about [how important it is] that we’re first-generation college. They don’t want us to be another statistic, they want us to make a difference.”
To this end, all kids are required to take classes at community colleges such as Laney and Merritt. (Both Jay and Sandra are currently taking a college English class.) Co-Principal Romeo Garcia searches
out scholarship opportunities, and recently set students up with laptops, helping seniors (including Sandra and Jay) apply to a handful of local colleges.
ARISE students aren’t only getting on point academically – they’re also gaining real-world experience. All students are encouraged to do internships: Sandra worked for the Citizens’ Police Review Board at City Hall, and Jay mentored students at nearby Urban Promise Academy Middle School. Each ARISE
senior also has a mentor who helps him or her stay focused. Small schools champion Hae-Sin Thomas mentors Jay. “She’s really into motivating me and not letting me fall behind,” he says.
An inspiring retreat
ARISE’s first graduating class set a motivational tone during another first: this fall’s senior retreat at the Marin Headlands. The college-themed trip kicked off with a visit to UC Berkeley’s College Fair. Once at the Headlands, they set a lot of college-minded goals, but just as importantly, came together as a group.
“We bonded in a different way,” reflects Sandra. “Everybody together. No cliques, no make-up, just
connecting.”
One night, everyone shared items that were important to them. Many students brought photos of lost loved ones. “I’ve never seen people get so emotional,” recalls Jay. “A lot of people crying, even the guys.” “We got to see a different side of everybody,” says Sandra.
The seniors returned to school closer as a group, with their sights set on graduation and college. “My family is the main reason [I want to succeed],” says Jay. “I want to be able to do what they did for me, since all my childhood they put food on the table. I want to bring it back for them after they retire, to be there for them like they were for me. And my brother, who has autism – I have to be there for him all throughout his life. I’ll be there for him.”
“My dad always said, ‘You guys have the chance to go to college, you have it in your hands. If I would have had that chance, I would have taken it.’”
Setting the tone for future ARISE seniors
Jay is currently prepping a presentation that draws on this focused, ambitious spirit. “Laura asked me to make a presentation for freshmen and sophomores so I could let them know it’s real difficult to do everything at the last minute and graduate, that they need to get their stuff on point. They think, ‘I still got three years ahead of me…’ But it’s not like that.”
Sandra sees why the ARISE staff encourages this peer leadership. “We’re so hardheaded, sometimes,” she says. “A random person could come and speak [and we might not take it to heart], but to hear it from us, from kids who come from their background and are trying to get to college, it’s more real.”
“When I observe some classrooms, they’re still not [in the mindset] of seeing college,” says Jay. “But if we put it out there, they’re going to start looking into it, little by little, seeing stuff in a different perspective. I want to show them that this school gives us opportunities.”
Two summers ago, Sandra took advantage of a very big one: A month-long trip to Thailand for a community service project. “If it wasn’t for this school, Thailand just wouldn’t be a place I could go,” she states plainly. Sandra was chosen to go for her improved grades. Throughout the trip, she and her fellow high school travelers were immersed in the country’s culture, and their community service work exposed them to some harsh living conditions.
“It was a really different experience for me,” she reflects. “For all of us, it was our first time being far away. It helped us know we can go other places, that it is possible…and it really made us appreciate what we have at home.”
Since their early high school days, Jay and Sandra have come a long way in a short time. “I used to be the kid in the hall goofing off,” reflects Jay. But now he’s in a position to graduate and go to college. “As a senior, now, I’m not stressing. I just want to end this year strong.”
“I feel really good about being part of the first class to graduate from ARISE,” concludes Sandra. “We really know what we want…Our mind is set the way it should be.”
Support ARISE!
As a public school, only ARISE’s most basic needs are covered in our budget. To continue offering our students horizon-expanding opportunities like Sandra’s trip to Thailand, we must appeal to the wider community. You can help! Consider making a tax-deductible contribution. Donate online here:
http://arisehighschool.chipin.com/support-for-arise-high-school
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