Continuation school students in Lamont work to beat odds

Carol Holmes / Special to The Californian Teacher Joanne Barrick, left, gives individual help to Sandra Mendoza, 17, at Nueva Continuation High School. The school, partly funded by the federal Workforce Investment Act, helps at-risk students finish high school.

Filed: May 28, 2001

The Bakersfield Californian

LAMONT -- Graduation from high school is more than a milestone for some students -- much more.

At Nueva Continuation High School, at-risk students are beating the odds and surprising themselves with their educational success.

"We applaud when they graduate, and we cry for joy," said Principal Jim Caswell.

In an area where the teen-age pregnancy rate is among the highest in the nation, and the unemployment rate is often as high as 25 percent, some students are learning that overcoming barriers to education is not an impossible dream.

On June 6, Olga Navarro,17, will participate in graduation ceremonies at Harvey Auditorium. When she entered Nueva three years ago, she didn't think about graduating from high school. She said the staff at the school changed her mind, and even when she became pregnant they kept encouraging her to finish school.

"The teachers helped me," Navarro said, as she held her 9-month-old son at the school's child care center.

"I thought it would be hard, but it wasn't very hard. Nueva gives you a chance for an education and a career."

While attending the school, Navarro has been involved in the school's jobs work program. The program is administered by the federal Workforce Investment Act and gives students an opportunity to get on-the-job training.

Like Navarro, Gus Martinez, 18, who has been at Nueva for four years, believes when a student succeeds it's the teachers who deserve much of the credit. He admits that students sometimes drop out, but said he chooses to stay because of all the attention the teachers give him.

"The staff not only treat you as students, they treat you as friends," he said.

That friendship goes beyond the classroom where teachers and other staff spend their own time with the students. Last week, instructor Adrian Maaskant and custodian Manuel Rodriquez took some students sailing on Lake Ming.

Marisela Garcia, 14, who enjoys going on the kayaking and sailing trips, said the instructors are teaching their students that teens can have fun without alcohol or drugs.

But trying to get Nueva teachers to talk about themselves and the extra work they put into their jobs is next to impossible. They always focus the conversation on the students and the fulfillment teachers receive by being able to go beyond the normal teacher duties.

Barbara Helvie, a counselor and independent study instructor, said that a little extra time given to the students makes a big difference.

"Every day a student will thank me for the extra time," she said. "They are not numbers. They are real people with real situations."

For teachers at Nueva, being more than an instructor is part of the package. They are counselors as well. According to Caswell, the counseling is as important to the students as the academics.

It was from the counseling and classes in life skills that Reinaldo Soto, 16, changed his attitude about fighting.

He said he has learned to communicate and work through conflict so that he isn't constantly in a fight.

"I learned people can get along, even if they are on different sides of the 'hood," he said.

Caswell does some counseling of his own, telling students they need an education because mechanization is taking away field jobs. He said the dropouts in the area often go to hand-labor jobs in the fields.

Many of Nueva's students come from migrant farm families.

Students say they like Nueva because the classes are smaller and they can receive more help from the teachers.

Caswell acknowledges that some students struggle when they are in a larger school. He said he tries to have no more than 20 students per teacher.

In addition to the lower teacher-to-student ratio, Nueva has a variable credit program. Some students may complete a class in a nine-week period and others may need more time. Caswell said the school wants to find different ways for students to reach their goals.

"It is alternative education, but it is not alternative learning," he said. "You only get the credit if you do all the work. The requirements are exactly the same as in all Kern high schools."

Poor attendance is the main reason students are referred to Nueva, and when they arrive, the average student is behind by 55 credits.

Caswell, who also is president of the California Continuation Education Association, said continuation education is the No. 1 dropout prevention program for the state.

After spending the past 15 years of his 35-year educational career at Nueva, Caswell said he wouldn't be anywhere else.

"Anyone can teach the bright kids," he said. "It takes special talent to work with at-risk kids and Nueva is fortunate to have a total group of dedicated, caring teachers."

One of those caring teachers, Joanne Barrick, was Caswell's student when he taught at West High School. Barrick has taught in other schools, but said she really likes the students at Nueva.

"Because they are here, we know they are working hard to make it," she said.

Nueva has 135 students and 23 are scheduled to graduate next month.

Graduation for at-risk students takes on a special significance, not only for the student but also the staff.

"It means a lot to the kids and their families that the kids who were basically dropouts are able to come back to class and complete their education," Caswell said.