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Bill Cirone: At Los Robles High School, Miracles Do Happen
In this season of miracles, it’s wonderful to know that local miracles continue to happen, and that — best of all — they involve local young people.
The proof was on display recently when 22 young men graduated from Los Robles High School, the education arm of Los Prietos Boys Camp.
I attend many graduations countywide, and I can honestly say that not one is as moving as the ceremony for these young men. Their road was harder and longer, and filled with challenges many of us can’t imagine. Drugs, gangs, absent or negligent parents, abuse — the laundry list of hurdles is sometimes unimaginable. It makes their diplomas that much sweeter.
The students’ own words explain it best what the milestone means.
Christopher, 17, of Goleta, wrote: “Graduating high school means opening up horizons, achieving a huge milestone, being able to pursue personal interests and over all, making my family proud.” Hector, 16, of Santa Barbara, wrote: “Graduating from Los Robles is an honor because this school is the one that really helped me the most. This is the first step to my future.” William, 17, of Lompoc, wrote: “I’m excited about moving on to the next chapter in my life. This has also made me realize that life has a lot to offer as long as you open your eyes.”
Our office’s Juvenile Court and Community Schools program has witnessed many miracles in the past several years, reaching out to our county’s highest-risk youths and, in full partnership with the Santa Barbara County Probation Department, providing the helping hand that has truly changed lives.
Thanks in part to online academic programs that enable teachers to broaden the programs available to students, academic credits earned by students at our community school rose to 17,000 this past year from 11,000 in 2006-07. Credits earned by students at court schools rose to 8,200 this past year from 1,600 in 2006-07. Those cold, dry numbers translate into flesh-and-blood triumphs — a monument to the effort by staff and students working very hard to make it happen.
Credits lead to graduations, and in that regard, the numbers are even more encouraging. Staff members working in the program today still remember in the late 1990s when Los Robles graduated its first two students. It was considered a miracle at the time that two students most likely had been saved from a life of recidivism. In the 2000-01 school year, 36 students graduated from juvenile court and community schools. This past year, 125 students received high school diplomas — and a true chance for a productive future.
Helping make that chance much more likely, three Rotary Clubs provide scholarships to students so they can further their education. The Rotary Club of Goleta Noontime, the Santa Maria Breakfast Rotary and the Solvang Breakfast Rotary provide the students with $500 scholarships to jump-start their ability to go forward with their education. The understanding is that if they maintain good grades and wish to proceed, more scholarship money would be available.
Here is perhaps the best statistic of all: Of the students who graduate, 73 percent do not re-offend. Of those who do not graduate, 80 percent do re-offend.
The community truly has come together to acknowledge that these students represent human capital with vast potential if there is a course correction from their current path. There is no downside to providing the helping hand of education and opportunity.
Angel, 18, of Santa Maria, wrote: “No matter where you come from, and no matter who you are, you can do amazing things with your life; all you really have to do is try. So here I am, a nobody, from nowhere, doing the greatest thing in the world — graduating from high school.” Isaac, 18, of Santa Maria, wrote: “I have accomplished something that I never thought I would.” Jorge, 16, of Lompoc, wrote: “I never thought I was going to be a high school graduate. Thanks to Los Robles High School teaching staff, I made my parents proud.” Aaron, 17, of Solvang, wrote: “I’m stoked to be a high school graduate! With this accomplishment, I now know that anything is possible for my future.”
The two students who spoke at graduation were unlike traditional speakers because of the unique experiences and challenges their “classmates” had faced. Said one of the speakers: “In all honesty, none of us thought that we were going to graduate from high school. In fact, many of us thought that we were going to spend the rest of our lives locked up, or have something worse happen to us ... Even though we have all had many struggles and difficulties in our lives, there has always been someone out there to support and encourage us to continue. In the end, we have all come out on top.”
He related that ever since a young boy, he was always fighting for ways to survive. His parents weren’t able to be there, so his grandma tried to take care of him and his brothers and sister. He began to hang out with the wrong crowd because they gave him a feeling of belonging. “I believe I speak for everyone when I say that we all want this feeling, just to belong somewhere, and have no problems at all in our lives.” He said that Los Robles High School and probation staff encouraged him to do well and leave his old life behind. “In the end, I began to accept the opportunities that were being given to me. And now I stand here, proud that I’ve made something of my life; and also, that I am a high school graduate.”
A student speaker said: “Since I was a youngster, school wasn’t really a priority for me. I was just into doing things that kept getting me in trouble and kept me out of school. ... After being sent to Boys Camp, I finally started attending school. ... I met people that actually tried to help me. ... Here at Los Robles High School, teachers told me that I had a chance to graduate and encouraged me to put more effort into school. I’m proud to say that I’m a high school graduate.”
It’s worth listening to the words of these young men because they are as revealing as they are inspiring. Jonathan, 17, of Santa Maria, wrote: “If you don’t like something, change it. If you can’t change it, change the way you think about it. I couldn’t change school, so I changed the way I thought about it, and now I’m a high school graduate.”
Darren, 17, of Santa Barbara, seemed to speak for all when he wrote: “I believe that graduating high school is the first step to a successful and rewarding life.”
There are no guarantees in life, as we all know, and it’s not possible to see what the future holds for these young men. But it is indisputable that they have a high school diploma, a scholarship and a clear shot at a smoother path than the one that led them to the Boys Camp.
Thanks to the dedicated, hardworking educators and probation staff at the camp, miracles really do happen.
— Bill Cirone is Santa Barbara County’s superintendent of schools.
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» on 12.27.09 @ 04:54 AM
Can someone tell me what this guy does and why are the taxpayers paying his salary. We can hire someone for a fraction of what we pay him to write these editorials. At least he hasn’t retired from his cushy job so the taxpayers can pay for his scandalous pension that the rest of us in the private sector could only dream about.
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» on 12.27.09 @ 08:09 AM
Mr. Cirone,
Your fine work, dedication, compassion, encouragement and continuous belief in these young people is very much appreciated by their families and friends. To be a part of helping a struggling young person find the right path in life and to be proud of their accomplishments in graduating from High School must be heartwarming. Miracles do happen, but not without programs such as those of the Los Prietos Boys Camp and dedicated individuals, like you, the staff, volunteers and contributions. Thank you for your article.
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