Background environment and students
Phoenix Rising is a partnership between our school district and the city’s juvenile bureau. It was created because of the great need for a school or program that could accommodate a concentrated number of students with histories of severe discipline problems, chronic and temporary trauma, and the challenges of substance abuse and other dysfunctions that accompany these things. While most are fast-tracked into my small school because they are involved in the juvenile justice system, we have others who are not “in the system,” but who share characteristics that make this the best school for them. They too have not been successful in traditional high schools or other alternative schools. They experience the same instabilities outside of school that affect their ability to prioritize academics. This is the last stop for many of them academically. It is a therapeutic, not punitive program. We are responsible for meeting state and federal mandates, but often our first objectives for our students are to teach them how to be students and feel safe and successful again. We want to send them on as productive, engaged citizens who are on the positive side of the justice system. In a school such as ours, it could be easy to lower expectations. One of my greatest challenges is to introduce and maintain a level of rigor to which my students are generally not accustomed.
My students are amazing young people who have endured struggles that many cannot imagine. Inevitably, they are years behind their grade level, especially with math and reading. Their lives have been defined at least temporarily by situations beyond their control, especially those that come out of generational poverty, trauma, criminal behaviors, and substance abuse. Many have living situations that are non-traditional, to say the least, and are often inadequate or temporary. They are between 13 and 20 years old, often at least a year behind in credits. However, they are funny, creative, and curious about many things. Despite the fact that few have regular access to technologies that most of us take for granted, they are social media savvy. They are emotionally motivated, drawn quickly into conflict and drama. About many issues they are skeptical, and whatever I teach them must be convincing, relevant, and at least a little exciting.
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