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Article courtesy of The L.A. Wave Newspaper.
For more stories, visit The L.A. Wave Newspaper online.
By Leiloni De Gruy, Staff Writer --
At View Park High School, former students try to help ease some common anxieties about higher education.
As spring approaches, seniors at View Park Prep High School in South Los Angeles are preparing themselves to enter a whole new world: College.
But are they prepared? This was just one concern that many expressed on Alumni Day at View Park High as their former peers returned to help ease some fears.
The courtyard at the fairly new high school was booming on Tuesday afternoon as seniors and alumni broke into groups for roundtable sessions.
While some asked more negligible questions such as whether they would be able to use a hot-plate in the dorms or have guests sleep over, others were more genuinely concerned about where their lives would be after graduation. One group, however, stood out among the rest.
As the six 12th graders sat on the bench with deep worry in their eyes, alumni Danielle Johnson, who attends Pitzer College in Claremont, and Cameron Jones, who attends Hampton University in Virginia, were vigilant about giving the seniors useful advice.
Senior Dwayne Washington is fearful about “being on my own.” When he goes to Berklee College of Music in Boston next fall he will be far away from the comfort of family, but not necessarily friends. His transition may be smoother than the others. With friends already in the area, he was able to take a trip to “The Hub” city and see firsthand what college life was about.
There he had to purchase his food, seek modes of transportation, and explore the campus. “It showed me what I was going to go through,” said Washington, “and how I was going to be on my own.” Time-management is also something he struggles with. But speaking with the alumni, he said, “They taught me to make sure [I] stay on top of [my] stuff and that’s what I have a hard time doing now,” he said. “It was a reality check. I realized I just have to buckle down and do it.”
Chris Landry shared the same distress, which is why he is being very cautious about which college he chooses to attend out-of-state.
“I’m hesitant about being on my own,” said Landry. “I have to find which college I would best adapt to because I have to be there for four years. I want to go to a college where the environment is comfortable for me to learn and grow. I’ve been looking at out-of-state colleges because I want to get a new feeling.”
But going to a different state can be lonely. And for Landry, who closes himself out and seeks comfort in people he already knows, he knows “it will be a big jump to open up.”
Though Jay Carter will likely attend school in California, his “problem is that I am very dependent upon my family and friends,” he said. “I know I need to be more independent. I think going to college will give me the mindset to be that. In the end I have to realize that it is about me and where I want to be. I can’t rely on them anymore.”
Of them all, however, Jamal Carter, who has no relation to the latter, was most beleaguered. While View Park High School has graduated 100 percent of its students and 86 percent of them have gone off to a four-year colleges, Carter was afraid he would be among the percentage who didn’t.
“I was dreading college, just the way they made it sound like it was very demanding and I didn’t know if I would be able to keep up,” he said. “I’ve always wondered am I really prepared to go out into the world and be on my own. It is nerve-racking because I’m just not sure if I really am prepared.”
After speaking with Jones and other alumni, he felt much more self-assured.
“They told me that ‘you already have what you need instilled in you. I understand that it’s nerve-racking but you have it instilled in you. Once you get out there you are pretty much already going to know what to do.’ That helped me look at it differently and gave me more confidence.”
When Jones was preparing to graduate from View Park two years ago, he too was worried about the work load that comes with going off to college, but more so being independent for the first time. Traveling to Virginia, he knew it would not be an easy feat.
“I was hesitant about my ability to write long papers because in high school I was not able to write long papers,” said Jones. “And I was hesitant about the distance, whether I was going to be able to handle myself in a different time zone away from my parents and whether I was prepared to go to the next level.”
Once there, it took time for him to get into the swing of things. Now, he says, he has grown intellectually and as an individual. The work load is tough, but he makes it a point not to procrastinate like he did in high school. This was just one message he tried to relay to the 12th graders.
“Don’t put things off,” said Jones. “When you get the assignment get right to it because if not you will be missing out on other opportunities to learn and socialize.”
It is about self-motivation, he said. When in high school, students strive for good grades for their parents and to gain certain privileges. In college, he noted, “it is about putting in the hard work for yourself so that you acquire the tools for the work world.”
For those who are unsure if they have the capability to make it through college, Jones let them know that it is possible and it has been done before.
“Also, I told them that View Park has prepared them for the tasks at hand and that they will be able to succeed at the next level. I was trying to send a message to them that college is an opportunity for advantages,” Jones recalled.
Another piece of advice was to explore general education courses so that they find a major that is fulfilling. In addition, he warned students about large class sizes and making sure that they are able to get the attention they need.
In regards to this, Jones suggested building relationships with teachers, counselors and advisors, as did he recommend they join clubs and study groups.
Johnson told the seniors not to be scared to branch out.
“Don’t wait for them to come to you, go to them,” she said. “They want to talk to you as bad as you want to talk to them. Chances are you will find people who enjoy the same things as you.”
Johnson also advised them to see college as an opportunity to “travel abroad and make use of the financial aid.”
Financial aid, she noted, will help them not only pay their tuition but take care of their basic needs like housing, transportation and food.
Work study is also another option. “This is great because they are lenient. They know that you have [class] work to do and they work with you,” said Johnson. “This is a way you can go to school, work and get paid at the same time.”
In the end, it seemed as if the alumni’s advice hit home, at least for some of the 12th graders.
“I have a pretty close relationship with some of the kids that are still there and they agreed because they can see the success through myself and my peers because we’ve all made it, we are back and we are sharing the same things,” said Jones. “It gives them hope because they know that they can be in the same position as us.
… Now they are thinking ‘it’s our turn to take the torch.’”
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