Say hi to Joe!

Joe is a Fellow at Camden High Campus where he and the rest of the team work with three high schools: Camden High School, Brimm Medical Arts, and Big Picture Learning Academy. Joe and the rest of the team are in Senior Seminar classes each day working with students as they navigate post-secondary planning. 

In his blog post, Joe shares about his experience as a Fellow and conversation he had with one of his advisees, Jose.

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Starting high school can be a scary time for students. You’re entering a new environment and meeting new people. There are so many expectations and just as many uncertainties. For some, it is an opportunity to start fresh and for many it is a time of learning about yourself. In a way, my Fellow’s experience mirrors some of these feelings. I wasn’t really sure what to expect this year and I was entering a new environment. I moved across the country for this opportunity wanting to learn to be an advisor and help students create post-secondary plans. As a Fellow at Camden High, I’ve learned so much more. I’ve learned the importance of community building in our work and the impact it can have.

Our students at Camden High Campus are incredible. They always brighten my day and inspire my work. Whether it be in the Plus Center or in their seminar classes, students are always eager to talk to us. One of the seniors who we see everyday is Jose. He is a senior at Camden High who moved to Camden when he was in the 8th grade. One of our regulars in the Plus Center, he is on his way to college after graduation. I asked Jose to sit down and talk about his time at Camden High.

“For me, it was a lot different than I expected,” Jose said when reflecting on his time in high school,  “I feel like my first three years I had to push myself more than this year because this year I’ve had more help, from people like 12 Plus.”

As he was reflecting on his experience in high school, I asked Jose what advice he would have for future students. 

“It’s important to build friendships with peers and trusting relationships with teachers in high school. You don’t have to push yourself to go talk to everybody, but find people who you trust and bring you happiness. My friends kept me happy and made me smile. Without friends high school wouldn’t have been the same.”

Working with Jose, you can see how much he values those relationships. He always checks in on his friends and makes sure they’re doing all the work they need to do, even if that means dragging them along. Even just walking from Camden High to the Plus Center, Jose is constantly interacting with and saying hello to people. I asked him about those interactions that he has with people all over the school.

“Even if you only interact with that person once, it can go a long way for a person ”

This last thought Jose shared really stuck with me. In a way it reflects a lot of the work I’m doing here with 12 Plus. It can be hard sometimes to see the full impact of our work. There are, of course, the numbers that show our impact... the FAFSAs we are able to complete or the pathways our students choose for themselves after high school. There are also, though, all the conversations we have with students. We often lend an ear for students to talk about their day to day problems. They might talk to us about their upcoming game or what they’re going to wear to prom. Every conversation is important and each interaction we have might just make high school a little bit easier for that student. There are so many moments of joy that they come to share and celebrate with us and in turn their joy is reflected on us.

Meet Nani!

Nani is our Fellow at Eastside High School in Camden, NJ. In this post, she shares her journey with one of her students— Makhia. As is the case across all of our partner schools, the relationship they built is far from one sided.

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I admittedly don’t remember much from the 12 Plus Summer training. Thankfully, I keep all the important information from those two weeks in a thick binder that I carry to work daily. But, I do remember presenters discussing the reciprocal relationship that 12 Plus employees have with the students at our schools. I remember being warned not to talk at the students as if they were ignorant children that we had all the answers for, and, instead to talk with them as intelligent stakeholders in their own futures. I remember being told to be prepared to learn just as much from the students as they could possibly learn from me. And in this short year, I can confirm that my students have taught me so much. I am honored and better to be learning from such bright, experienced young people. 

One of my favorite bright, experienced young people is named Makhia Goode. 

Makhia Goode was my first advisee. I met her within the first couple of weeks of school, and my Site Director recognized that we clicked, so she assigned Makhia to me. Makhia was one of the first students in my cohort with a reasonable plan and a desire to get started. She had decent grades that could get her into college with some merit scholarship money. When we first met, she expressed that her dream school was Morgan State University. As her advisor, I sat with her throughout September, helped her write her essay, and apply to Morgan State and other schools. 

Since September, Makhia and I have grown close. I’ve watched her grow through many situations and even situationships. I listened as she went from being hesitant to leave home, to being excited to leave home. I smiled with and for her as she happily told me about her 15+ college acceptances. 

I’m sure Makhia would say that I’ve helped her with her college enrollment process. I’m sure she would say that I’ve been a trusted confidant. And I’m sure Makhia would say that my stories have given her some insight into what she can expect over the next four years. But our relationship is far from one-sided. She has taught me so much about myself, Camden students, and more than anything, Makhia has been somewhat of a mirror for me. I see so much of myself in Makhia. Like me, she is an exceptional student and a leader, who stands out from her peers and overcomes the negative circumstances of her environment. For that reason, I have so much confidence in Makhia and her ability to get to and through college. 

It has been an exciting journey to watch Makhia apply to and be accepted into schools. And I was overjoyed when Makhia told me about her commitment to Morgan State University. I can’t wait to see what Makhia accomplishes next!

Introducing Rhi!

Rhiannon (Rhi) serves as a Fellow at Kensington Health Sciences Academy. Although it hasn’t even been a year yet, she’s already gleaned a lot from her time in the PLUS Center. Here, she reflects on some of the lessons learned throughout high school— both from her own experiences as a student and her time this year at 12 Plus.

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Rhi’s High School Survival Guide

As much as I’d like to convince myself that I just graduated high school…it’s been almost 8 years since I hit The Dougie on the prom dance floor (*cringe*), signed my friends’ yearbooks, and strutted across the stage to receive my diploma. The world is an ever-changing place and, in turn, the “high school experience” is vastly different these days.

High school is a crucial point during formative years of young adults’ lives. For some, this space is the only place they can be themselves. Despite being only seven months into this experience, my time so far working in a Northeast Philly high school has brought me a plethora of knowledge and growth. The students I’ve been blessed to work with have been the greatest catalyst for this. We challenge each other, laugh with each other, question each other, and make the long days pass faster. I am already feeling nostalgic about this school year, sad (but oh, so proud) to see our seniors move on to the rest of their lives. Good thing 12 Plus is here for all our students even beyond their high school years (shoutout alumni team)!

While our 12 Plus staff have a wide range of experience — from degrees, to trade certifications, to on-the-grounds experience — the throughline of our mission is to show up. We aren’t here to fit you in a box. We want to meet you where you’re at and do what we can to support you in your endeavors. Moreso, we want to ensure that you know you are heard and understood.

Some days you plan to help a student complete a scholarship application, but they come into the appointment needing to unload their stress from a sticky situation going on with their friends. The students know I love to kiki and be a confidante. Other days, students who have previously claimed to neither need nor want our services walk into the center asking for help to create their resume. Our doors are open to them no matter what…as long as we’re not in a meeting. It’s about being here for the right reasons and fostering trusting relationships before tackling the “hard stuff,” (i.e. applying to community college, researching trade schools).

High school students around the world are under so much pressure to uphold multiple responsibilities, maintain academic-social-personal wellness, and ultimately decide how to begin shaping the rest of their lives. It is important we are part of their support system, cheering them on and offering some tools they may need to build their success. KHSA is a small building, which comes with its pros and cons. Adults in the building, including us, can be perceived as ~annoying~ or ~nagging~ but truly it is because we care deeply about each student. My daily internal goal is to figure out how I can play a part in making this a place you want to come back to five days out of the week.

“High school is the time to make mistakes. If you do these things outside of this building – in the real world – you’ll see real consequences. That’s not gonna be fun for you.”

This is something I overheard one of our climate staff share with some students after getting into a tiff over a comment made during a passing period. While I can only hope the students who received this advice internalized it, I know I sure did! Students are human beings first; and to be human is to be a learner. It is human to mess up sometimes. It is okay to feel a bit embarrassed and take a step back to reset, but it is important to dust yourself off and try again. Trial and error is how we grow, and we should all aspire to never stop growing.

To wrap this up, – as cheesy as it is – high school is a time to find yourself. Take everything one step at a time and preserve your energy for things that are truly worth it. Be open and honest. Communicate! We are on your team. And, as our wonderful tigres at KHSA would say: Stay in your lane. Mind yours. And stand on business. Then you’ll be fine, twin.