For the past several years, John Jackson, a student in the Los Angeles Unified School District, has shared a single bedroom with his mother and three siblings in an apartment. He had to learn to juggle the demands of caring for a younger sibling and the neighbor’s kids while also being captain of the school’s basketball team.
There were times when Jackson’s motivation was put to the test.
“I never really thought about giving up, but at times, I thought, ‘Is it really worth it?’” he admitted.
Some of his doubts were laid to rest on Monday, May 22, when the Foshay Learning Center student joined nearly 200 of his LAUSD peers in a special ceremony for graduating seniors who have experienced homelessness or housing insecurity.
The event, at BMO Stadium in Exposition Park, featured speeches by LAUSD Superintendent Alberto Carvalho, Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass, school board President Jackie Goldberg and two students who shared personal stories of the housing insecurity they lived through.
One student speaker, Kevin Sedano, will be graduating on June 9 from James Monroe High School in North Hills with a 4.0 grade average. For years, his family bounced from one home to another, and he would attend a new school each year. That instability took a toll, he said, but he refused to let homelessness define him.
“The weight of my grades and the weight of the responsibilities were a lot. And it was very hard to find hope …but I kept dreaming anyway,” Sedano said, adding that he eventually realized that education was his way out of poverty.
The high school senior plans to attend Kalamazoo College in Michigan.
Monday’s event marked the 10th year that L.A. Unified has held a recognition ceremony for graduating students who experienced homelessness or housing insecurity. The event opened with remarks from Carvalho, who reminded students that he was once homeless himself and that education changed his trajectory.
“Your aspirations are not tied to…
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