'What a journey': Academy del Sol celebrates it's 2022 graduating class
Alamogordo Public Schools alternative high school Academy del Sol celebrated what was believed to be its final commencement ceremony May 26 with 21 students graduating.
"I just love seeing kids who want to make a difference and change their lives," Academy del Sol teacher Jackie Holycross said. "They have decided that they want to make a difference in their lives and choose a different path and that's the real reason they come and the real reason they succeed."
Students opt to go the Academy del Sol rather than remain in regular high school for a variety of reasons including being behind in credits, truancy, legal troubles, teen pregnancy, addiction and abuse, Holycross said.
"But the real reason they come is because they have decided they want to graduate."
Sign up for our newsletter, the Daily Briefing, to get stories like this one delivered straight to your inbox every morning.
At the May 26 Academy del Sol graduation ceremony, Academy del Sol Principal Roman Rentería addressed guests.
"What a journey, no doubt, guys," Rentería said. "It's personal to me. We've talked about it a little bit about that special place you hold in my heart and I'm so so proud of you tonight."
Throughout the ceremony speakers including Holycross and fellow Academy del Sol teacher Melanie Hallbeck spoke about the students' experiences.
Story continues below.
These experiences ran the gamut from from COVID-19 shutdowns to them having to report to a separated hallway at Alamogordo High School instead of their regular building due to the regular building had to be closed due to a gas leak at the beginning of the 2021-2022 school year.
"You spent a year and a half of your high school career in quarantine," Holycross said at commencement. "ou did not have the daily support and contact with peers and mentors that you needed. You had to learn from a computer program that was not designed for the needs of at-risk students. Then you came back to school only to find that your school had been moved to a new location. It was difficult. We all struggled. But you-you persevered."
More: Alamogordo Schools and Alamogordo Police discuss emergency preparedness in Alamogordo
Academy del Sol senior Isabel Peña delivered the commencement address.
"I started at Alamogordo High School but due to some setbacks my senior year I chose to return to Academy del Sol and, still struggling, Academy del Sol allowed me to work and to earn my credits to finish school to support me and my family," Peña said. "You never know what is going on in someone's life and the alternative setting allowed myself and my peers to earn their diploma."
Alamogordo Public Schools Superintendent Dr. Kenneth Moore said after the ceremony that there will always be alternative schooling available under the Academy del Sol name.
"We still have about seven students enrolled in the official Academy del Sol. They'll graduated as Academy del Sol graduates when they finish," Moore said. "We'll always have an Academy del Sol. It's just going to part of the high school. Separated so that they have all of the accommodations they had at the old building. but they have access to all (Alamogordo High School) classes: CTE, in particular."
CTE is short for Career Technical Education, what was formerly known as vo-tech.
The remaining Academy del Sol students will be honored by a commencement ceremony, but Moore does not know what that will look like next year, he said.
Nicole Maxwell can be contacted by email at nmaxwell@alamogordonews.com, by phone at 575-415-6605 or on Twitter at @nicmaxreporter. If you have questions about your subscription, please contact Customer Service at AlamogordoDailyNews@Gannett.com or call 1-877-301-0013.
This article originally appeared on Alamogordo Daily News: 'What a journey.' Academy del Sol celebrates it's 2022 graduating class
