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Report card: Bennett Mountain students showing progress
The morning's lecture focused on the birth of the American government. Standing at the front of the small classroom, it was Stehvn Tesar's first lecture of the day.
As he outlined the steps that would eventually lead to the creation of the Constitution and the federal government, his students were busy jotting down notes they knew would likely appear on a test in just a few days.
From an initial glance, the classroom looked no different than others across the school district. The most noticeable difference was the class size -- just 10 teens in a room that would normally include three times as many students.
But any similarity this classroom has to others in the district end once these students head to their next class. They represent a new generation of students in Mountain Home earning their education through an alternative style of learning.
Already midway through its first semester since it opened its doors last month, Bennett Mountain High School is helping make a difference in the lives of these students.
"The kids are showing up and getting the work done," Tesar said. "That's why we are here. We want these kids to succeed, and so far the kids are doing quite well here for the most part."
Geared for those in grades 9 to 12, the school marks the first time in eight years the school district had offered this type of academic alternative. Richard McKenna Charter High School previously served as the district's alternative high school before it left the district and became a stand-alone facility eight years ago.
Since then, Mountain Home was one of a handful of schools in Idaho without this type of school.
"You've got kids that don't fit in with the regular education system, and they need an alternative route to get through," said district superintendent Tim McMurtrey.
A 2000 graduate from Mountain Home High School, Tesar saw the same need to help students struggling with their education.
"There's no doubt that this school district has needed this type of school," Tesar said.
In recent years, he sat down and thought of ways to improve the district's academic environment. Topping that list of needs was finding a way to open a new alternative school for at-risk students here similar to others in districts across the state.
On Jan. 7, those efforts came to life when Bennett Mountain High School opened in the middle school annex on East Jackson Street.
Each school day includes four, 90-minute classes. Tesar teaches two classes per day with students devoting the remaining academic day to online studies. Those computer-based classes include everything from core curriculum subjects to college-level advanced placement courses.
For now, the school is limited to just four rooms in the annex building, with one serving as an administrative office and another as a dedicated computer lab.
To enter this school, students and their parents are required to attend an induction meeting with Tesar. This assessment determines whether a student falls into the "at risk" category and qualifies for this type of alternative environment.
Tesar was quick to point out that the "at risk" nomenclature doesn't necessarily equate to those with disciplinary problems. The stigma associated with those two words is very misleading, he said.
According to state standards, a student falls into that category because they're more likely to drop out of school, regardless of the reason.
"We have students here that have children of their own but are straight 'A' students," he said. "But they're considered 'at risk' because they're at a risk of dropping out because they have children at home."
Absenteeism remains the common thread among students enrolled at Bennett Mountain and sometimes linked to issues at home that distracted them from school work. A few others have failed at least one class over the years of school and lacked enough credits to graduate.
"A lot of them will admit that all it took (to succeed) was being in a smaller classroom environment and removing them from their peers," he said. "They're 'finding themselves' in this environment."
Other students include those "that we not necessarily ready for that transition from the junior high school to the high school," he said. "Sometimes they get overwhelmed dealing with seven class periods a day."
Gavin Pierpont, is one of several freshman currently enrolled at Bennett Mountain. Looking back, he admitted that his academic struggles began while his parents were in the process of getting divorced. During his time at the junior high school, he let his grades deteriorate.
" I pretended I was sick all the time, and I wasn't paying attention in class," he said.
As a result, he was held back and not allowed to move on to high school. Watching his friends head off without him was all the motivation Pierpont needed to turn his academic life around.
"I just didn't like not being with my friends," he said. "I knew that I had to make up my grades, (and) I had the opportunity to come here and made up those credits."
Today, the teen admits that he feels like a completely different individual.
"My dad said my attitude changed after I started going here. I'm a better person," the teen said.
By all rights, Juana Gonzales was supposed to be a senior this year and ready to graduate this spring. Academically, however, she's still classified a freshman due to the limited number of classes she's finished over the past three years.
A mother of two children that was also working to make ends meet, she struggled to finish just one year of high school. Despite maintaining top grades in school, the demands at home prompted her to stop going to school two years ago.
But Gonzales earned a second chance to finish school after the school district offered her a chance to attend Bennett Mountain. She started classes Jan. 14 hoping to provide a better life for her children.
"My kids got me back on track," she said. "I'm going this for them and for me. After all, I can't live off just $7.25 an hour." Earning a diploma her way to make a positive difference in her life, she added.
Gonzales enjoys the fact that most class work is set to the pace of each student. Once she finishes one class, she's immediately able to start another.
"It changed my whole outlook on school," she said. "Instead of knowing that I have three more years of high school left to go, I can set my own pace (and finish faster)," she said.
Originally needing 41 credits to graduate, she's close to earning three credits and is ready to start work to knock out her remaining class work.
"I want to be an example for other teen moms out there," she said. "I'm going for that diploma. If I can do this, then so can they."
Initially, Bennett Mountain High School had 30 students enrolled when it opened its doors last month. One student returned to Mountain Home High School after they had second thoughts on switching schools. Two other students were expelled due to disciplinary reasons.
For now, the school's total enrollment is limited to 30 students. "We already have a waiting list," Tesar said. "Each day, it seems we have someone calling trying to get into this school."
With so much interest in this style of education, he hopes the school district is able to add more teachers to Bennett Mountain and increase its enrollment to up to 70 teens when the new school year begins in August.
Tesar feels a sense of accomplishment knowing his students are getting an education versus other alternatives. Without a chance to finish school, it's tough to say if these students would succeed in life, he said.
"Where would these kids be if they didn't have this opportunity," Tesar said.