There's so much help here. So, like if you're struggling, you can come here and like you'll be fine. You'll help with all your struggles and you can go even farther here than at a normal school. Daniel C. Oaks High School in Castle
Rock provides a compelling alternative for students who find that large, comprehensive high schools are not quite the right fit for their needs. Because Douglas County School District strives to provide something for every style of learner, DC Oaks is one way to ensure
students don't miss out on a quality education. And this episode of our podcast is a milestone. It's our first featuring current students. DC Oaks principal Brian Singleton helps us welcome Connor and Elelliana, each of whom has truly found a home and a family
atmosphere at Oaks. I'm DCSD notebook host and communication director Jason Ackett. And in this episode, we get to learn about alternative education and how it's made possible by leaders, teachers, and staff who go the extra mile to make a difference. And time
after time, that results in remarkable student success. So, let's get started. All right, we are here at Daniel C. Oaks High School talking with a couple of their star students and their principal today. And I'm just going to jump right
into it and have them introduce themselves and we'll kick off the conversation. So, we'll start kind of going clockwise here. >> I'm Connor Sbert. I've been a student at Daniel C. Oaks for about 2 years now and I've really come to enjoy it. >> Um, I'm Elelliana Diaz. This is I've
been here for about a year and I really like it here. and I'm Brian Singleton and I have the honor and pleasure of being principal here at Daniel C. Oaks High School. >> So, Mr. Singleton, can you first tell us a little bit about Daniel C. Oaks High School and the unique mission that you
have? Well, I think a good way to summarize it all is to say, you know, our mission is to really re-engage students in the learning process. Our audience, our our kids across our district who their traditional
comprehensive school uh wasn't the best fit for them. And often times through whether it's some sort of grief or trauma, addictions, recovery, or just it wasn't working for them and and often times they they've
kind of disengaged. Attendance can be a a huge challenge. And so what we try to do is provide the content and learning um that they need and deserve in a different environment that is conducive
to a little bit smaller class size. Well, a lot smaller class size, a more individualized approach. I would say a lot of our students would say that they're somewhat invisible from where they've had educational experience
through not necessarily anybody's fault, but through circumstance. And because of our numbers and our size and how we go about things, uh we're we're able to let them be seen and heard in environment that hopefully they're they're more
comfortable in and it works for. So giving academic rigor is important to us but we go about it in a different way. And so you can talk with some of the students in terms of what works for them here. And it's not so much about what
has failed them in the past. That's not really what we talk or think about. We we talk and think about what works for them now and what's going to get them prepared to graduate and then enter into life beyond that. Whether it's military
and a trade, a two-year school, four-year school, we provide pathways to all those post-secondary opportunities out there. We really try to be a home away from home. For some of our kids, it is their only home and for others. It's a secondary family. Um,
that's that's how we operate. And it's always good to have the opportunity to let those outside our walls know what type of students we have. I think there's lots of um misunderstandings or misperceptions. To be honest, the alternative high school, when I went to high school down
in Pueblo, that's where all the naughty kids went. That's what alternative high school was. And that's not at all what we're about. We have students who are highly capable. They come to us, they've taken AP calculus before, but just the
way things were happening, it just wasn't working for them. A lot of our students have some extraordinary talents and actually the the two that we have here today are both artists. Iliana is really awesome at the painting and
drawing and things. Connor over there who's likes to work with materials and stuff is actually uh working with one of our teachers on his business proposal that he's kind of actually got going where he makes leather jackets and is really going to be an entrepreneur. I
could go on and on about all the students in our school and what their kind of unique talents are. And so we try to give them an opportunity to explore those talents in a nice setting that gets them ready for for life after high school. >> This is exciting. So let's hear from you
guys. Let's hear first of all, why does this school feel like home to you guys? >> Uh for me, bigger classes, teachers a lot different. I think coming here kind of showed a lot that a lot of people do care. Made me feel like I do have a spot amongst my peers. And it's always just
felt so nice to have a place to actually be and go to that I feel like I matter. I feel like I actually have something to be here for. But I've really come to enjoy being amongst a lot of people. >> Uh going back to what Mr. Singleton said about not like feeling seen. There was
just like so many people that it was like half of them didn't even know my name and I would like sit next to them for like years. And here there's like people I've seen like once or twice and they like know who I am and it just it makes me feel kind of like better. Like
it makes me feel like I deserve to be here and like my life has like a point and people know who I am and I really feel like there's a family here and I get along with a lot of the students and they really feel like my siblings to me.
I just feel like I have a lot more brothers and like sisters here and I really like that. What's it like for you guys to get up in the morning and get ready to come to school? Because I think about different times and things you hear from different people where they're like, I'm not excited to go to school. But if you're coming to see people that
you consider family, what's that like for you guys? >> Oh, it's a lot easier. I think I actually get up and I feel a lot more determined to like be here, kind of be a part of the whole family as a like a group, as a community. And that's come to mean a lot to me. So, it's definitely a lot easier than what it was. And it's
all kind of to me about showing up and being here to try to encourage other people to show up and be here for each other. It's a lot easier than what it used to be though. For sure. >> For me, I'm not a morning person like at all. >> Right. Yeah. >> And I really appreciate that here. My peers kind of like respect it a little
bit. It's like at my pace. So I'm like, "Oh, yay. I get to go to school today and I get to finish this thing that I started and this thing that I started and I can work on this and I get to talk to this person." So, it's just a lot more enjoyable and I'm like looking forward to it instead of like dreading it.
>> Sure. Yeah. I am not a morning person either. It's like when it comes to actually then paying attention in class and doing what you want to do. And for you guys being artists as well, like you need to have that energy, that inspiration that feel like, all right,
I'm in my zone now to start creating and and honing what I'm doing. And and if it's 6:00 a.m. I'm with you, Liliana. Like, forget it. Can you talk a little bit about then your focus on art then Mr. Singleton talked about both of you being artists. Talk about what you've
been able to do here and and the opportunities that you've had then too. >> So I've I've started working on a lot of clothing uh since probably the start of last year. Usually a lot of patchwork, metal work for some of my clothing. I
actually a while ago was working on a jacket for a staff member here and she really enjoyed it. she really liked it. And I think that's kind of what drove me to kind of keep going with a lot of it was people like it, people want more of it. And so it kind of inspired me to launch the idea of making kind of
clothing for other people that they like that represents them. Uh it suits them. And I've just it's always been just kind of more of a passion of mine as I've done it. And I really hope to keep going with it, let people express themselves the way they want to. >> And you're turning it into a business
then as well. Yeah, I'm trying to. >> Wow. So, does that tie into some of your classes as well? Like a like a business type class and making business plans and things. >> Yeah. So, we have a business and like entrepreneur class which kind of teaches you the basics of like corporations, how to start a business, what you kind of
need to start it. And for me, I I chose my passion of working on clothing. And so I've been doing a lot of work with trying to set up what we'll be kind of doing with um shipping processes and just the art that goes kind of in behind
it for other people. But yeah, no, I I'm really happy I was able to turn a passion into a grade for a class, >> right? >> That's great. So that kind of then speaks into your future plans then, I'm guessing, and kind of setting you up for after graduation then. Is it? >> Yeah, I would kind of like to hopefully
get that started. Truth is, I'm not exactly sure where I'm going to go after I graduate, but I'll probably get a plan going for myself. I know people that can help for sure. >> That is exciting. Wow. And Iliana, how about you with with your artwork? >> So, me, I hate being told what to do.
And at art class at like regular schools, I see like all this stuff and I'm like, "Oh my god, there's so much I want to do." But the teacher's like, "No, sorry. We're doing something else." And I'm just like I can get like bummed out. But here, like if I tell my teacher, I'm like, "Wow, I really want
to try this." Or, "I saw a video of this." She's like, "Oh my god, that's amazing. Go for it." And I really enjoy that freedom and being able to like explore cuz there's like so many mediums and so many different techniques that I'm like want to try out and I just keep
like starting new things and I just really enjoy it. >> Yeah. to have that freedom to create and explore and try what you want to try. So, what are some of the mediums that you really like working in? It sounds like you're working a bit a little bit of everything, right? >> I'm working. >> Yeah.
>> Uh, right now, I don't know if you saw, but at the entrance there's like paintings around the security desk. That snake is mine. >> Okay. >> Um, right now he's kind of ugly. Still working on him, but I love like painting and I really like painting on stuff
that's not supposed to be painted on. >> Okay. like the school wall. I think that's pretty fun. And oh, I started a clay dragon last quarter. I did charcoal last quarter and I've never done charcoal before. So that was like super
fun. And last quarter we did these oil pastel drawings that I've never done before either. So I just really liked trying all the new things and I have tons of stuff that I have not finished yet. >> Nice. But that's part of being an artist, too. start something and then
you've got some inspiration to go start another thing >> and eventually you might come back to this or you might just be led down this other path of no this is really interesting right now >> nice so does that work into your future plans as well then like art school a little bit further down or or what are
you thinking >> for me art is more like a hobby okay >> like people say like I should pursue it but I want to help people when I'm older so I want to go into like social work or like therapy but art can also tie into those things. So, you know, maybe it'll
come back. >> Exactly. And you don't always have to have art be a commercial factor as well. It can just be for you because you enjoy it. >> There's a lot of different ways. And Mr. Singleton, can you talk a little bit about that kind of approach and and
being able to provide this freedom for your students to be able to explore? Well, one of the advantages, like I said, just based on how we're built, is the fact that teachers have the ability to take an individualized approach to it. So, as I was saying, um her teacher
may present a art technique, but the student has the ability to choose in which way they want to take it. And when you have a smaller class size, you're able to manage those things, whether it's the grading piece, getting the materials, teaching the different
skills. Whereas, you know, in a in a much larger class, that that's far more challenging. When I've been in with our art teacher, it's pretty clear that something has been taught as a concept. The kids then choose which way they're
going to take it. And while they're working on their project, she's going around and teaching all different kinds of techniques based on which project they chose to take it. That happens in in most of our classes, whether it's an
English 101 class, working on something, but choosing the way in which you're going to express your understanding. You know, we also have the ability to give kids and and I'm guess you two could agree when we assess the learning, we we
do it in a variety of ways. And it's not always a sit down and take a multi-choice test or fill in the blank. Uh whether they create a podcast or do a Tik Tok or make a piece of accompanying art or
illustration to go with it. we have the ability to have a lot of flexibility which then allows us to meet students where they're at when they get here and then help grow them from there. And you know, I've been in I've been doing this a long long time and um I've been at
extremely large schools and I know as a staff this is the place where you come and you actually can use all those ideas and things that you wanted to do with students but volume has held you back.
Um, same with me. You know, I can do uh so much more with the staff and more importantly the students because that's how that's how we're geared. And you can ask the kids. I'm around everywhere, you know, whether it's passing playing music
or in the front office and always being available. For me, it's very very fulfilling and and the best job I've I've ever had leading a school because you actually get to do the things you aspire to do here. whether you're a student or staff. And it's it's really
invigorating. >> I'm sure. And then I'm going to guess there's a good balanced relationship then between students and staff because everybody gets to kind of do kind of what feels like fits for them, what what they're kind of geared for. Is that is
that a a fair assessment as well? >> Yeah. And it's it's very difficult in education because so many times you have to do things on a blanket policy kind of approach whereas here it's very individualized based on what the student
needs and wants what you know what motivates them. I don't know how many students I've seen come in here thinking that school is the worst place in the world to be. And then I watch them come
across the stage and inspire other students that just got here with their story and their journey of how they they got to that stage. And it it's very meaningful for those that are here and for those that pass through here. Do you
guys did you have people ahead of you that kind of inspired you a little bit, helped you along and or are you trying to do that to help younger students as they're coming in and befriend them and help them along? >> Oh, definitely. I mean, when I first got here, I heard about it through a friend
of mine called Silus, and he was coming here for a couple of quarters, and you know, he's talking about he's like, "You really enjoyed it." So, he persuaded me to kind of come and join the bandwagon of this school. and you know walking around and seeing how so many of the teachers allow kind of your personality
to bleed into like assignments or um certain classes has always been such a cool like concept to me and I've really come to enjoy that aspect of it very much and I really hope I can kind of especially with every new quarter people
coming in to inspire you know the newer students to kind of follow in the same footsteps for sure. When I first got here, I was like super super super nervous cuz I first of all, I'm always nervous and now I'm like with a bunch of
different people, but I felt like really welcomed and I was like, "Wow, maybe I can actually like pursue something I want to do while being here." And I really want to show newer students that, too. cuz I feel like some people kind of like miss the point of this school when
they come here and they don't understand like the amount of opportunities that are provided to them here and I just really want to open that up to everyone. >> You know, we we also have a a formal way of helping support that. We have a bigs program where students who have been
here in the past or who are or returning students, if you will, uh they take on a one-on-one role with an incoming student to show them the ropes and kind of be a support for them. Um, and that was something that originally started from some ideas from students uh that we've
been able to utilize a couple staff to help direct it, but it's really showing some some positive outcomes and getting our kids acclimated to the school a lot faster. And it's people like Connor and Iana who who are instrumental in that. There's another set of opportunities,
right, for students to take on leadership. I mean, they're just, you know, years, sometimes months away from kind of being on their own as adults, right? And moving beyond simply like come in and be a student and sit here and learn. It's like you can get up and
and do some things that help make this entire place better cuz you're part of it. is that >> well we try to encourage you know all students you know to be leaders you know and you don't have to you know later on in life be a boss to be a leader you
know you can lead from the the position you're in whatever it is you're doing and so we try to teach kids there's there's opportunities to lead in kind of every aspect of life you can you can lead and be out there in front of people
and be vocal and you can also lead from, you know, the the back lines and do it quietly. And so we give opportunities for both cuz we don't we don't want to assume everybody wants to stand on stage and uh you know, inspire people, but
there's ways to really inspire people on the side. We we have a student who is visually impaired. Um and Connor ever since our student got here has just took him along his wing and um helped him out
and just to me he's he's showing leadership there just by doing those things. I I listen to Aliana talk to newer students in the front office, whether she's maybe whipping them in shape a little bit and saying, "Hey, you know, you're not following that the
right way," or, "Hey, I saw you do something great and I want to acknowledge it." So, there's we try we try to tell them it's there's opportunity everywhere to not only be a great person, um, but to do great things for others. And that's why it like warms my heart to hear she wants to help
people out. Like that's awesome. >> And it sounds like you're getting to almost practice that a little bit here. And like maybe depending on different circumstances, would you have been able to do that elsewhere where you know here you get to have the time and the space
and the patience and opportunity to explore that and say, you know what, like a leadership thing like what you were saying, Mr. Singleton, doesn't have to be in front of everybody. It can be literally sitting down next to one person and talking them through something, right? So, is that something that has kind of come up and and kind of
been able to bloom a little bit for you then, Leiana? >> Yeah, there's just so much going on and I feel like I didn't have a voice and I just had so much I wanted to say, but then like here I can kind of like express myself more and like if I want to like talk to someone, I'm not like as
scared or like as embarrassed to and I can just like say what I want to say and like tell them what I want to tell them and it's just it's a lot nicer. And Connor, for you, talk a little bit more about working with other students then, too. >> I think it's really nice to always see people unite over their struggles
because some people share a lot of similar things, some are not also similar, but they still bond over it. And to me, a lot of it has come down to being cathartic, very therapeutic for everyone involved. And that's what's kind of been so important to me, especially when leading, that this is kind of what you should do. This is how
you should approach people that have struggled with stuff like this. just very important to me as a whole. >> Just the maturity that I'm hearing from you guys. That's that's so cool to hear. One of the reasons that we had this idea to approach you, Mr. Singleton, to do this podcast was one of my co-workers,
actually, Amy Fister, who hosts some of the other shows on the same podcast feed. She came to take pictures at your graduation in December, and she was so inspired by what she heard from you, from staff, from students. Is there any little bit of that that we can kind of
recreate here? Because I didn't get to come here. I heard from what she said. What are some of the points that were made that help explain and tell people about what makes this school great? You know, first of all, you got to be there. It is like nothing I've ever experienced
before. Um, and I wouldn't want to summarize it in any way that takes away from it. I will just say having the opportunity to come across the stage and then have the opportunity to give a speech kind of defines who we are. You
don't have to be valid Victorian to be heard at graduation. Again, that's a numbers thing, right? Each and every one of our students who walks across the stage and graduates has the opportunity to give a speech and during their speech, most of them describe their
journey and how they persevered through it, how they ended up here, what happened for them here and how they are going to get, you know, how they got to the finish line and where they're going now. But again, that is my adult perspective watching it. I think really
asking Connor and Iliana like what do they think graduation is and what do they look forward to when it's their time. >> I personally during graduation love hearing about the connections that students have with the teachers. Every single speech there's always someone
who's like, "Oh, thank you so much to Mr. or Mrs. this person. Like you have helped me like so much." And I think that's pretty cool because you don't see anyone else's graduation them talking about how much they enjoyed their teachers and how helpful their teachers have been. But I I'm excited to shout
out a bunch of teachers when I graduate. >> I kind of agree with Liliana. I my graduation you always have, you know, students thanking teachers. And to me, that's one of the aspects I haven't really heard at other schools. And I mean, I've even heard people like talk about how this place has like saved their lives. It's shown them so much
more. It's inspired them to do something they haven't done before. And it's really the moments where you have a student talking to a teacher about how important they were to them or even some teachers talking to students about how they were important to them that I think really make this place what it is. I
haven't really seen anywhere else before. >> Yeah. And that graduation, you know, there's a reason there's a box of tissues on every aisle. Um, I think the fact that we have it here on campus in our central area adds to the the
meaningfulness of it and all students are required to go to each graduation so that they can see, you know, what they're really working for. And so, um, like Ilana said, they start to look forward to it and then all of a sudden
they're they're up there and they got their cap and gown and their their family, friends, whoever that stands by them and our staff and it's it's crowded in there and it it's it's a really fun way to remind ourselves what a great
place this is. And we get to do it in May and we get to do it in December as well. So, it's it's one of our highlight events here. >> I'm sure it reinforces them for some of the students that are like, I'm for whatever reason they're having a hard time working toward that end goal and
and maybe feeling like they're not going to make it one way or the other. Does that sort of help get them kind of inspired and maybe or just reinforced like, "No, I can do this cuz I saw some other people do it and they were I know they were going through some stuff." I I think at least from my perspective, when
you hear somebody describe a s a story similar to yours, it can be inspiring. And I know like you're like you said, some kids come in and they're in a spot and think one thing and then they hear one of their peers walk across the stage and do their speech and then they start thinking a different way. So, at least
from my perspective. >> How about you guys? Have you seen that help people and kind of like, oh, yeah. >> Oh, absolutely. I mean, I've seen people, you know, during graduation sit down and some speeches just really get to them and it really moves them and it does inspire them a whole lot. And then
sometimes we'll sit down and even try and crank out a lot more work to kind of catch up and get ahead of that. Sure. >> There's a lot of tears at graduation. >> Everyone is sad that like someone is graduating because it's such a small school that you know everyone so
personally and you're like, "Wow, I'm going to miss that person." here. It's like I've spent like every day with that person. So, I think it's more like personal. >> You know, everybody here and like you said, family. Then, >> does this school end up having like a weight list or do you have openings? Can
people jump in as needed? How does that work from a logistical standpoint? >> We only bring students in at the quarter. You know, we're a quarter-based program. Um, we're also year round. And so when it comes to uh the application
process, you do have to apply online, we do provide guided tours if you want to come check it out before your application or even after you put an application in. And we do uh entry interviews. There are times when there
is a wait list. Um, often times students with the IEP, there's kind of a wait list there because it's a it's a popular uh place for uh kids to look into in those circumstances. But we do take the intake process pretty serious so that we
we can maintain one of our number one objectives is safety here, both physical and emotional. So we we really do need to make sure the student fits with us and we need to make sure we fit for the student as well. Um so it kind of varies
I guess is the answer. So that leads to my next question for the students then is if somebody hears this that thinks maybe for whatever reason they're they're not quite fitting in with at one of the big high schools and and hears these stories like maybe that's
something I should look into to try starting that process. What would you guys say to encourage somebody in that situation? >> Well, I would encourage them to try and come if they really want to try something a bit different than traditional school. And I mean something I've also thought is really nice is a
lot of students have set up and planned for major events. They have run certain parts of the school, certain aspects of it. And so it's really to me a good way to not only get an education, but to also, you know, kind of get involved with the community and people kind of
feel like have a purpose. So I'd encourage it wholeheartedly for them to try and come if they wish to. >> Mhm. I feel like a big thing when people are coming here is like they want to come but like their parents aren't too sure. And I like giving tours cuz I
think the tours really like bring it out to people where it's like you should come here. It's like check out this super awesome classroom. Like imagine you in there. And I feel like that kind of helps the parents come around. Like I feel like just being here for a tour
will like make you want to come here or like make your child want to be here because it's like so welcoming. >> What are some of the things that you would want to be able to say like as you're going through the building? What are some of the things that you point out to parents to help them feel more at ease like no this is a good place for
your for your >> uh when I give tours I make sure to like tell them what the teachers do and I tell them about the field trips a lot and there's a wall that has like colleges people have gone to and I'm like check out all those colleges like
you can definitely go there if you come here and there's so much help here so I'm like if you're struggling you can come here and like you'll be fine. You'll help with all your struggles and you can go even farther here than at a normal school. Every
single time I give a tour, I mention this to the students. Our office is like so open and like you can come in. There's two office ladies here. You say hi to either of them. They're super friendly. They're nice. There's food. You're well taken care of.
>> Yeah. Now, I'll piggyback on that. Um, they're very welcoming and very supportive up there. They they provide a level of support for our students that none of the rest of us can can provide. Like Eliana said, we try to make it an approachable, comfortable place. I I try
all the best I can to be approachable and not not a scary guy. Um because and it's fun, you know, it's funny. They come in and they have some reservations about admin and then they have a chance to meet Miss Schmidt and myself and hang out with us. And I think for the most
part, you know, they they go, "Oh, this is this is comfortable. I'll talk to this guy, you know, I'll let them know what I think about stuff." And I always try to give kids the a voice. So, I'm always listening to what they say. Um, the other important thing that you brought up, I should mention, we support
the kids with food a lot. We have a system here where we work with a couple of our counselors and teachers to have what we call Friday boxes u which are basically uh boxes filled with donated
uh food from the food bank that kids can grab and take home to their families while they're here on campus. Uh in between classes there's always snacks, food of some sort available for all of our students because uh you know meeting
basic needs is also something we start with on a day daily basis. And if if you don't have you know you need some new shoes, you're going to get them here. If you need um >> hygiene >> hygiene, yeah, we we we help with all of that. So again, our size and our
mission, we're able to provide support in a very holistic way. >> Making sure that nobody falls through the cracks and nope >> gets forgotten about. >> Yeah, exactly. That's amaz. Can you talk a little bit about the the field trip aspect because that's a piece I'm not
totally familiar with. Well, we we do have a few field trips like traditional field trips that is, you know, during the school day. I know one of our science teachers goes down to uh Cheyenne Mountain Zoo. I know there's a trip coming up soon. Same uh science
teacher, Dr. Klein's taking the group to the Air Force Academy Planetarium. I think more what Iliana is talking about is our outdoor ed program. >> Have anywhere from 6 to 10 trips a year. They usually happen over a series of weekends or during one of our three-w
week breaks. And students go out. There's always an outside of the school element. Often times it's actually literally outdoors, whether they go hike a 14er, go out to um Cave of the Winds
down there and do um some of that kind of stuff. They'll also go to uh different trips which take them downtown to museums and Meow Wolf. Uh we call that one Urban Adventures. We have a wolf trip where they go down and
volunteer time at a wolf sanctuary and get to hang out down there. We have a pow-wow trip which goes down to uh downtown Denver for the largest indigenous um gathering in the lower 48. We do a you celebrate diversity
conference that's coming up. We do over at Cherry Creek High School. That's kind of a leadership opportunity for students. And I could go on and on. There's there's many more. Also, a part of those trips is the fact that students can earn credit. Um, that's a piece of
it. And they can uh work towards their grad requirement of community service because all of our uh outdoor ed trips have a community service element of it. So, it's a great way to connect with other students, with staff members
outside of the school. Um it's also an opportunity to you know uh either catch up or accelerate with your credits by earning credit and getting the um 20 hours done for grad requirement. So it's an important part of our program. It's
uh coming back you know stronger and stronger each year because it was shut down during COVID obviously. Um, but we've worked our way back up um with some newer staff members and I think both of you have been on one or more
trips. Is that correct? Have you been on one yet, Eliana? She aspires to. Um, >> nice. >> Uh, it doesn't work for all our students. A lot of our students work and they work the weekends and so that's understandable and that's why we do have field trip opportunities within the the
school as well. >> And work credit. Yeah, there's there's many ways to earn credits here. Like Iiana is saying, you know, you have your work study, which as long as kids are are working a job where they they get a payub and a W2, that can go towards uh credit. It's basically 120 hours of work
for a half credit per quarter. And then we also have availability with Ingenuity. Kids can take courses outside of their regular class schedule. So whether they work on it at lunch or before or after school again another way
to catch up or accelerate and then of course the uh the crediter with your six class schedule. So going back to something Illiana said too about how many kids have headed off to college and things like that. It just struck me that
in a lot of ways there's I would think that your students that leave here for college don't have too much of an adjustment because they've already had the kind of a self-determined and you know building their independence here in
high school and they kind of go to college and it's sort of like oh yeah I know how to do this because I've done it. >> Does do they report back any of that? Have you heard some of that come back to you? Well, we have the opportunity. Our uh counselor, Miss Peebles, always
pretty much every quarter brings back a group of students and oftentimes their kids that are enrolled in a 4-year school. And they'll they they talk about some advantages coming from this place and some of course surprises as you're uh getting used to college life. But I
always hear that their experience here really equipped them for it. I don't know if I've heard that, you know, specifically the way you said it, but I have heard a consistent message when they return that they felt set up for going to their four-year school.
>> I didn't even ask earlier, what grade are you two in? How far along are you? >> Well, and I want to jump in here and say we we really look at the students more in terms of the credits they have and the credits they need to graduate. We may throw around the term senior
kind of um but in all our classes you have people from all quote unquote grades. Um we don't have freshman here. Part of the requirement to get in is you have to have a year of high school under your belt whether uh it was local or
comprehensive could have been online whatever before you're eligible to be considered to come in here. So, sophomores through seniors and beyond. But again, we don't really use that verbiage within the walls. We talk more about how many credits do you have left
to go. >> Okay? >> Right? >> You know, and then really we talk about seniors in the last quarter before they're about to graduate. That's when we and we call them graduates, upcoming graduates. I don't even know if we use the word senior very often, but if it's
your quarter that you're going to be finishing up, when we have gatherings or talk together as a group, we acknowledge those about to be graduates. So, it's kind of it's a little different that way. Not as much of a cast system, if
you if you will. More of, hey, we're just all in class because we need this class, >> right? Okay, that's fair. I like that. That makes sense in a lot of ways, right? Well, we have a lot of students who also access um college credits while they're still here, whether it's through
ACC, the old ascent program. Uh we do offer a CTE, business finance uh pathway, and we have started offering uh creative writing uh concurrent enrollment class. We're going to be offering a concurrent enrollment in math
as well. So, a lot of kids get started on those college credits even before they're gone. And when they do it with us in these different ways, those credits are not coming at a cost to them. So I think that really gets a lot of our kids going when maybe they
couldn't have initiated that first jump to begin with, you know. So, uh, we get them going, then they go to school and work and, you know, come out on the other end with a degree, right? >> You know, >> you pointed to yourself during that. You're going to be doing some of that
then, huh? Oh, right now I'm in the creative writing and I've been talked to about the math thing and I'm excited for the math thing because I've already done all the math. >> Okay. So, you're ready for a new challenge and >> Yeah. >> Okay. Nice.
>> And we have the flexibility to offer stuff to even as low as one student. You know, we have a student working right now uh with one of our math teachers doing an online college calculus class that he's able to access and get uh
teaching and support from us. So, we, you know, we we don't have to say this is only worth it if we can have 10 kids or more in the class. We can offer it up one-on-one if that's what the current need is. >> So, there's there's no such thing as just fitting people into boxes or anything like that. It's things are
tailored for what what each of you guys need then. Huh. >> Yeah. >> Okay. I want to wrap up cuz I know you guys have to get on with your day. It's a school day still. I know I's like but but um to finish up one last little thing. If you got the chance to talk to
somebody who's thinking about this, what would you kind of like an elevator speech kind of thing? I know you it's kind of hard to boil everything down into something just you know a couple of sentences or something like that but what kind of encouragement would you give somebody or just to say here's my experience?
>> I would always encourage to get involved. I mean there's been a lot of unique opportunities. I mean for me for example after summer break last year I was able while I was on break I actually came and worked on a epoxy countertop at the front office. And I mean I thought
it was cool. I mean I docu service hours for it which was nice but I just thought it was such a cool thing to be a part of and be involved with and um it was just me and one other teacher doing the whole thing. So there's always opportunities like that to get involved and I personally find stuff getting
experiences like that so cool. So anyone wanting to come to me it would just be getting involved with new stuff going around. >> I like to say there's no reason to have to be shy here. >> Yeah. Some people they are like they have bad social anxiety and they're like
really scared of being judged. But at this school I just feel like no one cares. And I like that a lot where you walk in, you can just dress how you want, you can wear what you want as long as it's appropriate
and you can just like be yourself here and no one's going to care. So like you don't have to worry about being like judged. So there's no reason to be shy. You can just be yourself and you can make friends. And you don't have to like act a certain way in order to fit in to
have friends. You can have friends no matter like how you act or like what you look like. And I like that. >> Acceptance for who you are and the ability to make friends and just be yourself then and grow as you need to. How about you, Mr. Singleton? I mean, you're you oversee the whole thing. I
don't I don't know how you would be able to boil anything down because there's so much good here. But >> well, I would just say um if you're a student who who maybe feels invisible, if you're a student who feels like you're putting in the effort, maybe not
getting much out of it. If you're somebody who going to school just seems so noisy and chaotic. If you're somebody who wants to connect with peers but don't really know how. If
you're somebody who suffered a just a lot of trauma and you just need more individualized support either with your mental health or how to navigate the world, this is a safe place to do all
those things. And if you're below grade level, we can support you. If you're average at school, we can support you. If you have exceptional skills in school, we can support you. I just want everybody to know that if you feel
disengaged from learning and you know you got to get a diploma to move on in life, this this is the place for you because we can help re-engage you in the learning process and uh support you to not only get to graduation but maybe like turn you into somebody who loves to
be at school or at least enough to involve yourself in things to not only graduate but to to build skills and prepare yourself to go out into the real world. No matter what it is you want to do, we you can access things the same as
the big schools. So, if you're a sports person, you can attend our school and still do sports at your school. If uh you're interested in everything that Legacy Campus offers, um students are able to access that from here and get transportation.
We're a little creative with it, but you we can get you there. Um, so I think know that all the opportunities are here even though we're small and opportunities are here because we're small. And so if you're doubting stuff,
you know, look into it, give us a chance, come for a tour, talk to some of our students like Connor and Iliana and and get see what you think yourself. And uh I know we have a lot to offer and I know there's a lot of students out there in Douglas County that would benefit
greatly um by coming over and joining us. >> Absolutely. I'll just add on my little additional tag here at the end. getting to come in here and it's one thing to have a system set up and a building and a place and specific classes, but what
I'm seeing here from the principal to the students is people who care, people who want to be here, who are in it for the right reasons. You can see that and and you can see that the two of you, the students here, like listening to you,
you've got bright futures ahead of you. and to hear your principal talk about how inspired he and his staff are to help things along. That's really cool to hear. That is that is so inspiring. So, thank you all three of you for your time, for explaining a little bit of
this to us. And if people want more information, they can call and try to set up a tour and maybe Ilana will show you around then, right? >> Yeah. Yeah. >> They stopped asking me to do tours. >> I guess I was bad at them. >> No, you're good. We just try to give
other opportunity. Still interesting. >> Well, we we really appreciate the uh opportunity to let us let let the world know like who we are. So, thank you. >> Yeah. Travis, man. >> Yeah. Thank you. >> Yep. Appreciate it. >> You've been listening to the DCSD
Notebook podcast from the number one academic school district in the Denver metro area. To learn more about all the options available to students at every level of Douglas County School District, visit dcsdk12.org. We really appreciate the growing number
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