During my sophomore year, I transitioned from public high school to independent study with iLEAD Exploration. When I was offered an internship opportunity at Our Neighborhood Homework House, a local nonprofit organization, I came to realize that the boundaries of my traditional school schedule would not permit the flexibility an internship required. Truly, the traditional learning environment did not afford me time to explore opportunities that I craved: greater community engagement, valuable time with my family and friends, and other creative avenues for learning.
As I researched independent learning options, I discovered the opportunity for a far more holistic approach to my education. Rather than school being compartmentalized as a place I go to, school is now a part of the wider array of my learning experience. Not only have I been able to serve at a local community organization for the past two years, but I have also been enriched by global engagement and travel, work experience, community college classes, and other volunteer opportunities.
Since my first semester as an independent study student, I have learned to arduously pursue truth in college journalism classrooms and ask rhetorically careful questions in city council meetings. I have learned the skill of gentle guidance in self-directed tutoring sessions and the art of attention to detail in wedding photography shoots. Thanks to iLEAD Exploration, school has become everything from rigorous AP classes to coffee dates with my city’s mayor, local professors, and nonprofit leaders in Mexico.
As I near graduation, I am thankful for an education experience that has enabled me to further my intellectual pursuits while also serving in the spaces that matter most to me.