Lacey's Story: “I’m learning that I’m responsible”

Lacey doesn’t blame anyone but herself.

“I didn’t get along with people very well,” she says. “I had trouble at school. I didn’t like my teachers and I wanted to fight all the time.”

The 16-year-old Michigan girl has lost track of how many times she was suspended. In any case, she says, “it was a lot.”

Bloomingdale School District officials didn’t want to give up on her, but they couldn’t let her continue to disrupt the educations of her fellow students, either.

Their last hope was NoDropouts. The district had been partnering with the dropout recovery service since 2009, but they saw the flexible education model as an opportunity to serve other groups of students — discipline challenges like Lacey, for instance.

Today, Lacey is making steady progress toward her high school diploma — and the only education she can impact, for good or for ill, is her own.

“I’m learning that I’m responsible for everything that I do,” she says. “And that the person my decisions affect the most is myself.”

Is there a Lacey in your community? We can help you help her.
Call us at 855-NO-DROPOUTS or send us an e-mail at info@nodropouts.com