The Answer - A blog about Education, Preparation, and Commitment.

Alumni Spotlight:  Lucia (Serna) Vasquez, YES Prep Class of 2001

December 01, 2011 by Tenesha Villanueva

Lucia (Serna) Vasquez graduated from YES Prep in 2001 (our first-ever graduating class!).  She has been a proud member of the United States Air Force for 7 years where she works in Public Health/Deployment Medicine and is stationed at Lackland Air Force Base in Texas. 

Lucia on her experience at YES Prep…

What is your favorite YES Prep memory?

I have two:

Sophomore Spring Trip - The bus ride to New York City.  We convinced the teachers to play a mixed CD one of the guys brought along.  They kept flipping through the songs for an “appropriate” one and finally left it on “Wanna Be a Baller”.  The whole bus was singing along – including our bus driver!

Sophomore Christmas Program – Mr. Barbic got El Mercado Del Sol to let us use their empty atrium to have our Christmas

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Alumni Spotlight: Mark Medina Jr., YES Prep Southeast Class of 2006

December 01, 2011 by Tenesha Villanueva

Mark Anthony Medina, Jr. graduated from YES Prep Southeast in 2006.  Mark has been a proud member of the United States Marine Corps for 2 years where he currently serves as a Data Networking Specialist and is stationed at Camp Pendleton in California. 

Mark on his experience at YES Prep…

What is your favorite YES Prep memory?

My favorite memories at YES Prep were always in the dance room. My participation in the dance program greatly enhanced my experience at YES Prep.  The one that stands out the most is when I broke the mirror during a late night rehearsal.

Name the teacher/staff member who had the greatest impact on you and why.

The staff member that had the biggest impact on my life was Ms. Lisa Castillo, our dance instructor. She saw my potential as a dancer and invested

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Two YES Prep Juniors Learn to Create Positive Change in Our World

September 14, 2011 by Tenesha Villanueva

For juniors, Adrian Gonzales of YES Prep Southeast and Amanda Hernandez of YES Prep Southwest, this semester is not “business as usual”. There are no early morning treks to the bus stop or extended school days; Adrian and Amanda are immersing themselves in a rigorous curriclum filled with ethical thinking, leadership development, and international affairs.   

Both outstanding students were selected, among hundreds across the country, to participate in a semester-long residential program for high school juniors at The School for Ethics and Global Leadership (SEGL) in Washington, DC.  With the help of campus-based Student Opportunities Coordinators, Lynda Daniel (YES Prep Southeast) & Eric Estelle (YES Prep Southwest), Adrian and Amanda are taking advantage of a rare opportunity to sit

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How YES Prep Southwest Ensures that Students are Prepared for College Graduation

June 02, 2011 by Allison Mattingly

People are the source of our strength. This mantra has been a part of the YES Prep Core Values for as long as I have been with YES Prep (which in teacher years is at least 47). It took me until this year and working so closely with the College Initiatives team at YES Prep Southwest that I realized why this is the foundation of our organization.

• Dr. Ayana Allen—Director of College Counseling, mentor, teacher, and friend balances my every need to check something off of a To-Do list with her emotional strength and vision.
• Eric Estelle—College Counselor, the captain, tough cookie, cool as a cucumber, powerhouse brings humor and calm to my frenzied storm.
• Sharon Desrosiers—School Mama, copy machine whisperer, data entry czar, and partner in all things task related brings

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Senior Signing Day Should Be A National Holiday

May 02, 2011 by Mark DiBella

I have decided to make it official. Senior Signing Day is now a national holiday. I haven’t actually gotten this approved by anyone but I have emailed the President, so I’ll let you know when I find out more. Given that I look forward to SSD more than my own birthday, I’ve decided it needs to take its place as a fully recognized holiday. In fact, as I was heading to SSD on Friday, I started making a list of my favorite days every year. It was crazy to realize that next to Christmas and Thanksgiving, SSD is arguably my favorite day of the year. Of course, the last day of school is a close 4th.

For those of you that have never attended a Senior Signing Day, you should put next year's event on your calendar.  Senior Signing Day started as a way to honor our graduating seniors for the

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