Eleventh grade student Victor Bahna is our first guest blogger. He has shared how LEADPrep has impacted his life in the last 3 ½ years. Victor is very enthusiastic about the Victorian era, and he likes to go to antique stores to find new treasures. He also loves music, and is presently learning a Scott Joplin ragtime tune on the piano.
LEADPrep has impacted my life by helping me discover who I am.
Before I came to LEADPrep I was in a less than ideal school with a pretty bad bullying problem. I was constantly bullied simply because I was different.
When, my family moved temporarily to the San Diego area I went to a new school and found that people were nice to me. But knowing this move was only for four months, I discussed the bullying problem with my family, and we began looking for a solution. After a rigorous search we found LEADPrep, which had recently opened.
He found LEADPrep
Because of my past experiences I was very insecure when I stepped into the school to attend 8th grade. However, I found the students were very nice and we all got along fine. Things were looking good.
By my second year at LEADPrep, I had made even more friends and enjoyed sharing my interest in antiques and the Beatles with new friends. I felt more like myself.
During my third year, after wearing almost identical clothing for a long time, I began to express myself more in what I wore, and I was happy that LEADPrep was a safe place for me.
At Halloween I dressed up like Sans from Undertale, and during Spirit week I revealed myself as a dragon nerd – for both costumes I spent weeks creating fabulous masks. No one made fun of me or was insulting, expect for my friends who were only joking!
Another way that LEADPrep has impacted my life is that the school’s flexibility allows me to take part in Running Start. The classes I take at Bellevue College can count towards my high school requirements. This is very important for me.
I am really glad I made the decision to come to LEADPrep.
