Why This Founding Green Dot Student Came Back to South LA

Daisy Estevez, a social studies teacher at Ánimo Mae Jemison Charter Middle School, became a teacher in hopes of changing the lives and trajectories of students. Estevez was inspired by her teachers at Ánimo Ralph Bunche Charter High School (ARB) who helped change her life when she was a founding student in 2006.

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How Marching Band Changed This Alumnus’s Life

Band

“The Locke band has given me a purpose,” reflected Danny Velasquez, Alain LeRoy Locke College Preparatory Academy alumnus. “It’s made me more appreciative of music, taught me a sense of responsibility, and has really shown me the importance of collaborating with others.”

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Ánimo Compton Reignites Students’ Love for Learning

Compton

“When Brianna Chavez began attending Ánimo Compton Charter School in her seventh grade year she was shocked at how different it was from her previous school. “I was in world history class and I was stuck on an assignment and my teacher just came up to me and said ‘Do you need help?’

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What My First College Tour Taught Me About My Future

College

This year, I had an eye opening experience during my very first college tour as a sophomore at Ánimo City of Champions Charter High School. Together with my classmates and teachers, we visited Stanford University, University of California, Santa Barbara; Cal Poly San Luis Obispo; California State University, Fresno; University of California, Merced; San Jose State University; San Francisco State University, and the University of California, Berkeley.

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How this student Shared a Stage with Michelle Obama

Obama

When Jenissi Gyan, a seventh grader at Excel Public Charter School, joined her local Girl Scout troop four years ago, she never imagined that her participation would lead her to sharing her future dreams in front of former First Lady Michelle Obama and a sold out crowd of 27,000 at the Tacoma Dome.

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