1. What drew you to our school and to this role specifically?
“I was drawn to Alpha for its commitment to equity, strong sense of community, and belief in every child’s potential. This role aligns with my passion for creating learning environments where educators are accountable for all students and actively remove barriers to success. I’m excited to bring my expertise in building systems that foster shared ownership and drive meaningful change”.

2. What’s the first thing you noticed about our students, and what excites you most about working with them?
“I immediately noticed their energy—curious, vibrant, and full of potential. They show up fully, ask big questions, and bring joy to learning. I’m excited to help channel that energy into confidence and academic success”.

3. You’re joining us at a time when we’re focused on accelerating growth in our academic outcomes—what’s your approach to supporting both students and teachers in this goal?
“My approach centers on accountability and clarity. This year, I’m focused on systems that ensure every student has access to standards-based curriculum, rigorous instruction, and classrooms where adults take ownership of mastery. For teachers, that means focused coaching, aligned support, and data-driven practice. For students, it means being consistently challenged and supported.”

4. What’s one change or initiative you’re hoping to implement in your first year here?

“I’m focused on strengthening our culture of accountability. This includes launching a clear observation cycle, ensuring teachers consistently implement standards-based curriculum, and supporting real-time instructional adjustments. The goal is a learning environment where adults reflect, act, and take full responsibility for student success.”

5. For parents and families reading this, what do you want them to know about your vision for academic success at our school?

“Academic success means more than test scores—it’s about every child being seen, supported, and challenged. My vision is a school where students receive rigorous, relevant instruction, and where educators are accountable for ensuring all learners thrive. When schools and families partner closely, great things happen for kids.”

Welcome to the Alpha family, Carla! We’re thrilled to have your expertise and passion on our team.

The post Carla Hulce appeared first on Alpha Public Schools.

True to our commitment to accessibility, the entire event was completely free for families, including all activities. Children’s faces lit up as they enjoyed the bounce house, got creative designs painted on their faces, and expressed themselves through coloring activities—all while parents connected with resources and built relationships with other families.

The Heart of the Event: Our Volunteers

What made this event truly special wasn’t just the programming—it was the incredible team of volunteers who brought the vision to life. 

Our heartfelt gratitude goes to Cecilia Mendoza, Alejandro E., Georgina Jimenez Arreola, Vanessa Pineda, Nelly Gutierrez, Jairo Lima, Shirley Calderon, Jorge Arellano, Douglas John Hacker, Estefania Bautista, Emmanuel Aguilar, Leessette A., and all the Alpha families who volunteered their Saturday to make this event possible.

Community Partners Making a Difference

The resource fair wouldn’t have been possible without our incredible community partners who brought essential services directly to our families:

LUNA – Latinos Unidos for a New America and SOMOS Mayfair

Health and wellness organizations including Latinas Contra Cancer, Bay Area Community Health, and Santa Clara Family Health Plan

Community service providers like African American Community Services Agency (AACSA), & PACT.

The post Resource Fair appeared first on Alpha Public Schools.

Every Voice Heard, Every Story Valued

What made this advocacy trip particularly powerful was the commitment to ensuring every parent could fully participate. Alpha staff served not only as supporters but as translators, making sure that language was never a barrier to being heard. Every story, every concern, and every hope for the future was communicated clearly and valued equally.

“It was especially meaningful to walk alongside our parents not just as a supporter, but as a translator, making sure every voice was heard, understood, and valued,” shared by an Alpha team member who accompanied the group on the trip.

A Partnership for Change

This advocacy trip represents the power of partnership between Alpha Public Schools, Parent Voices California, and LUNA – Latinos United for a New America. Together, these organizations are creating pathways for parents to engage in the political process and fight for the systemic changes their families need.

When Alpha families speak, legislators listen. Their stories carry the weight of lived experience and the hope for a better future for their children. This trip to Sacramento proves that our school community extends far beyond classroom walls, we’re raising the next generation of leaders while empowering today’s parents to create the change they want to see.

The post Sacramento Trip appeared first on Alpha Public Schools.

Our goal is that through these leadership experiences, our parents will further grow their confidence and skills to continue advocating for the needs of their families and their communities.

Alpha’s Parent Leader Committee is a group of parents from Alpha Public Schools who united to advocate for a better future for our children. They represent nearly 1800 students and their families from 4 schools in East San Jose, 3 of which are located in District 7. We believe all children have the right to an excellent education and community resources that support them in securing a successful future. The Parent Leader Committee goal is to be a strong voice advocating for the resources and opportunities that improve our schools and better our community.

The post Alpha’s Parent Leader Committee appeared first on Alpha Public Schools.

Last month, during Summer All-Staff Retreat, we recognized a few of our amazing educators who truly embody our leadership principles.

Here is a video of one of our teachers, Jenafer Thompson, being recognized for her contribution to Alpha and our students.

We are so lucky to have Jenafer at Alpha, and we love the way she BRINGS THE LIGHT to all that she does!

The post Alpha Invests In Our Teachers! appeared first on Alpha Public Schools.

We congratulate Nathally on this well-deserved acknowledgement of her accomplishments and contributions to our school and community! We are so excited to see what she accomplishes at UC San Diego and beyond!

Below you will find excerpts from Nathally’s scholarship that give insight on her excellence in Civic Leadership, Entrepreneurship, and Building Community.

On Civic Leadership

“Over the past four years of High School, I have volunteered over 120 hours at the local Food Bank because I wanted to be an essential change in my community. Though I did not get paid for this job, it taught me values such as being grateful for all I have, and helping those in need. Everyone deserves to be supported, and being a part of helping others is empowering.”

On Entrepreneurship

“I decided to create a website called PetStyle which included items we sell, prices, and contact information. Though it was a small website, I saw how useful it was in connecting with clients and giving them what they need. I’m about to start college in the fall and I want to pursue a career in Computer Engineering to one-day work as a software engineer so I can obtain the knowledge that is needed for the things that one day are going to take over how we go about our everyday life. I know I have a long way to go, but the little experiences I have gained over the years have pushed me to work harder for the things I want and to keep working towards my goals.”

On Building Community

“At my local community church, I conduct activities with various groups of teenagers to help build relationships and strengthen faith and community pride. I learn to connect with people you have never seen before and share a common interest which is something that has helped me learn to get out of my comfort zone and try new things even if they seem uncomfortable. I like being involved in this type of group because you are always surrounded by new people who have different ideas and views which is something that can help in the future when you start a new job. Overall, this experience has taught me to accept people no matter who they are, what they do, what they like, or what they look like. Soon, I am going to be starting college at UC San Diego and this experience at my community church has taught me the importance of stepping out of the comfort zone we create for ourselves and learning to enjoy life with the people around you.”

Congratulations Nathally on being the 2022 recipient of the Glover Scholarship!

The post Nathally Montiel is Alpha’s 2022 Glover Scholarship Winner! appeared first on Alpha Public Schools.

At our Annual All Staff Retreat, Alpha hosted a panel with two of our stellar alumni, who are shining examples of Alpha’s North Star Goal, Quoc Huynh and Elizabeth Marquez Bernardino! Quoc and Elizabeth are a part of the first graduating class of Alpha: Cindy Avita High School! Both have both continued to thrive since their time at Alpha, taking advantage of opportunities on and off campus, and even giving back to the Alpha community through serving as AVID Tutors at Alpha: Cindy.

Our Alpha community is so excited to see what each of these brilliant students will do after they graduate this spring! Quoc will be graduating from University of California Berkeley with a BA in Data Science with a concentration in Economics. Elizabeth will be graduating from San Jose State University with a BA in Sociology with a concentration in Community Change, and a Child & Adolescent Development and Chicano/a Studies double minor. We wish them the best of luck on their journeys!

The post Alumni Corner appeared first on Alpha Public Schools.

Give back to the community by helping your neighbors in need. Sign up to volunteer!
The Alpha Parent Center also serves as a coordinating organization for Second Harvest Food Bank to distribute food to low-income families.

The post Volunteer Opportunity September 10th, 2022 appeared first on Alpha Public Schools.

Can you tell us a little bit about yourself and your position at Alpha Public Schools?

My name is Jorge Arelleno and I am the Director of Advocacy and Community Engagement for Alpha Public Schools. I am in my fourth year in the organization. Prior to this role, I was the principal of Alpha Cindy Avitia High School. I have been in education over 20 years serving in a variety of roles such as instructional aid, teacher, counselor, dean of students and assistant principal. 

Can you share some of the roles and responsibilities that you have in your current role?

In my current role, I am spending a lot of time working with parents and educating them about their rights as it relates to charter schools and school choice. I am also working a lot with parents to develop their leadership skills so they can advocate for themselves. We want them to learn how to organize themselves so they can have a voice. I’m also thinking a lot about how we can best support and educate our parents so that they can best support their scholars at our schools. We want parents to be visible, take ownership over different projects in schools, and teach our teachers about various things that can improve their teaching, such as cultural background, cultural knowledge, and specific dynamics that exist within their communities. I will also be working on branding for Alpha and making sure that we are promoting our story in the community and working with different community leaders to strengthen our community stature.  Part of that work includes sharing all the amazing things that are happening with our scholars and families with our authorizing boards. Lastly, I will also be establishing partnerships with organizations doing work that aligns with our vision. For example, this month we launched a partnership with Dell to start a program that will provide mentoring and exposure to careers in tech to 18 of our juniors. Alpha’s goal is to establish partnerships with other organizations that can provide similar opportunities for our scholars to build their knowledge and confidence to pursue careers that require a college education. 

I know you grew up and went to school in east San Jose. What was that experience like for you?

I grew up right here in this community. The office for Alpha is actually located down the street from where I grew up, and most of our schools are within a couple miles from that central location. I grew up in this neighborhood and attended local schools. At the time, the schools in this area were considered the worst schools in San Jose, not only in terms of data but also because of all the gang activity in the area. In terms of how the schools were serving the Latino community–at the time I was attending those schools, they were graduating about 15% of the Latino low-income students with A-G requirements completed. We didn’t perceive that there was a lot of interest from the schools in who we were as a community. Consequently, by 7th grade I started acting out in school and was kicked out to continuation schools my sophomore year. Luckily, just before I graduated, they enrolled me at San Jose City College where I experienced success for the first time in years. After 3 years, I transferred to Santa Clara University and became an educator myself. One of the things I vividly remember from my Chicano Studies class is learning about systemic racism and all the different systems that are in place and influence the outcomes of different groups within communities. I was exposed to the research that showed the impact of race and poverty on Latino students like myself and I realized how much my friends and I were simply falling into the patterns that exist in our society. As I studied this and peeled back the onion, I realized that I was a product of all these different layers that I didn’t understand growing up. Growing up you think, “oh, I’m just making these choices,” but you don’t realize that all these choices are predicated on what was around you and what was provided for you. When I learned all that, I knew that I needed to go back to my community and make sure that students learned about those systems so they too could feel like they actually had choices. I wanted to make sure that students in my community weren’t experiencing oppression or being cast aside, but rather that they were being embraced and encouraged to be successful. That’s what I have dedicated my life to. After graduating college I chose to buy a house not far from where I grew up precisely for the same reason. I didn’t want to be a college graduate that just leaves the hood; I wanted to stick around and be part of the change that we want to see. That’s why I am super excited to be working at Alpha, because they are engaged in the very same work. Parents from my community organized and said, “we want a layer of support for our students to help them go to college.” I am grateful to be a part of a system that is supporting our scholars so they attend and succeed in college. 

As you reflect on your time as a student, were there particular educators in your life that stood out to you? What makes these people stand out?

I can think of very few in my K-12. In middle school, I had Mr. Robledo for sixth grade. He was just a cool guy; he was one of the few Latino teachers in the school and that’s probably why I gravitated toward him. I was an English learner and his class was memorable because he played songs on the guitar to help us learn. Another teacher was Ms. Caravaca in juvenile hall. She was just down to earth and really understood the students in her classes. She would reward us by letting us pick songs we wanted and she would go out of her way to record those songs for us in cassettes and later CD’s (equivalent of downloading for you young people) so we could listen to our favorite songs. She was always so joyful and had a great sense of humor.  She made teaching seem so fun during one of my extended stays in juvenile hall, I decided I wanted to become a teacher just like her. Years later, shortly before she retired, I got to be an instructional aide in her classroom, and to this day, working alongside her at juvenile hall has been one of the most rewarding experiences I have ever had in my life. In different ways, both of these teachers made me think that someone like me could attend college and become a teacher and that is a constant reminder to me of the tremendous impact we educators can have on students. I will be forever grateful to God for placing them in my path because in many ways I am who I am thanks to their influence. 

You have been able to work in different capacities in education–teacher, school leader, network staff. What has kept you engaged in the work, and what have been some of your biggest challenges in the transition of roles?

Once I got the hang of teaching, my least stressful job in education has been teaching. Once I understood lesson planning and classroom management, teaching became predictable and I could do my thing. I was fortunate that I was teaching one subject so each year I took my lessons, improved them from the year before and I was able to focus on my delivery instead of having to create everything from scratch. Transitioning into administration, there is a lot of uncertainty. You don’t know what might come your way; there is a lot less control. You have a say on so many areas of the school you are often bombarded with responsibilities and requests and that can easily become overwhelming. A lot of leadership is relational, so it’s hard to have bad days without your staff feeling it; school leadership takes a lot of emotional energy and a lot of focus. What has kept me engaged is my life mission. Now that I see all the layers and systems that work against our communities, I can’t go back. I know too much about how the system keeps our students down, keeps poor students down, keeps poor students of color down. Knowing what I know, it is difficult for me to find meaning or enjoyment other than in working to support students and families. In terms of doing something meaningful that is making a change, I can’t think of any better than supporting our students, especially those who have previously not engaged in school. There are a number of students I have worked with that had no intention of going to college, and now I get to see them in college pursuing their dreams. When you see that transformation, and what it means for their families, it’s amazing to be a part of that. Because of the transformative power of education, I envision continuing in this field for the rest of my career. 

Why is it important for schools to forge strong relationships with parents and local communities?

When you have parents that are involved and engaged, there is a lot of opportunity for cross learning. A lot of times we think of educators as teachers, but our parents also know their students, they know their community, so there is a lot of opportunity for collaboration so that our parents can help our teachers become better teachers. Also, it’s empowering for students to see their parents involved with their teachers. I remember when I was in ninth grade and we had a meeting at school, my mom never made the meeting because she got lost and couldn’t ask anyone for directions because she didn’t speak English. I felt terrible that she took two buses to get there and show me some support and at the end, she couldn’t even access the school. That experience was very disempowering to her and to me, and not surprisingly, it was the last time I informed her of any meetings I had with staff at school. At Alpha, we believe it’s important for parents to be provided opportunities to be part of our system from a position of power. We have School Site Councils, we have Cafecitos, we have workshops for parents, and one of the things we hear repeatedly from parents is how new it is for them to be able to speak in meetings, to have a voice. Oftentimes, they don’t see themselves in positions of power and it is important for us to help them see that they do have power and that they can use it to improve their circumstances. It’s also very important for students to see their parents in that light because it builds their confidence and helps them aspire for greater roles in society. 

Are there any last words you’d like to share?

I just want to thank everyone who is engaged in this challenging work of providing an excellent education to students in our community. Early in my career I felt like I was fighting this good fight alone and I always desired to have a team of people working towards the same goals. I feel like I have found that team at Alpha and I am very grateful and have a lot of respect for everyone at Alpha and beyond who give so much of themselves to ensure educational equity for students in under-resourced communities, especially now with all the challenges due to the pandemic. 

The post From the Community, For the Community: Catching up with Jorge Arellano, Director of Advocacy and Community Engagement appeared first on Alpha Public Schools.

Can you tell us a little bit about yourself and your position at Alpha Public Schools?

With the leadership and support of families, I founded Alpha in 2012. I started out as Founding Principal and I’ve always had a role of oversight over the entire organization. Now as Alpha’s CEO I do a lot of external work with funders and elected officials, and I manage the senior leadership team. 

Can you share with us the history of how and why you got involved in creating Alpha Public Schools?

I started in education about 15 years ago as a teacher and leader in a small charter school network in Oakland, California. I started thinking about what I wanted to do next in my career – how I could have a bigger impact on students and families from traditionally underserved communities – and there was a little piece of me kicking around the idea of starting my own school. Around that time a group of parents, mostly moms who had been organized by PACT and who had their kids in Rocketship, weren’t seeing the middle school options they wanted for their kids. They went to Preston Smith, Rocketship’s Co-founder, and said that they were really happy with Rocketship because their kids were getting the education they deserved and they wanted Rocketship to create a middle school. Preston shared with them that Rocketship was focused on elementary school, but reminded them that Rocketship parents were organized and powerful. He encouraged them to use that power and their collective voice to find folks who would start excellent middle schools for their kids. 

So that’s what these parents did. They visited our schools in Oakland and at the end of the tour they closed my office door and said that they liked what they saw and wanted more schools like these for their children in East San José. They wanted me to commit to starting a school. I was so impressed by these parents and their commitment to their children and to their community. I promised to build a school that would keep their kids safe and prepare them for college. They promised to help with whatever it would take to get the doors open. We started on the journey together – continuing to organize founding families, building political relationships, and designing a program that was going to meet the needs of students and families. Centered in Alum Rock, with our founding board chair, Cindy Avitia, we really got to work. I remember one of our early conversations with Cindy and she said “I don’t know who Harry Slonacker is. I don’t know who William C. Overfelt is. We need to find some folks in our community that our kids can look up to and we need to name our school after that person.” She introduced us to Blanca Alvarado, who became the namesake of the first school we opened at the end of the summer of 2012 with 160 kids in 6th and 7th grade. It was incredibly difficult work, but in partnership with parents and with the community, we made it happen.

You mentioned previously considering opening a school, but not acting on that. What made this feel like the right thing to do at this time?

It was our families. They were so deeply committed and there was such a sense of urgency with them. There was an urgency around safety and there was also an urgency around college readiness. We heard from parent after parent in the founding class that their dream for their kids was to get a college education, and that they needed schools that were going to help prepare their children for that. To hear the testimony of families and to see them meet with elected officials is something that takes a lot of courage. Especially since so many of our families are undocumented, the idea of engaging with people who are in a position of power is not something that comes naturally and it can be a scary thing. They are brave, and they were being really brave and courageous for their children and for their families’ futures. 

When our first school was approved, it was a very emotional night. It was a lot of laughter and it was a lot of tears, hundreds of parents sitting in the boardroom behind me. I remember going back to my car sitting there by myself and I really felt the weight of the promise we had made to these families to deliver on the dream of college. To deliver on the vision of education equity and opportunity that wasn’t sufficiently present in the community before. I felt scared, honestly, that we weren’t going to be successful in keeping those big promises – that we were going to let our families down. There have been lots of moments when we haven’t lived up to my expectations, when we haven’t lived up to our families expectations. In those moments when we haven’t been as good as we’ve wanted to be, the weight of that promise is really what has driven me. It’s a constant reminder of our commitment and the trust our families place in us every day. 

As you reflect on some of the biggest challenges that Alpha faced during its early years, what comes to mind?

When we started, there was a big push for blended learning and a lot of our philanthropic support was geared towards being super innovative. I describe that as trying to do handstands in a canoe. Starting a new school organization is really difficult and you don’t have all the systems and structures that create a stable organization; you’re building those, and you’re building those as fast as you can, but there is a level of instability and change that is happening as you learn and improve and grow. We were trying to do things that other schools weren’t doing, and we were taking on additional challenges and risks, because we genuinely believed that the education system in America can and should be better. We believe that there is a factory model of education that was designed for a different time and a different place and there is more that we can do, and our kids deserve a more personalized form of education. Doing that in a founding school with a lot of newer-to-education teachers without the systems and structures was difficult. In those times, we really lived and succeeded because we started with a strong culture and strong support system from our families. By brute force and with great and committed people, we were able to succeed. It would be silly not to talk about this year; this has been a tremendously difficult time with so much uncertainty and so much that is out of our control. We get the vote on some stuff, but the virus gets the biggest vote. In both of these instances–when we started and this current year–it is through these challenges that we have had some of our most important growth and learnings. This pandemic has brought recognition that we can keep our promise to our students and our families, while also making sure that we are taking care of ourselves and taking care of one another. I suspect that this learning is something that we will carry forth forever and will make us a better place to work and a better place to lead and to teach. It’s interesting to think that when we face these enormous obstacles, we have been able to not only overcome them, but to grow and learn more than we would have if those obstacles didn’t exist in the first place. 

In what ways have the families and community members in east San Jose supported the work of Alpha?

We’ve seen the continued involvement and support of the parent community that either is or has been a part of Alpha. Everything from leaning in to support our teachers and principals,to  being members of Alpha’s governing board. One-third of that board, where the highest level of organizational decision making takes place, is made up of Alpha parents representing all four of our schools. We have gotten a ton of community support outside of Alpha, as well. Organizations like PACT, Innovate Public Schools, Teach For America, and others have really helped strengthen the ecosystem and allow for us to be a better organization than we would have been otherwise. Also, individual leaders like Blanca Alvarado, Cindy Avitia, our board members have been willing to lean in to provide support. In a time when the politics of charter schools are complicated, we have enjoyed the support of our Congresswoman Zoe Lofgren, our Mayor Sam Licardo, and a range of City Council members–all people who have tremendous power and influence and have lent that power and influence to an organization that is trying to serve the kids and families that they represent. There have been a tremendous amount of people outside the organization who have consistently gone to bat for us so we can continue to serve our kids and families with as much focus as we can muster. 

Why is school choice so important in San Jose?

It has always been a question of equity. You shouldn’t be able to predict the outcomes that a student will have based on their demographics or their zip code. In the current public educational ecosystem, the demographics predict the outcomes and that is unfair and unreasonable, particularly in a developed country with tremendous resources, and especially in resource-rich Santa Clara County. And yet, depending on where you live in Santa Clara County, you have some of the finest schools in the country or some of the least-resourced and least effective schools. Every single one of our parents wants what’s best for their kids. To the extent that they could try to influence the district that they lived in for better schools, our families tried everything they could. PACT didn’t start by trying to start charter schools; they started by trying to reform local districts and they didn’t get any traction, and that’s when they went into the work of trying to get charter schools into the communities. For folks that have exhausted all of their options and don’t have the resources to move to a neighborhood with higher quality public schools, charter schools are their only choice, their last choice. We heard from families that the options that they had weren’t just failing their kids, they had been failing their families for generations. School choice is a way of changing the trajectory not just of individuals, but of entire families and entire communities. I believe that an excellent public education and a great school for every kid is a fundamental right; it is a basic human right. We are not delivering on that for everybody in this country, and so choice matters for families that don’t have great school options. 

What are some of your proudest moments at Alpha?

At the start, there were lots of days where I wasn’t sure if we would be approved or get a facility, or if we would be able to fill our seats on the first day of school. When I look back at the early days, it was such a challenging time but it was also such a joyful experience and I am incredibly proud of all the work that our community did together to get the first school launched. The second moment I would go is the graduation of our founding class. As it was oftentimes a struggle for us to learn and grow and improve, they were along for that ride from sixth grade to twelfth grade. When I think about the promise we made to families, that is the day that we delivered on that promise, knowing that in our founding class we had somebody accepted to every single one of hte UCs. Knowing that we were a part of that journey for our families and that we played a role in a life that, for many of them, means sending the first one in their family to college–it was a really fun day and a really great place to be. The last thing I would say is that I feel incredibly proud right now. I feel proud of  the way that our community has come together in a very difficult moment and the way that they have prioritized and focused on the best interests of our students and families. I’m proud of all the extra work that everyone has put in to innovate in a very rapid cycle so that we could deliver high quality education at scale from a distance. Also, I have been reflecting on my transition. There have been times over the life of Alpha where I would have been nervous leaving and I would have been nervous about what would happen. I helped to bring this thing into the world and I want it to be successful when I leave and at times we were struggling as an organization. Right now, despite the challenges of politics and pandemic, this team is incredibly strong and Shara is an excellent leader who is going to be a tremendous successor. I feel both a sense of pride and also a sense of comfort; I am comfortable leaving because I know the organization is in incredible hands and will only be better and more successful in the years ahead.

What do you envision or hope for the future of Alpha Public Schools?

There are so many wonderful things at Alpha – so much excellence! Of course, I want to see even more of our scholars going to four year colleges that will support them through graduation.  I want to  continue to see increases in our staff retention and find more people that will continue to join the team and feel like they can make a home for themselves at Alpha. In an ideal world, I would love for us to be doing what we do with more scholars. I know that growth is hard but if we really believe that the opportunities and experiences that we are providing to our kids and families are different and better than they would get elsewhere, then I think we have a moral imperative to extend the opportunities to more kids and families. As long as there are people that don’t have good options, if we feel we can provide one, then I think we need to do that. I am really proud of the focus on inclusive and equitable decision making and really thinking about who we have in the room when important decisions are made and how we consult with our team and communities; I am confident that will continue. I want Alpha to continue to shine and develop on that promise that we made to our families with a sense of joy, determination, and community. If Alpha continues to do that, I am going to look from afar with a big smile on my face. 

Are there any words of wisdom you would like to leave for the staff at Alpha?

Continue to take care of yourselves and one another. This is incredibly difficult work that we are all doing and it is not going to get easier. What makes it sustainable is that we’re doing it alongside great people who we love and trust, so it is so important to continue to create a healthy and thriving community and culture. The other thing I would say, now that I think about where my own kids will be as they head into kindergarten and pre-school in the next couple of years, is that our families put an incredible degree of trust in us. They are handing over to us on a daily basis the  most important parts of their lives and they are counting on us to do right by them. Certainly, we need to educate and prepare and support, but we also need to make our students feel known and loved and respected. We need to always build and strengthen relationships and deepen connections with our families. Doing this work in partnership with our families has always been a part of Alpha and I think has only grown in importance as we continue to do this work.

The post How It Started, How It’s Going: Reflections on Alpha with Founder and Outgoing CEO John Glover appeared first on Alpha Public Schools.