Open Meadow graduate and now board member, Josh Monda wrote a guest column on OregonLive on August 19. Josh was responding to a recent article that was highly critical of Portland’s alternative school network. Click here, or keep reading below.

Alternative schools: Success outside the cookie cutter

Published: Thursday, August 19, 2010, 6:29 PM

Guest Columnist

By Josh Monda

In its July 25 story, “Dropouts in Portland Public Schools,” The Oregonian displays a remarkable disconnect with secondary education in the 21st Century. I strongly agree with the premise that programs need accountability and high standards, but I seriously question the newspaper’s understanding of the task at hand when reporter Betsy Hammond criticizes the ability of alternative schools to “get the job done”.

As a 1999 graduate of Open Meadow High School, a North Portland alternative school, I know that holding up high school graduation as an end completely misses the point. At a time when the unemployment rate for youth ages 16-24 is at an all-time historical high—nationally and globally—success in the 21st Century economy clearly requires advanced training and skills far beyond the diploma. A diploma does not get a real job.

As a student at Open Meadow, I took college classes and eventually earned my way into Oregon State University. But, at Open Meadow I learned something far more important than what it takes to graduate high school and go to college: I learned what it takes to succeed in life. I learned that hard work pays off and doesn’t go unnoticed. I learned that I am capable and responsible for my own achievement. I learned that goals matter.

I attribute my learning at Open Meadow as a turning point that today finds me owning my own business in the Portland metro area. Last year, in the midst of the economic downturn, my business grew from 3 to 12 employees. I’m giving back to my community, not just by creating jobs at a time when job growth is stalled, I’m also volunteering my time to make sure that the younger generation, particularly those who struggled like me, continues to have opportunities to achieve and transform.

As a board member for Open Meadow, I am very proud of the work that our students and staff do. Far from the misguided characterization Hammond offers in her article about alternative schools, claiming that they are “Portland’s biggest failures”, 20 of the 21 students in Open Meadow’s 2010 graduating class passed college classes as part of their high school experience. Enrolling in, and passing, college classes in high school is anything but low expectations.

How does Open Meadow achieve this success? Passion helps: the staff take the time to get to know students and tailor a curriculum that matches essential skills with individual student needs. While I concur heartily with Hammond’s concerns over the damage done by low expectations or no accountability, I am disturbed by her glaring disconnect that equates a “youth embracing vibe” in Portland’s alternative schools with low expectations. The economic vitality of our region depends on educational programs having a “youth embracing vibe” that meet kids where they are.

I would never have attended high school had Open Meadow not taken me and then pushed me to achieve. No excuses. Larger schools didn’t see me, didn’t know me, didn’t reach me. Their cookie cutter approach pushed me out of school where I slipped into a life of drugs and crime at age 14. Open Meadow’s individualized approach brought me back, held me accountable and pushed me toward advanced skills and a career. That is the goal for education in the 21st Century.

Joshua Monda is co-founder of GrindStone Collection Strategies, Inc.