Irene Almanza didn't always get to prioritize her education.
As a teenager, she attended multiple high schools in Stockton, including Franklin High School and Venture Academy Family of Schools.
After experiencing a conflict with a classmate at Franklin High, Almanza was transferred to Venture Academy's independent study program. She didn't feel like she received adequate academic support there, she said.
"I was basically going and trying to figure out things for myself, which I didn't understand because I was only 17," Almanza, who is now 30, said.
Both of her parents spent most of their time at work, which meant she didn't get much help at home either.
"There was nobody there to support me with my homework or to ask how I was doing at school. There wasn't really much income when I was going to school. There were days when I went throughout the whole school day without eating," Almanza said. "Maybe my parents forgot or they were too busy working. It was hard for me to not only eat, but to focus in school."
At the age of 17, Almanza made the decision to drop out of high school to help her family financially.
"In the midst of being a senior and working, I lost interest in school because I couldn't find myself. I was lost. I didn't think anybody cared about my education," she said.
Almanza would spend the next several years working to provide for her family, but eventually realized she needed her high school diploma to advance in her career.
"I knew that I wanted to get my diploma. It was always in the back of my head, but I didn't have any direction or know where to go," Almanza said. "One day, my mom was on a city bus and she overheard a conversation about (Come Back Kids). She told me about it and that's where it all started."
Breaking down barriers to learning
Come Back Kids is a free online educational program offered through San Joaquin County Office of Education. Its goal is to help anyone 18 years and older earn their high school diploma. Students who are enrolled in the program have the option to attend workshops and complete their schoolwork independently.
Come Back Kids launched in the 2017-2018 school year and was modeled off of a similar program in Riverside. Originally, there were five teachers in the program, according to SJCOE administrator Doug McCreath. Now, there are 12 teachers and multiple staff members, including career developers, counselors, and outreach specialists to help set students up for success.
Come Back Kids offers seven locations in San Joaquin County, including in Stockton, Lathrop, Lodi, and Tracy.
"When I first started, we were serving close to 200 students. Next year, we'll serve over 900 students," McCreath said. "There's a large demand for our program."
He pointed to statistics released by San Joaquin County Public Health Services in 2022, which show 20.72% of people in San Joaquin County do not have a high school diploma.
McCreath said this is because some students face barriers to learning, such as food insecurity, housing insecurity, and relationship and family issues.
At Come Back Kids, resources are allocated and staff are put into place to help mitigate those problems.
"We have a food bank now because we actually have a partnership, so we hand out bags of food because we come across a lot of need," McCreath said. "The outreach specialists were positions we added because we found out that with our adults, there's a lot of barriers and obstacles, and then they would just disappear on us. We're doing wellness checks and we're finding out there's issues that happen, especially with our female students, abuse issues and things like that. That's why we have mental health clinicians."
Students are required to complete 135 credits in order to graduate from the program. They must also complete 75 hours of community service or job shadowing as part of a career exploration component. If students already have a job, they may satisfy the requirement with the hours they worked.
"What we thought four years ago is that it's about the diploma. It's not about the diploma. The piece of paper is important, but really, it's the skill set behind that," McCreath said.
That's where the career developers come in to equip students with the necessary skills to get a job.
"We know that we're going to help enroll you in Delta College or we're going to walk you to the recruiting office for the military, or we're going to take you to WorkNet and help you fill out the application," McCreath said. "We're not happy unless we know that plans are in place because most of our students are 30 years old and up."
'It's given me so much more'
After five years in Come Back Kids, Almanza is getting ready to turn her tassel during a commencement ceremony at Delta College on Wednesday.
An estimated 170 students are expected to graduate this spring, according to McCreath.
One of those students is Taren Buorrero-Zolliecoffer, 36, a certified nursing assistant and mother. She has aspirations to obtain her associate of science in law enforcement at Delta College, and eventually transfer to a four-year university to obtain her bachelor of science in nursing.
Buorrero-Zolliecoffe did not need to be enrolled in the program for long since she was only missing five credits. She said her experience wasn't only beneficial because she was able to obtain her high school diploma, but also due to the support system she gained.
"It's given me so much more," Buorrero-Zolliecoffe said.
Record reporter Hannah Workman covers news in Stockton and San Joaquin County. She can be reached at hworkman@recordnet.com or on Twitter @byhannahworkman. Support local news, subscribe to The Stockton Record at https://www.recordnet.com/subscribenow .
This article originally appeared on The Record: School of second chances: SJCOE's Come Back Kids helps 2 Stockton women earn high school diplomas
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