By Khalida Sarwari
Before enrolling at the San Jose Conservation Corps and Charter School this year, life for one teen consisted of meandering through streets as a gangster and jumping from one house to another.
Then one day in January, everything turned around for 19-year-old San Jose resident Jannell Suther. As she was driving down Senter Road, she saw a billboard advertising the school and decided to call and find out what programs it offered.
She started in February and finished in August. After officially graduating in January, Suther plans to begin an internship at San Jose State University and attend Evergreen Valley College for her associate degree.
Suther is one of hundreds of at-risk youth to whom the school offers an opportunity to attain a high school diploma, career training and job placement.
The students are former gang members, suffer from substance abuse problems, or, as in Suther’s case, are high school dropouts.
Tonight, the school is celebrating the opening of a new $8.3 million, 38,000-square-foot facility on Berger Drive — one that the students themselves helped construct, Suther said.
Construction of the building took five years, with funding provided by grants as well as private and corporate donations.
Previously, students were housed in a building next door that is now undergoing renovation. That building will contain additional classrooms and a cafeteria. The school also has a smaller facility on Senter Road.
Suther said she got involved with gangs during her freshman year at Andrew Hill High School, which was kicked out of, and subsequently transferred to Santa Teresa High School. There, she was placed in an independent studies program.
She said she failed the program and was advised to go to a continuation school, but she took to the streets instead.
“One day I had an epiphany and decided I didn’t want to be this person for the rest of my life. I wanted to get a diploma and a job,” Suther said.
She said her goal is to transfer to the University of San Francisco and eventually become a juvenile hall counselor for at-risk youth.
The San Jose Conservation Corps and Charter School has been key to realizing her goals, she said.
“Other high schools discourage you from getting help, they kick you out,” Suther said. “Here, you will be punished… but they encourage you to get help, they don’t just shut the door on you.”
Suther said she believes there should be more schools like the San Jose Conservation Corps in the city.
“Everything just goes really smoothly here,” she said. “I’ve been at the Corps for awhile, and I haven’t seen a single fight break out. The environment here is encouraging.”
Classes at the new facility begin Monday and encompass subjects offered in a typical high school, such as math, history and English.
The facility is two stories, complete with classrooms, an education center, daycare center, community room, computer lab, library, and warehouse for recycling and construction programs.
Today’s celebration was scheduled to take place from 5 p.m. to 9 p.m. and include a ribbon-cutting ceremony, live music, and student-led tours.
Guest speakers include state Sen. Ellen Corbett, D-San Jose, Assemblyman Paul Fong, D-San Jose, members of the San Jose City Council, former Mayor Susan Hammer, and East Side Union High School District Superintendent Dan Moser.
The school is located at 1560 Berger Drive.