The Riverside Press-Enterprise
Next step: Here's where some of the program's graduates are headed
Sunburst Youth Academy cadets have graduated. What are their next destinations?
• Victor Rodriguez enlisted in the Army on a four-year contract to serve in the infantry, Sunburst Youth Academy recruiter and Air Force Staff Sgt. Crystal Housman said. Rodriguez leaves for basic training in February.
• Samantha Capistran, who was awarded the Principal’s Honor Roll certificate for perfect grades and behavior, started at a new school in January as a junior at Ocean View High in Huntington Beach.
• Cedric Ige is working on getting his driver’s license and plans to take the high school equivalency test when he turns 18 in March. His goal is to get a job as a lineman for the L.A. Department of Water and Power, Housman said.
• Jazmin Rangel finished Sunburst with extra credits. She also started attending a new school as a junior at Yorba Linda High School a week before winter break. She said the academy “helped me respect my parents more than I did before and what they do for me.” The experience, she said, helped her become more independent.
She has seen a change in her parents, too. “They are not as harsh now and they talk to me about how I feel,” she said.
Stephanie and Junior Rangel said life at home with their “strong-willed child” is a lot better than before, but the relationship is still a work in progress. The Padres Unidos classes helped them see that change has to come from both sides. Now, they said, they have more confidence and better ways to deal with the “bumps in the road.”
“We learned that instead of being reactive we need to communicate. When we let our emotions take over, it becomes a power struggle,” Stephanie Rangel said.
On Jan. 14. Sunburst started its 33rd session with a fresh set of 197 candidates.