Federal Way students complete Washington Youth Academy | Photos

Published 11:22 am Monday, January 4, 2016

Ten teens from Federal Way were among the record 152 cadets who graduated from the Washington Youth Academy on Dec. 19 — more cadets than any previous class in the history of the Academy, established in Bremerton in 2009.

Cadets from each corner of the state attended the free residential school, geared at teaching teens discipline and helping them recover credits so they can go back to high school and earn a diploma or seek an alternative path to finish their high school education, such as a GED or by joining Running Start.

Cadets from Federal Way were Courtney Bolden, Paulina Gomez Chavez, Teven Thomas, Rachel Zuniga, Mateo Wegzyn, all of Decatur High School; Domingo Garcia Salazar, John Muralt, Marcos Valdovinos, Emily Solis-Capuchino, all of Thomas Jefferson High School and Fabien King of Todd Beamer High School.

Wegzyn received special honors during his stay at the Washington Youth Academy, winning both a local and district speech writing contest. He’ll move on to state.

There were actually more cadets that went through the commencement ceremonies than actual beds in the bunkers with 50 beds in each of the three platoons, prompting cots to be setup in the hallway for the entire five-and-a-half-month cycle.

Youth Academy Director Larry Pierce credited the high retention rate to a robust application and interview process helping find strong candidates for the program, as well as a healthy, two-week acclimation period, where candidates can get more of a feel for the strict discipline needed for the voluntary program and decides it’s not for them.

“This is our 14th class and our largest one to date,” Pierce said, adding that the Washington Youth Academy has achieved “one of the top graduating rates in the nation.”

“The cadets became teammates and they changed together and prevailed together and they’re here today and as proof of that, they’ll walk across the stage and commence from the youth academy back to their home lives.”

The highest number of credits possible for the 22-week session is eight credits. Comparatively, a full year of high school is six credits.

Before students entered the academy, the test of Adult Basic Education put the students’ grade level at 6.7 – not quite 7th Grade. Near the end, a new test showed the average grade level for students at 9.2 for a gain of 2.5 grade in just 22 weeks. Only seven cadets began the program with enough credits to be classified as seniors but 102 completed the program with senior classification.

Students had an average GPA for academy courses of 3.4, which is B+.

All of the cadets also received community emergency response tTraining, which will help them and their communities help during disasters. Cadets also donated 7,992 hours of community service to the local area.

The Washington Youth Academy is a division of the National Guard Youth ChalleNGe Program. Established under authority of both federal and state law, the academy is a state-run residential and post-residential intervention program for youth who have dropped out of high school or are at risk of dropping out.

The next class starts on Jan. 16. Applications are still being accepted for female candidates. Applications for male candidates will likely be wait-listed until the cycle after that starts in July. Learn more about the program at mil.wa.gov/youth-academy.

Cadet Teven Thomas of Decatur High School sits in the barracks at the Washington Youth Academy in Bremerton. Courtesy of Washington Youth Academy

Cadet Fabien King of Todd Beamer High School visits last month with former Congressman Norm Dicks during a tour at the Washington Youth Academy in Bremerton. Courtesy of Washington Youth Academy