I went to Da Vinci RISE High School
from the years of 2019 to 2023.
And when I tell you guys
it was the best thing
that probably has ever happened to me,
from the guidance that I received from all of staff,
in particular Naomi Lara,
she definitely navigated me.
It was a big impact
to who the person I am today.
After high school, I'm not going to lie,
it was hard.
I navigated some different challenges
when it came to homelessness.
I was even my last senior year,
I was homeless in high school,
but you know it's okay
because I made it through.
And in that time of trying to navigate life,
I always was able to go back to the staff at RISE
and reach out and tell them
like what was going on with me.
But on a positive note,
the guidance that I got from RISE
and the leadership there
made me create my own business.
I now own a business
called Golden Smilez Women's Institute
that specializes in navigating impacted youth
in the right direction.
And I give them that guidance
just like RISE gave me that guidance.
It was hard because I didn't know
what I wanted to do with life.
I honestly didn't even know
if I wanted to go to college after RISE
because I was on the RISE pathway,
but I did end up going to college
studying early childhood development and psychology
and a minor in social work,
all thanks to RISE.