Skills study at Map calmed Curran’s school struggles
Kindra Curran is graduating this spring from Spokane Schools’ MAP high school program, and she’s working hard to keep the coronavirus school closure from interfering with her goal for the future.
Also enrolled in the welding program at the Newtech Skills Center, she continued some distance learning but has been missing out on months of valuable hands-on practical skills, as she is also trying to get into an apprenticeship program.
She has overcome many challenges in her life to get to this place, and she is determined to overcome this one, too.
As a self-described late bloomer in reading, she has an IEP (individualized education program) in English, reads books to help improve her vocabulary, but has still struggled in school. As her course load began to be overwhelming, her anger issues increased. She knew she would not be able to graduate or get the positive start in life she wanted without change.
And so, early in her high school years she left her traditional high school and enrolled in the MAP program, which is designed for students likely to fall through the cracks due to mental health issues that interfere with their ability to learn in a traditional classroom.
“I just didn’t believe in myself and would get so depressed and angry and act out,” said Curran, who lives with her mother and three older siblings. “But at MAP, the teachers and counselor have helped me deal with those things. I’ve learned to make better choices for myself and not go down the wrong path.”
They have helped her to not shut down if things don’t go as she wants or expects. “Now I know that if I’ve done my best with something and maybe it didn’t work out the way I wanted, I can just get past it.”
“Kindra really put in the time and the work and understands what it takes to achieve her goals,” says her teacher, Celena Breach. “She’s a survivor kid who remains true to wanting and striving to be and do better.”
When Breach suggested welding to Curran as a possible career option, she was skeptical. “It’s like nothing I ever tried before, but I like to try different things,” she said. “That’s how you grow. So I told myself to go into it with confidence even though I was nervous at first.”
This young woman who also enjoys doing hair and makeup (and painting in her free time) stuck with welding, finding that she liked making things as a welder and sees it “as kind of a cool art thing.” Now she just has to be able to reach the next rung.
“Kindra is truly the most driven for self-improvement student I’ve ever met,” Breach said. “She is putting her all into making that happen for her.”
Curran said her goal in life is simple – to have a stable life and a financially healthy future. Next step: securing that internship to help her get there.