Saturday school saves San Jose’s troubled teens

San Jose’s homicide rate is way up this year. Just over halfway through 2011, the city has already past last year’s total of 20 – with 23 murders so far.

Many of the murders are associated with rising gang violence. That puts the city’s young people at risk in many ways – but those who are in danger of dropping out or getting caught up in gangs have a safety net. It’s called California Community Partners for Youth.

The U.S. attorney general says CCPY creates sure-fire results in gang prevention. The organization provides mentors who help guide students away from violence and drugs and toward higher education. 

CCPY has a special summer school transition program this year for kids who did not pass the eighth grade but are being sent to high school anyway.  

From KALW’s partner station KUSP, Mwende Hahesy reports.

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EZEQUIEL CEJA: Whatever is done here, stays here.

MWENDE HAHESY: That’s Ezequiel Ceja, better known by his nickname Easy. The junior from San Jose’s Apollo High is here today because he says it was the best way to redirect his life.

CEJA: Before I was a gangster. I was in gangs. I was in drugs. 

Now, Ceja is in just about the last place he thought he’d be on a Saturday afternoon. School. He and nearly 200 other kids are taking part in CCPY.

CCPY is headquartered in two schools in San Jose often known for gangs and poor academic performance: Overfelt High and Yerba Buena High School. Both are located in one of the city’s highest crime neighborhoods.

CEJA: When I joined it, it made me see things other way. So what happened, one of my friends got killed while I was in the program.

Stabbed to death 20 steps from his house. He was 16 years old.

CEJA: So it made me realize even more, that if that was the life I was going to take … like I dunno … I don’t wanna go down the same path.

Ceja and his friends are crammed together on picnic benches. They’re eating lunch and soaking up the sunshine between workshops. In a minute, they’ll go inside to play communication building games and then break up into smaller groups to learn about issues like teen sexual health. 

Since 1999, CCPY has set out to create a “safe haven” for at-risk kids both off and on campus. It offers basic after school support like tutoring and study groups. It also teams each student up with an adult mentor who takes them on excursions to places like the mall or Great America.

But mentors do more than that. They check in with the kids every week to see how school is going.  Even more importantly, they check in on how things are at home. Ceja says this kind of support is why he comes. 

CEJA: People aren’t going to be scared of sharing their stories so they can make it better.

After a morning of group activities, everyone heads out to the courtyard for lunch. Overfelt High senior Lupe Guzman is serving food with a smile to the younger kids in the program. She makes sure everyone is fed before scanning the gathering for 27-year-old Amanda Bunnell.

LUPE GUZMAN: She’s really nice. She listens. Oh! That’s my mentor. She listens to me a lot. Good advice. 

Bunnell – a San Jose State grad – met Guzman at CCPY four years ago.

AMANDA BUNNELL: I liked her from the first time I saw her. Just looking at her. I just liked her. I wasn’t even shy. Okay, maybe a little bit. And I think it’s part of the territory.  And I think that’s what CCPY is all about. Building relationships takes time.

Bunnell goes with Guzman to get her nails done and helps with her school work. It’s like a big and little sister relationship, and it’s one Bunnell has taken on with 12 other youth over the last five years. But there have been issues.

BUNNELL: Some of the youth I’m closest to, the day they found out I was their mentor, they said, “I don’t want a white mentor.” And the first time it broke my heart.

CCPY has more than 50 mentors covering broad demographics. There are Silicon Valley executives, college students, and city workers. They’re black, white, Asian, and Latino. But the economic downturn has caused many mentors to drop out of the program – to look for work or leave the San Jose area. And there are challenges for those who stay. Bunnell says sometimes it’s hard to relate with students who come from different backgrounds than her own.

BUNNELL: When one of my young people was talking about college, and I was like, “You know, you can pay your way. I paid my way. Don’t worry about finances – we’ll figure it out.”

But she quickly learned things weren’t so easy. And it gave her new perspective.

BUNNELL: She didn’t just have to pay for herself; she had to pay for family. Like her family didn’t have any money. Make sure family was okay then after that, save for college. I had never even thought of that before.

Amanda Bunnell and Lupe Guzman sit down together, to share a lunch of chow mein noodles and soda. They talk easily about some of the trying times of their lives.

BUNNELL: I remember a convo when you found out you were pregnant. I remember talking to you. You were planning everything for your baby, info for WIC, put together your plan for career. You got everything right in order. 

Including having Bunnell by her side in full mentor mode.

BUNNELL: I was ready to jump in and help. And I realized she doesn’t need my help. I knew Lupe would be just fine. She would thrive.

CCPY offers support for where people are, but also helps them plan for where they’re going. As part of the program, each student must make goals to work towards for the year. Guzman’s goals include communicating better with her mom and graduating high school. Check and check.

Lunch finished, Guzman heads back inside to check on her sleeping baby and take on her next set of classes. Bunnell is right by her side.

Easy Ceja is on his way in as well. This year, he’s met his goals to stay off drugs and alcohol, keep away from gangs, and lift his GPA. 

CEJA: I don’t like things being handed to me. I like to work for it. When you deserve it, it tastes better. Everything seems, like, more significant.

And even though his time as a student is nearly over, his time with CCPY may just be getting started.

CEJA: For me, I want to give back. I want to help another Easy. If I could change their life, why not?

In San Jose, I’m Mwende Hahesy for Crosscurrents

This story was produced at KUSP. KUSP's Solutions in Education [link: http://kusp.org/education] project is supported by the Frieda C. Fox Family Foundation, which supports programs that maximize the potential of children and youth in Los Angeles and Santa Clara counties.

How are teens in your city spending the summer? Have you noticed an increase or a lull in gang activity where you are? Call us at 415-264-7106, or comment on our Facebook page.