LEAD program alumni say mentoring, project-based and self-paced learning eased college transition

Three alumni of the LEAD program told meeting attendees during a public-comment period that mentorship, project-based learning and self-paced instruction at LEAD helped prepare them for college and early careers.

Sydney Hamilton, a LEAD program alumnus, said she was part of the program's inaugural class and credited the teachers and individualized attention with improving her academic performance. "I was a part of the inaugural class of LEED. I started in 2017 and graduated as a senior in 2021," Hamilton said. She later told the meeting, "It really improved my grades immediately, and I was able to see a difference."

Albert Ishigara, another alumnus, described how LEAD fostered a work ethic he continues to rely on in college. "LEED really helped me create a good work work ethic for just all of, like, the workload that I have in college," Ishigara said. Ishigara also said he continued extracurricular activities at his home high school, Park Hill, and plans to sing with a gospel ensemble in college.

An unidentified commenter who also identified as a LEAD graduate described following an academic path from LEAD to the University of Kansas, then into nursing studies at KU Medical Center in Kansas City. That speaker credited a mentor identified as Ms. Jury with helping guide career conversations and praised the program's project-based classes and mentor connections for making the college transition easier.

All three speakers emphasized two recurring themes: structured, individualized instruction at LEAD and the program's mentor relationships. Speakers said those elements helped them develop time-management skills, understand their learning styles and make college-application and career decisions. One speaker said the program's self-paced elements had an outsized effect: "1000%, the self paced learning and being able to understand myself as a person and the time management skills that I learned in my high school career were unimaginable," the commenter said.

The alumni comments covered students who attended LEAD across different years and who later enrolled at Oklahoma State University, the University of Kansas (KU), KU Medical Center in Kansas City, and Oral Roberts University. Several speakers mentioned continuing participation in choir and theater at Park Hill while enrolled in LEAD.

The remarks were delivered during public comments and did not include any formal motions or requests for action recorded in the transcript. The speakers focused on personal experience and program praise rather than policy proposals.

Further meeting materials or staff responses were not included in the transcript excerpt provided.