Attention Bentley Community:
Every week I put out 'story time' to the staff and this week I have decided to bring it to the masses. Hope you enjoy the message!
-Mr. Dickerson-
The snow had just started when Jake, Maya, and Eli ran into each other at the Speedway off Belsay Road. A few years had passed since the Class of 2021 or what was supposed to be their class.
They had all started high school together. But by junior year, things had gone different ways.
Student 1: Jake
Jake leaned against his beat-up car, hoodie pulled tight over his face.
“I went to (insert online school with less than 5% graduation rate), remember?” he said, half-smiling. “Thought it’d be easier. No teachers watching, no one riding me about missing assignments. Just me and the laptop. I could work full-time and did not have to sit in class during the day. They told me it was the best way forward. I only had to show up once a week and I just had to turn packets in. That was all."
He shook his head.
“At first it was kind of nice. I could sleep in, skip class if I wanted. But then…no one cared if I showed up. Nobody noticed when I didn’t log in for a week. Or two. Or three.”By Christmas I was behind in everything. By spring, I just stopped trying. It felt like nobody expected me to finish and I just quit".
He just rolled his eyes and said. “Every job I’ve tried since they ask about a diploma. I say ‘I did some online school.’ They just nod. But you can tell it doesn’t mean much.”
Student 2 Maya:
Maya pulled up her jacket sleeve, showing a bracelet her niece had made. “I did finish at (online school in area with <5% graduation rate),” she said quietly. “But it didn’t feel like finishing anything".
“I’d sit in my room for hours, just me and a screen. No friends, no hallway talk, no sports, no dances. I didn’t realize how much that stuff mattered until it was gone. At (online school in area with <5% graduation rate), it was empty. I’d submit work and get an email back days later. Nobody cared who I was. No one wished me happy birthday, checked up on me. I was just a number in a sea of numbers".
She looked down at her hands.
“I tried to go to college. But when I showed them my ‘diploma,’ they said it didn’t meet their accreditation requirements. I ended up doing a GED test anyway.”
She shook her head and laughed. “Guess I got my diploma twice, just the hard way.”
Student 3 Eli:
Eli smiled, wiping his hands on his work pants. His truck, freshly painted with his plumbing company’s logo, gleamed behind him.
“I stayed at Bentley,” he said. “Yeah, it was harder sometimes. Teachers got on my case, but they also really cared. I had friends who pushed me. Coaches who made me show up. Even when I thought I’d never make it through math, Ms. Bunker stayed after school with me till I did. Mr. Dickerson was on me every day about getting it together. He annoyed me at the time, but I am so glad he did".
“Graduation day felt like something real,” Eli said. “When I walked across that stage, I knew I’d earned something that counted. Walking through the tunnel of my teachers was awesome! I am so glad I stayed".
After high school, he went into an apprenticeship program through the recommendation of Mr. Horton. Now, five years later, he owns his own small plumbing business.
“All my crew came from Bentley too. We all started there together. You can’t replace that.”
The Bentley Difference:
Jake looked at Eli’s truck for a long time.
“Man, you really made it work,” he said quietly.
Eli shrugged. “Wasn’t just me. It was the people around me: the teachers, my friends, the community. High school isn’t just about classes. It’s where you learn how to show up.
Where you learn how to finish. Where you learn about sticking to something no matter what".
Maya nodded. “If I ever have kids, I’m sending them to Bentley. I want them to have the experience. The dances, the friends, the support of the administration and teachers. The feeling that someone’s watching your back.”
Jake smiled a little. “Maybe it’s not too late for me,” he said.
Eli dabbed him up. “It’s never too late to start showing up.”
My Message
Bentley offers more than a diploma; they offer connection, accountability, and community.
At places like (online school in area with <5% graduation rate), fewer than 5% finish what they start.
At Bentley, over 90%+ graduate and those diplomas open doors.
Because in the end, education isn’t just about passing courses. It’s about belonging somewhere that helps you become someone.
There is no "easy way out" there is no "quick fix". If anyone is telling you there is...do not let them take control over your future!
We will not give up on you...we will not stop reaching out....you matter! Your future matters!
-Mr. Dickerson-