ITEM PHOTO BY OWEN O’ROURKE
Lyn Holian, the Revere High School librarian, shopping in “Patriot Life,” the store at Revere High School.
BY BRIDGET TURCOTTE
REVERE — Revere High School is giving students a taste of college.
Principal Lourenco Garcia said the school has been offering amenities that will prepare students for the real world. Included in the services is a career center, writing and learning centers, a bank and school apparel store.
“The school has implemented many initiatives and reforms since 2010,” Garcia said. “The superintendent and I came up with the model to make sure students learn interpersonal skills. Some kids leave high school without these skills.”
With each additional service, the school begins to feel more like a college campus, he said, and that’s the idea. At the heart of the school is the Learning Common, a cross between a library and a lounge. The large space is filled with books, tables, arm chairs and booths. It also contains a Writing Center and a career services booth.
The comfortable space offers help and tutoring for students, based on teacher referrals. Teachers can also request tutors to visit their classrooms. Students are invited to stay after school for help with writing college essays, or general assignments.
The Calderwood Writing Center at the University of Massachusetts Boston sends students to the school several days a week, said Mary Ellen Dakin, literary coach.
“We have found that, even now, it’s very rare for high schools to have a writing center,” she said. “It’s seen more at a college level.”
Junior and seniors can be trained by Allison Casper, writing center coordinator, to become a tutor for an internship. This year, six seniors and three juniors participated in the program, Dakin said.
“It means the program is self-sustaining,” she said. “We’re not sure that UMass will send tutors forever. It has worked out beautifully. Next year, we will make it more of an official intern program. In its first year, it has been fabulous.”
The career center offers support to students who wish to pursue learning outside of the classroom, said Diana Finn, director of External Learning Opportunities. Many participating students are involved in internships, dual enrollment, and programs outside of school, she said.
The Revere Municipal Employees Federal Credit Union has a branch on the same floor.
Patti Fields, a bank representative, said Revere students in grades one through 12 can open an account. Once they become a member, anyone in their household is also eligible.
Several students visit the bank weekly, said Fields. Many of them cash checks.
“A lot have started to save half and cash half,” Fields said. “A lot have first-time ATM accounts. We can bring them in to answer questions and teach them how it works.”
Fields said having the branch inside the school adds to what the students learn about personal finance.
Students can choose to spend their money next door at the school’s Patriot Life Apparel Store, which is comparable to a college bookstore.
“We offer pride-wear,” said Donna Degregori, the store’s manager. “Apparel, hats, sweatshirts, jackets.”
Garcia said the point of having the store is to help the teens develop customer service and interpersonal skills. The students decide what the store will stock. One student each semester works in the store during one period a day, learning how to take inventory, organize folders and operate the cash register.
“Our goal is to make this place benefit the students,” Garcia said.
Any profit made from the store is deposited into a student activity account. But Garcia said he is happy as long as it breaks even and benefits the students.
Garcia hopes to make students happy and create an environment where they want to learn. He said the attendance rates improved since implementing these features, and the graduation rate sits at 96.8 percent.
“This place is vibrant,” Garcia said.
Bridget Turcotte can be reached at [email protected]. Follow her on Twitter @BridgetTurcotte