Flash forward to today — a little over a year later — and I am successfully balancing the academic pressures of AP courses and PSAT prep, maintaining a high GPA, participating in extracurricular activities such as basketball, and holding a leadership position as the student government vice president of finance. 

What changed?

Upon my return to school, I encountered a community of teachers who genuinely cared about me and my success. Beyond my grades, they cared about the habits that I was building and took a personal interest in the type of person I was becoming. Off the bat, Mr. Rojas, my principal, had extremely high expectations — and he held me to them. He introduced me to a concept called “natural consequences.” He helped me realize that my own actions would either propel or hinder my success. SA high school focuses on preparing students for highly selective colleges, and this understanding of natural consequences plays a big part in that. 

From left to right: Associate Dean Ronda Ramos, Haneef Maliki, and Principal Dan Rojas

My dean, Ms. Ramos, helped me to build discipline and drove me to become a better person. I was a mediocre student who frequently talked out of turn. Rather than just telling me to do better, Ms. Ramos frequently sat with me and talked through the bad habits that were blocking my success. She gave me advice that would help me both in and out of school, such as time management and being friends with the right people. She encouraged me to get involved in extracurriculars like basketball.

Through the encouragement of leadership and teachers, I shifted my mindset surrounding school. I started going to office hours, began completing my assignments earlier, and changed my study habits. I went from being a student who wanted to give up in the face of an obstacle like missing the beginning of the school year, to one who realized that strategic study habits, pride in my work, and determination could get me back on track. 

I began to think about high school as preparation for the real world. I realized that being proactive and completing my work is not just a school thing — as I get older and get a job, I will need to submit high-quality work in order to show my manager what I can do. If I am not working hard, people will underestimate my abilities. 

I ultimately realized that by not doing my best, I was only hurting myself. I believe that if I put in my best and try my hardest to have a strong work ethic and good discipline, it will continue to bring me success. To earn a scholarship and go to college is my ultimate goal — and thanks to those who have my back, I’m confident that I can do it. 

Haneef Maliki is a 10th grade scholar at SA High School of the Liberal Arts – Harlem 

Currently, there are 360 eighth graders who want to continue their educational journey at SA. During the most recent Joint Public Hearing, an open forum for people to address the voting members of the Panel for Education Policy, twenty passionate SA middle schoolers spoke up for their education. Their powerful testimonies will inform the panel’s final vote on April 27, when it will decide whether to approve space for Success Academy High School of the Liberal Arts–Brooklyn. If approved, SA’s third high school will open its doors this August for the 2022–2023 school year. Here’s what some of the future high schoolers had to say:

“Soon my classmates and I will apply for high schools. I really want to be a cell biologist. To do that I need to attend a school that offers all the best advanced science classes. I don’t know if the district school that I get allocated to will offer that, but I do know that if I go to Success Academy High School of the Liberal Arts, that I will have all the opportunities available to go to the best college for me to achieve my goals.”

—Charlotte Reich, Grade 7, SA Bed-Stuy MS

SA MYMS: Aniya Hernandez (grade 8), Andrew Beckles (grade 8), Melody McKenzie (grade 8)

“I would like to start with a formal thank you to the committee for granting me the opportunity to advocate for my school, as Success holds a deep place in my heart… In all, Success is a great way for students to feel involved as they advance in their education, and even in the world, so for a high school to be opened in Brooklyn would surely bring joy not just to me, but to the hearts of many, as they feel safe with Success.”

—Isaiah Aulet, Grade 8, SA Ditmas Park MS

“I want to be a computer scientist when I grow up. A Success Academy High School would help with that. I’m really excited to take the math and science classes because if I learn math and science, I will be able to put that to the test with computer science. People who want to fulfill their dreams would need a good education and high school.”

—Shayne Alexander, Grade 8, SA Ditmas Park MS

SA DPMS: Soliel Francois (Grade 7), Raziya Palmer (Grade 8), Shayne Alexander (Grade 8), Amaya Aneke (Grade 8)

“Success Academy is not just a school, but a strong community that is able to adapt and that supports every member for any of their needs. Success Academy has helped me and countless others through hard times and so many students have benefited from that and excelled from the excellence of Success Academy.”

—Sadie Koonce, Grade 7, SA Lafayette MS

“I am a girl with many dreams, one of the hundreds of soon to be writers, doctors, vets, actors, chemists, and politicians of Success Academy. Children all over Brooklyn, K-8, have untapped potential that can only really be unlocked by Success Academy’s extensive extracurriculars and community. The opportunity to have an SA high school that offers a competitive and intensive curriculum in comparison to specialized high schools right here in our neighborhood, is an opportunity that must not be turned down.”

—Soleil Francois, Grade 7, SA Ditmas Park MS

We are so proud of these scholars for advocating for themselves and students like them, who need world-class schools and equal access to opportunity, regardless of zip code. They have proved once again that Success Academy scholars go above and beyond to achieve the education they deserve.

SA LAMS: Sadie Koonce (Grade 7), Milan Peoples (Grade 7), Yaya Barry (Grade 8)

SA BSMS: (Not in order) Charlotte Reich (Grade 7), Sukanya Ghanie (Grade 7), Adrian Iparraguirre (Grade 7), Miquel Utset (Grade 8), Viannelly Leger (Grade 8), Angelina Edwards (Grade 8), Saliou Sarr (Grade 8).

What’s it like to study at the college level while still in high school? We asked HSLA-MA sophomore Michael Solano to share a little about his interest in computer science and what he liked about tackling Python programming in the Georgia Tech course.

What sparked your interest in computer science?

As a kid I played a lot of video games, and I became really interested in how things actually worked behind the scenes. In fifth grade, one of the final units of science for the year was computer science — and I was pretty stoked because I immediately hoped to be able to make my own game. That didn’t happen, but I learned the basics of HTML. Skip to seventh grade computer science: for our final project we had to make our own website. I made a homepage that I was proud of, and it ended up being one of the best ones my teacher had seen that day. I think from that day onward I kind of understood my potential and how far this could go; whenever someone used to ask me what I wanted to be when I grew up, I never really had an answer —and now I did.

How did you end up in the Computing in Python I course?

At the beginning of freshman year I was invited and accepted into the STEM Academy at HSLA-MA, which is a set of courses for students who are really passionate about a specific subject area and want to take on college-level study so that they can major in STEM. That first year, I took electrical and mechanical engineering courses, but then I was invited to apply for Computing in Python I — and I was accepted. 

What is it like to learn Python asynchronously through the edX platform?

I honestly thought it was surprisingly simple. The edX courses are usually formatted in the same way, with sets of videos with corresponding (ungraded) exercises (multiple choice or Coding problems), and then corresponding graded problem sets to test what you’ve learned. One of the nice things about edX is that you can really try any problem as much as you want when it comes to the problem sets. Even on tests you get at least two tries on all multiple choice and infinite tries on any coding problem. 

A lot of college courses have teaching assistants, who are important resources for students. How was your experience working with them at Georgia Tech? 

One thing I like is how they really encourage you to try your best, but won’t help you on anything you haven’t attempted on your own first, which honestly really encourages me to try a bit harder on some problems where I find myself stuck. I would really encourage anyone who wants to take the course to be incredibly mindful of office hours as they help a lot! 

How has this course furthered your interest in computer science?

The  introduction to a whole new computing language was super interesting to me. As you learn more, you begin to see more of the real world applications of coding. I feel like this course has made me want to not only continue to develop my knowledge in Python, but other languages as well, which is what I’m doing this summer as I attend Upperline Code as part of my SA Summer Experience fellowship. 

Do you plan to continue in Computing in Python II? 

For sure! I think Python is a very interesting language because it encourages a lot of logical thinking skills that I think are very useful and interesting to learn. I also just want to be able to challenge myself academically. 

Who should consider applying for this program? What types of interests  should they have? What types of skills should they have coming into the course?

It’s an amazing opportunity to be accepted; you’re basically getting a free college course done and out of the way with, which looks really good on college applications! I would recommend this course to those who wish to challenge themselves, and not just academically. If you think you struggle with procrastination, take this class! It gets you into the habit of complying with deadlines — you have everything from the start — all you need to do is just get it done! Dedicate a few hours to watching the videos or doing practice problems with your friends, go to office hours, help each other during lunch, do it whenever you feel like you need to. One of the best pieces of advice I can give is simply to not procrastinate. Coming from experience, if you end up falling behind one or more problem sets a few days before a test, you’re not going to succeed. The course is a test of consistency. Deadlines are incredibly lenient, often giving you MONTHS to complete a unit! 

If I’m being honest, for the first semester the course stayed pretty simple. Later content gets more challenging as concepts get more complex. However, if you truly dedicate yourself to learning the content, taking notes, and putting in the work, you’ll be just fine.

Michael, second from left, with other STEM enthused classmates.

By Loretta Tuider (HSLA ‘20, Columbia University ‘24)

This summer, I’ve been accepted into Columbia Engineering’s Education Experience for Undergraduates (EEU) program, which means I get to spend six weeks working alongside a professor teaching computer science to high school students. I’m so excited about the opportunity to mentor other students, and learn more about my own interests in the process. 

In high school at Success Academy, I was in the honors STEM program, so I took mechanical and electrical engineering. Through those classes I started to learn what engineering was all about — and I loved it. I’ve always been geared toward STEM, but I especially liked how engineering involves math and even more teamwork and collaboration than other STEM fields. When I was applying to college, I focused on getting into an engineering school, and was so excited by my acceptance into Columbia’s. When I started at Columbia I felt pretty prepared; in the fall I took Intro to Electrical Engineering, and it was so nice to have a background in the subject from SA.

When I learned about the EEU program, I knew I wanted to do something that connected to my coursework over the summer, rather than a regular job. I thought “Why not?” and decided to apply. Plus, I did a program called Columbia Edge through SA HSLA, which gives high schoolers the chance to take courses at Columbia, so I felt qualified and knew I’d been in the shoes of the students I’d be mentoring.

Getting accepted into the EEU program is one of my first big achievements in college, and I think it will open additional doors for me. I’m applying to be a teacher’s assistant in computer science in the fall, and the experience I gain from the EEU will be really valuable. My TAs have been so helpful, especially in computer science classes. I want to be able to help other students think critically through their work like my TAs have helped me. I started thinking about becoming a TA as I became more passionate about computer science, and this program will be the perfect preparation.

As for my future, I’m taking it one semester at a time. Based on how this experience goes this summer, I think I want to do an internship with one of the big tech companies. I feel like that’s something I’m already building toward within the scope of my education, and potentially landing that kind of internship would be a great start for a potential job offer.

For any students considering computer science or engineering, my advice would be to form a good relationship with your TAs and don’t procrastinate. You really can’t get away with starting projects last minute, and having someone to talk to or advise you is useful. And the more work you do, the more you get used to it. Computer science in particular is like learning a whole new language, but after a few projects things just started clicking in my head and I get a real sense of accomplishment when I do well on an assignment now. 

Everyone talked about it for weeks after it was unveiled, and multiple SA alumni have returned to participate since then; the performance is frequently applauded as a top highlight of the SA high school experience. 

When this year’s seniors Channel Mateo and Brenda Licona-Kumi, and junior Wuraola Adetola were selected to produce the SY20-21 performance, they couldn’t wait to get right to work upholding the tradition of excellence and excitement. Here, content curator Wuraola shares some of her memories from Root Awakening, and reflects on the highs and lows of running a schoolwide performance over Zoom.

By Wuraola Adetola 

We thought Root Awakening wasn’t going to happen during the pandemic. The show always brings out the best of our school community; we pack the auditorium and cheer and stomp for our friends, our alumni, and our teachers who express themselves artistically on the stage. How could we possibly replicate that feeling on our computers? At first, I was pretty discouraged by the thought. 

But our dance teacher, Ms. Aronowitz, and our dean, Ms. Ramos reminded us that Root Awakening is a school tradition, an important one that puts scholar self-expression and pride in our heritage at the center, and it would really mean a lot to everyone if we could continue it — even though everything would be different this year. Mrs. Aronowitz really played a huge role in helping the show come together. 

When Channel, Brenda, and I talked it over, we realized how much the show meant to us our virtual community. Even though our theater productions are always popular and excellent, Root Awakening still stands out because it is completely designed and run by students. It is a chance for us to speak up about our identities, celebrate our cultures, educate each other about our heritage — and just have fun moving, dancing, singing, and speaking together on stage. Even though this couldn’t happen in person, we just had a feeling that we could still make a big impact on our virtual community.   

We set to work. We encouraged and directed students to record themselves dancing or representing their culture however they saw fit. We pulled and edited videos from last year’s performance to incorporate and build that feeling of continuity. We solicited our teachers to help spread the news of the show. The three of us had to step into unexpected leadership roles — and it was a team effort. Channel wrote the entire script; I collected, edited, and organized all the content; and Brenda did all the voiceovers and designed the flier.

I didn’t even know Channel and Brenda before we started working on the show, but the experience brought us close together. We learned each other’s thinking processes, and how to defeat the odds and push through in times of struggle. You want to showcase everyone’s talent and culture, but there’s a time limit, and you have to make sure nobody gets bored just watching on a screen — so it’s difficult. Once we had everything in one place, though, it was great to see the result. We hoped this show would still inspire the school community, and bring everyone together the way it had for the three of us.

It wasn’t easy, and a lot of people had doubts about this year’s Root Awakening — including me! Given the pandemic, some students were surprised it was still happening, and others were reluctant to participate because it was yet another thing on Zoom. We had been planning since the summer, so it wasn’t too stressful until a few weeks before the show when things started to feel more real. I was pretty nervous about how everyone would react! 

It was hard to bring everyone together and encourage them to get involved, but after the show a lot of people started reaching out to us saying how great it was. People said they enjoyed it, and some students asked how they could get involved for next year. This made me feel great because, in the end, I know that we helped continue this legacy.

I think the pandemic took a toll on a lot of students. People couldn’t see their friends, and students with talents couldn’t dance or sing in person. The fact that we were able to have this show, and include so many students who wanted to show off their talent or culture — it was really important.

This show gives students a voice. School is difficult; there’s not always time to show off what makes you happy or proud. The show gave us a chance to do that. It was a break from school, stress, and the effects of the pandemic just to come back and feel like a school community again, even online.

With this year’s show done, we’re already excited to start brainstorming how to make the next Root Awakening different, and how we can incorporate everyone’s ideas. We’re ready to take on the next challenge.