During the first semester of his senior year at a traditional high school, Ja’Kerien Sutton was on track to graduate with his class. But then an altercation with another student turned ugly and — just like that — Ja’Kerien’s dreams of graduating, going to college and playing football in front of...

When the Covid pandemic shut his public high school in 2020, Bryce Johnson didn’t spend the long months toiling away at home via a remote learning program. He got a full-time job as a construction worker and focused on supporting his family and establishing his adult life.

For best friends Magalie Salas and Celeste Medina, high school had never been a comfortable fit. Volatile social dynamics, a need for more personal attention from teachers, and the isolation of the Covid pandemic created a miserable mix.

Most high schoolers work low-wage jobs or none at all. They make plans for building careers after getting their diplomas, often with help from college, trade school or military training. When they describe their adult selves, it’s in the future tense.

When Marrah Murray-Rodriguez arrived at Miami-Dade Acceleration Academies, she didn’t have a laptop computer. She didn’t have a cell phone. And she didn’t have many people in her life cheering her on.

Halima Hamadi was supposed to graduate with the Class of 2021. But life — specifically, becoming a teen mom and moving across the country — got in the way.

When Lilly Fotheringham got pregnant during her junior year at her old school, she despaired that she wouldn’t have the time to fit her high school studies in with her responsibilities as a new mom. She tried virtual school for a while, but that didn’t work either.

Adrianna Egbert is a young woman with a mission — literally.

For 4 years, VaShon Evans-Barnwell showed up at high school, making an appearance and going through the motions — but not much more. When it came time to join his classmates at graduation in 2019, he didn’t have enough credits to stride across the stage and claim his diploma.