When Alexiann Edwards moved to Florida from her native Jamaica early in 2023, she wanted to complete her high school career at a different kind of school.

Lowcountry Acceleration Academy (LAA) celebrated its newest class of graduates at a ceremony honoring the way each of the 34 young learners had pushed through challenges to earn a high school diploma many might have thought out of reach.

More than 300 people filled an auditorium recently to celebrate the newest class of graduates from Escambia County Acceleration Academies (ECAA) in Pensacola, Florida. ECAA Director Mat Taylor congratulated the Class of 2023 for their determination and urged them to build on their early success.

Shamyiah Lewis is a strong student, but moving to a new city at the beginning of her senior year nearly derailed her plans to earn a high diploma and go on to study filmmaking in college.

To celebrate National Computer Science Week, graduation candidates at Acceleration Academies across the nation spent a day exploring skills that could change the course of their lives.

Jennifer, Valerie and Dominic Amador are three siblings from a close-knit Texas family. When the trio decided they needed a different kind of high school, they took care of themselves and each other in the way they always do — together.

For Michael Demara, family comes first. When his family moved from a small, overcrowded apartment into a more spacious home after his junior year, it brought a welcome change to their lives.

The latest crop of graduates from Bethel Acceleration Academies in Spanaway, WA, recently strode across the stage and celebrated the diplomas they worked so hard to earn.

Kendall Mast had never felt at home in the hurly burly of traditional high school. Throw in a series of family moves and the challenge of finding a stable school environment became that much steeper.