--- title: For Wichita’s First Grad, A Long Journey — and Worth Every Mile description: Discover Ricardo's inspiring journey to becoming the first graduate at Wichita Acceleration Academies, overcoming challenges and finding success. image: https://info.accelerationacademies.org/hubfs/Imported_Blog_Media/WAA-Richardo-Burciaga-and-family.jpeg --- [![acceleration academies logo](https://www.accelerationacademies.org/wp-content/themes/acceleration-academies/library/images/placeholder/aa-logo.png) ![acceleration academies logo](https://www.accelerationacademies.org/wp-content/themes/acceleration-academies/library/images/placeholder/aa-logo-footer.png)](https://www.accelerationacademies.org/) - The Program « Back - [High School Completion](https://www.accelerationacademies.org/the-program/high-school-completion/) - [Our Flexible Approach](https://www.accelerationacademies.org/the-program/our-flexible-approach/) - [Personalized Teaching](https://www.accelerationacademies.org/the-program/personalized-teaching/) - [Career Coaching](https://www.accelerationacademies.org/the-program/career-coaching/) - [Meet Our Graduates](https://www.accelerationacademies.org/the-program/ourgraduates/) - [Social Support & Aid](https://www.accelerationacademies.org/the-program/social-support-aid/) - [Common Questions](https://www.accelerationacademies.org/the-program/common-questions/) - [High School Diploma vs. GED](https://info.accelerationacademies.org/ged-vs-diploma?hsLang=en) - Our Locations « Back - Florida - [Broward County](https://www.accelerationacademies.org/our-locations/florida/broward-county/) - [Duval County](https://www.accelerationacademies.org/our-locations/florida/duval-county/) - [Escambia County](https://www.accelerationacademies.org/our-locations/florida/escambia-county/) - [Hillsborough County](https://www.accelerationacademies.org/our-locations/florida/hillsborough-county/) - [Lee County](https://www.accelerationacademies.org/our-locations/florida/lee-county/) - [Marion County](https://www.accelerationacademies.org/our-locations/florida/marion-county/) - [Miami-Dade County](https://www.accelerationacademies.org/our-locations/florida/miami-dade-county/) - [Santa Rosa County](https://www.accelerationacademies.org/our-locations/florida/santa-rosa-acceleration-academies/) - [Sarasota County](https://www.accelerationacademies.org/our-locations/florida/sarasota-county/) - [St. Lucie County](https://www.accelerationacademies.org/our-locations/florida/stlucie-county/) - Georgia - [Cobb County](https://www.accelerationacademies.org/our-locations/georgia/cobb-county/) - [DeKalb County](https://www.accelerationacademies.org/our-locations/georgia/dekalb-county/) - [Gwinnett County](https://www.accelerationacademies.org/our-locations/georgia/gwinnett-county/) - Nevada - [Clark County](https://www.accelerationacademies.org/our-locations/nevada/clark-county/) - Ohio - [Cincinnati](https://www.accelerationacademies.org/our-locations/ohio/cincinnati/) - South Carolina - [Lowcountry](https://www.accelerationacademies.org/our-locations/south-carolina/lowcountry/) - [Myrtle Beach/Conway](https://www.accelerationacademies.org/our-locations/south-carolina/carolina-shores/) - Texas - [Ector County](https://www.accelerationacademies.org/our-locations/texas/ector-county/) - Washington - [Bethel](https://www.accelerationacademies.org/our-locations/washington/bethel/) - About Us « Back - [Our Accreditation](https://www.accelerationacademies.org/our-accreditation/) - [Our Team](https://www.accelerationacademies.org/our-team/) - [News](https://www.accelerationacademies.org/news/) - [Blog](https://www.accelerationacademies.org/blog/) - [Pathways Magazine](https://info.accelerationacademies.org/pathways-magazine?hsLang=en) - [Become a Partner](https://altedpathways.org/) - [Careers](https://www.accelerationacademies.org/about-us/careers/) - [Contact Us](https://www.accelerationacademies.org/contact-us/) - [Events](https://www.accelerationacademies.org/events/) - [Login](https://studentinnovate.educationincites.com/#/client/myincite) - Search [Get Info](https://info.accelerationacademies.org/request-info?hsLang=en) [Enroll](http://accelerationacademies.org/enroll) Menu  Search Close Search Form Close Menu [Our Blog](https://info.accelerationacademies.org/blog?hsLang=en) # For Wichita’s First Grad, A Long Journey — and Worth Every Mile November 14, 2022 | Jeffrey Good ![For Wichita’s First Grad, A Long Journey — and Worth Every Mile image](https://info.accelerationacademies.org/hubfs/Imported_Blog_Media/WAA-Richardo-Burciaga-and-family.jpeg) By any standard, Ricardo Burciaga had a long commute to school. Even as he pursued his high school diploma at Wichita Acceleration Academies, Ricardo also held down a full time construction job — three hours away in Kansas City. By virtue of his hard work and the flexible, personalized help provided by the team of educators at WAA, Ricardo found success and became the new school’s first-ever graduate. “I never thought I’d get this done,” Ricardo marvelled as family members and educators gathered to celebrate his achievement. “My diploma, you know!” Ricardo realized his goal just shy of his 21st birthday. Looking back at his decision to drop out three years earlier, he said he has changed. “I’m not going to lie to you. Back then, I didn’t care about school. I didn’t care about nothing,” he said. “I feel like I became a better person.” A variety of factors led him to drop out. His then-girlfriend got pregnant with their daughter, Victoria, and Ricardo felt the pressure to get a job and provide. Also, he felt little attachment to a school where he felt lost in the crowd. “You’d ask a teacher for help but you’d have to wait” due to the large number of other students. He tried online school for a while, but found he had a hard time overcoming his tendency to procrastinate. And when he stumbled on the material, “You could never ask a teacher, ‘What does this mean?’ ” As his 21st birthday approached, though, Ricardo decided that he needed a diploma to begin building the life he wants. He searched for a school that offered him the scheduling flexibility that would allow him to hold onto his job and study in his off-hours — while also offering the one-on-one support he needed to thrive. He found that combination at WAA. “Here, there is always somebody to help you,” he said. “Even if they aren’t your teacher, they help. They want you to succeed.” [« Back to Blog](https://info.accelerationacademies.org/blog?hsLang=en) ## In the **News** [View all news](https://www.accelerationacademies.org/news/) --- Refer a friend & [Earn Rewards](https://info.accelerationacademies.org/refer-a-friend?hsLang=en) ![Acceleration Academies](https://www.accelerationacademies.org/wp-content/themes/acceleration-academies/library/images/placeholder/aa-logo-footer.png) [872.529.5115](tel:8725295115) Mon-Fri: 9am-5pm ET [info@accelerationacademies.org](mailto:info@accelerationacademies.org) OwnYourSuccess - [Facebook](https://www.facebook.com/accelerationacademies1) - [TikTok](https://tiktok.com/@accelerationacademies) - [YouTube](https://www.youtube.com/@accelerationacademies) - [Instagram](https://www.instagram.com/accelerationacademies/) - [LinkedIn](http://www.linkedin.com/company/acceleration-academies) ![cognia logo](https://www.accelerationacademies.org/wp-content/themes/acceleration-academies/library/images/placeholder/cognia-logo.png) ©2026 Acceleration Academies. All rights reserved. [Privacy Policy](https://www.accelerationacademies.org/privacy-policy/) [Blog](https://www.accelerationacademies.org/blog/) ```json { "@context" : "https://schema.org", "@type" : "BlogPosting", "author" : { "@type" : "Person", "name" : "Jeffrey Good", "url" : "https://info.accelerationacademies.org/blog/author/jeffrey-good" }, "dateModified" : "2024-03-19T13:32:07.158Z", "datePublished" : "2022-11-14T05:00:00.000Z", "headline" : "For Wichita’s First Grad, A Long Journey — and Worth Every Mile", "image" : [ "https://info.accelerationacademies.org/hubfs/Imported_Blog_Media/WAA-Richardo-Burciaga-and-family.jpeg" ], "mainEntityOfPage" : { "@id" : "https://info.accelerationacademies.org/blog/for-wichitas-first-grad-a-long-journey-nbspand-worth-every-mile", "@type" : "WebPage" }, "publisher" : { "@type" : "Organization", "logo" : { "@type" : "ImageObject", "url" : "https://info.accelerationacademies.org/hubfs/AA-logo-2.png" }, "name" : "Acceleration Academies" } } ```