ECHS Students' Race to the Top Commencement Challenge Submission

The following is taken from ECHS students' required 200-word submission to The White House along with their video as finalists in the Commencement Challenge

ECHS is alive.  We’re blocks from the world’s most congested freeway, yet we step onto a campus with fruit trees and a running stream of reclaimed water, which was once asphalt.  We know we’re in an environment designed to envision a better life.  As freshmen evaluate community health, sophomores debate the sustainability of progress, juniors examine the American dream, and we ask, “How are we powerful?” In our urbanite amphitheatre, we showcase art, host composting workshops, and train freshmen for success at ECHS. We give tours and present solutions and best practices, so 98% of us feel comfortable speaking in public. With more graduation requirements than schools nationally, we pack our schedules with AP and college courses and exceed service requirements.  ECHS is challenging, but we thrive.  We’ve learned education is empowerment and graduation is a milestone on our journey to a better world. We are 68% Latino, 20% African-American, 78% low income.  Arriving 2.5 grade levels behind peers in math and English, by graduation we outperform national averages. 92% of us were accepted into universities in 2009 and most are first in our families to attend.  We’re prepared to redefine the American Dream, rewrite our futures and heal our planet.