New high school in Fort Worth welcomes adults from all walks of life. Here’s what it offers
Inside Building A of the Tarrant County College Opportunity Center the floors are swept, new paint has dried, chairs and desks are lined up in classrooms, and teachers are on their phones calling prospective students.
When Xavier Sanchez visited the building in March it was in good shape, but it wasn’t ready to be a school until now, he said. The New Heights Adult High School, across the street from Dunbar High at 5901 Fitzhugh Ave., is prepared to take students from all walks of life who want to earn a high school diploma, certifications or college courses for free.
Sanchez, the former Rosemont Middle School principal, is the chief academic officer and campus director. He says he often heard the same things when speaking with high school dropouts or people who didn’t further their education: They said nobody called, nobody noticed, and nobody cared.
“Life happens and folks who stepped away from school, usually had something in their life that made school not the most important thing in that moment and they stepped away,” Sanchez said.
This will change as Tarrant County College will open the adult chartered high school on Sept. 3, which will allow adults 18-50 to simultaneously earn a high school diploma and certification in one of at least 10 career and technical programs.
New Heights is the first of its kind in Texas. Senate Bill 2032, passed in spring 2023, allows entities to create agreements between nonprofits, community colleges and adult charter schools. The partnership included a number of local business leaders and partners who extended their expertise and support for students during and post graduation. These include New Heights, Tarrant County College, United Way of Tarrant County, Child Care Associates, the Fort Worth school district and the Mayor’s Council on Education and Workforce Development.
The Texas Education Agency authorized the adult high school in April.
The school will operate like a college, with eight-week terms and an accelerated curriculum. Classes are in person, and there are multiple schedule options for weekday and day or night classes based on the students’ needs.
The school will operate from 10 classrooms, and two are computer labs inside Building A of the Opportunity Center. Programs include medical assistant, welding, aircraft mechanics and cybersecurity. Sanchez’s team has talked with the city government and employers on what career training is in demand.
According to the Census, 14% of Fort Worth residents are below the poverty rate compared to 13.9% across all of Texas. In Fort Worth, 17% of residents do not have a high school diploma compared to 15% across Texas.
People with GED certificates have lower monthly earnings, an average of $3,100, compared to those who earned a regular high school diploma, who earn an average of $4,700, regardless of sex, race and ethnicity or age, according to the Census Bureau.
Sanchez and New Heights encourages everyone to enroll. Personal advising and coaching is available to help students with scheduling, along with classes on career choices and exploration, financial literacy and personal communication. There will be individual graduation plans, and supportive services to help students arrange childcare, mental health services, and transportation.
When enrollment was opened on July 30, over 300 people signed up, and over 600 people are enrolled for courses.
‘How much you matter’
Traci Berry is the CEO and superintendent of New Heights and was part of the school’s inception in Fort Worth.
Her research background focused on poverty, equity, accessibility and the workforce. Berry helped write Senate Bill 1142 to pilot an adult high school in 2013 in Austin. The Texas Legislature and the Texas Education Agency authorized and helped bring forth The Goodwill Excel Center Adult High School in Austin in 2014.
Each year Berry and her team revised the same bill for every legislative session, and a new bill, Senate Bill 1615, included a new sub-chapter of education code in 2021. This bill helped to expand the adult high school charter school program to provide for additional charter holders and build a supporting regulatory framework.
In 2023 there was a successful push for adult high schools throughout the state. Senate Bill 2032 moved public adult high schools to sustainable funding under the Foundation School Program administered by the Texas Education Agency.
Berry left the adult high school in Austin when she learned there was interest in such a school in Fort Worth.
Berry wants everyone to enroll, from people who don’t have their transcripts, those who need a flexible schedule because of family duties, to those figuring out what career they want.
“We are not only creating an opportunity for people who have been underrepresented, we’re bringing it to you because that’s how much you matter,” Berry said.
Berry says she wants to be intentional about growing the campus and having more campuses in Fort Worth. She hopes to eventually have alumni coaches to support graduated students.
One of the enrolled students is Marcela Arguayo.
She said she has always wanted to serve others and was hired by New Heights as a receptionist. She has spoken with prospective students who face similar back-to-school journeys and for whom being a parent first is the most important duty.
The excitement she sees in other people coming back to school made her want to enroll in New Heights, she said. Arguayo hasn’t chosen a program yet but she knows she wants to continue to help others.
“I think as parents we’re always trying to set good examples for our kids, and there’s that saying, ‘practice what you preach,’ and I have always preached to my children the importance of education,” Aguayo said. “ I just think that it’s time, and I think that’s the same boat that a lot of parents are in.”
This story was originally published August 16, 2024 at 12:18 PM.
