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TIDE Academy graduate Kimberly Sanchez Alonzo transferred to the small, STEM-based high and found safety, she said. After experiencing challenges at another local school, Sanchez Alonzo was welcomed by TIDE Academy’s community during her sophomore year.
“It was definitely the best change for me,” she said. “TIDE has a nice, small community, and it made me feel safer and helped me come to terms with myself as a person.”
Before attending TIDE, Sanchez Alonzo described herself as shy and reserved, but said she was motivated to come out of her shell after her English teacher Daphne McCann told her she saw “amazing leadership” in Sanchez Alonzo.
“I had never seen myself as that type of person, but she very much nudged me in the right direction, and I came to learn that I really do like being a leader, and I felt very comfortable in that role,” Sanchez Alonzo said.
Inspired by her teacher’s encouragement, she ran for the position of class secretary, ran a campaign and was proud to be voted into the role.
Along with leadership skills, Sanchez Alonzo said she also learned to advocate for herself in classroom discussions and in student groups. Her teachers always encouraged her to voice her opinions, she added.
While Sanchez Alonzo will be leaving TIDE Academy with newfound confidence, she will also take with her the memories of the school’s final days. The Almanac spoke with the graduate on the last week of school as teachers packed their materials into boxes marked with the names of the schools they would be transferring to.
As a member of TIDE’s last graduating class, Sanchez Alonzo experienced a senior year that was full of heartbreak and disappointment, she said.
The Sequoia Union High School District’s Board of Trustees voted in February to shut down the school due to a financial deficit and low enrollment. TIDE Academy’s programs will be moving to Woodside High School starting in the fall, and its staff are being transferred to the district’s other campuses.
“You could feel the sad energy because everyone loves the school so much, so hearing such hurtful news definitely brought the spirits down,” Sanchez Alonzo said. “But thankfully the teachers and counselors came together to try to make it like a good experience, hold lunch events and really try to bring the mood up.”
As her younger peers at TIDE will be branching off to different schools next school year, Sanchez Alonzo leaves them with this message: “Just be yourself and don’t try to change for others. Find people who are there to be with you for who you are, and it’s always important to stay true to yourself.”
Sanchez Alonzo will be attending Menlo College in the fall to study psychology.
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