Top grads blossomed at West Auburn High School | Class of ’15

Published 11:39 am Wednesday, June 10, 2015

For some kids, the big three high schools in Auburn are too large, too crowded — too much.

And in those big pools, such kids can lose their footing and sink.

Such was the case for Claudia Flores and Alberto Corro.

“Bad grades, no motivation from teachers,” Corro, 20, recalled of his experience at Auburn High School.

“I was being dumb; I just didn’t want to go to school anymore,” Flores said of Auburn Riverside High School.

That was before either had made the decision to try West Auburn High School.

On Saturday the duo accomplishes what neither would have expected of themselves only a few years ago — graduation from high school.

The pride of their 2015 class. Each with new dreams to pursue.

Flores is set on attending Green River College on her way to becoming an occupational therapy assistant.

Corro plans to attend a community college in south Seattle and become a mechanic.

Corro explained what West Auburn did for him.

“I looked at different opportunities, saw people going here. I got involved here. It was a big change. I saw my grades going up, and there was a lot of support from teachers,” said Corro.

“At Auburn High, the classes were bigger, and there was not much time for individuals. Down here, the classes are smaller, they have more time to help every student out. When I started here — I always knew I was good with my hands — I got into woodworking and automotive. And then I got further into math. I love everything about it. I love doing math,” Corro said.

Flores story is a bit different.

“I started off at Auburn Riverside, and for some reason I was really quiet, and I didn’t talk to too many people, and I didn’t have many friends,” said Flores, 18. “I would just go straight to class. I ate lunch in the library. And I dropped out of school my junior year. I wasn’t doing so good at school anymore. I just wouldn’t show up to class.”

At one point the district told her she could no longer attend school if she wasn’t go to show up for classes, so she had a choice: go to West Auburn or get her GED.

Flores, like Corro, had heard all the stories about West Auburn: bad school, bad kids.

So she was nervous.

But none of the bad stories turned out to be true.

“It was different here. Everybody seemed to know each other and get along. At a bigger school, you can only have a few friends, and you don’t know the rest of the people. Here, you know just about everybody. It made a big difference. As soon as I got here I got involved in ASB because some of the girls encouraged me to get involved. It made me become a more open person. I’ve always enjoyed meeting new people, it’s just made it a lot easier. Academically, it’s also a lot easier. I can go at a slower pace. And if I miss school, it’s easier to catch up.”