Visiting The Monarch School

Today we had the unique opportunity to visit The Monarch School, a San Diego public school specifically geared to the homeless community. We had heard about The Monarch School during several of our other visits to organizations for the homeless during our trip. About a week ago, Kristy discovered that her former boss' cousin volunteers extensively with The Monarch School (small world!). Through this chance connection, we were able to set up a tour and information session for today.

Our tour began at a hotel down the street from the school because the campus is very small and there was no meeting area large enough to accommodate our whole group. I was especially impressed by how many of the school administrators came to talk to us at the hotel meeting room. We got to hear from Principal Sarita Fuentes, Vice Principal Joel Garcia, Counselor Jessica Nunez, and more. They all provided an interesting perspective on the school and the students it serves.

The school is K-12th grade and currently has 162 students. The students come to Monarch from a wealth of different backgrounds but all share the fact that they are currently homeless. The classrooms are combined between grade levels, and each student is at a different academic stage. Therefore, the teachers must provide a great deal of individualized instruction to each student. They certainly do a great job- for every six months a student spends at the Monarch School, he or she raises an entire academic grade level.

After our information session, we split into two groups for our tour of the school. My tour group was led by Principal Sarita Fuentes. The campus has a main outdoor courtyard with a covered tent area. There are about eight classrooms inside the building, as well as offices, a library, and several resource rooms. There is also a doctor's office that is staffed once a week so that students can receive full medical care.

Besides education, the school also offers services specific to the homeless population. Students receive two meals a day as well as grocery store gift certificates for those who may not have access to a meal at dinner time. Students and their families can also do laundry on campus. A therapist at the school provides counseling and mental health services to the students. An extensive after school program is also offered in order to let students explore their individual interests and have a safe place to remain after school hours.

After our tour of the Monarch School, our whole team expressed that they were quite impressed by the school. The faculty and administrators were highly qualified and dedicated to the student population, and the programs provided by the school seemed to cover all the needs of the students and their families. This was definitely a great visit!