Emerson Hope
Emerson High School
Those of you who followed OKC Central for any length of time probably realize that I’ve got a soft spot for the kids who are enrolled at Emerson High School. It’s an alternative education school at NW 7 and Walker where kids with some of the biggest challenges (teen pregnancy, not fitting in) are trying to overcome great odds and obtain a high school diploma.
I was first drawn to the plight of this school when I learned it was possible that those horrible (and they are horrible) run-down metal trailers outside the historic building could be left standing and in use as classrooms AFTER it undergoes its MAPS for Kids renovation.
The trailers will soon disappear as part of a MAPS 3 renovation. But will a boiler room be renovated to make way for a clinic for teenage moms at the school?
A “ground-breaking” took place back in October. I’m not sure why that hasn’t translated into the ground actually being “broken” and construction taking place. But such delays happen – we’ve seen a similar silence with the Kevin Durant restaurant in Lower Bricktown.
Believe it or not, there is no clinic for the teenage moms at Emerson. A trailer clinic was provided several years ago, but support for it shriveled up with a loss of funding and/or interest.
Andrew Rice gets it. And as director of Variety Health Care, he’s seeking to have his organization operate a pre-natal/pediatric clinic at the school. The catch is the Oklahoma City Public School Board must approve a memorandum of understanding that would allow for the renovation of the century-old building’s boiler room to be used for the clinic. The school board will meet at 5:30 p.m. Monday at 900 N Klein Avenue.
Emerson is downtown’s only school at the moment. Not everyone may appreciate it being an “alternative school,” but it is making a difference for kids. And I’ve met some of these kids. I’ve participated in tutoring at the school. They’re good kids who either struggled in the normal flow or messed up without the safety net many of us had when we were younger. They simply need to see, to benefit, from a community that cares about them. With a lot of the kids coming and going from the school, I won’t lie – helping isn’t easy. But nothing extraordinary is accomplished without an extraordinary effort.
Thank you for joining our conversation on OKC Central. We encourage your discussion but ask that you stay within the bounds of our commenting and posting policy.
Comments
I am a gradate from Emerson class of 2009, I completed my 3 year degree at Rose state for paralegal in 2012. I am 21 years old now. Emerson helped me so much on achieving my goals and also on how to be a better parent. The clinic was very helpful to me that’s were I used to get my birth control and also good advice on my health questions…
Hi my name is Angelica I graduated from Emerson back in 2007. I am really thankful for the onsite clinic that we had back then. I had my prenatal care there and then my birth control care. It was very convenient for me as a teen mom that couldn’t drive back and forth. The onsite clinic didn’t just help me with my health care but also with my education making it easier to get the care that i need it. Please keep helping all of those teen moms with providing this necessary tool to have not just a healthy life but a successful one too.
I am a 2007 gradate from Emerson Outreach. I was so thankful for a program like Emerson. When I was 14 I wasn’t ready for a baby and Emerson prepared me for one of the most biggest life changing experiences of my life. Having the onsite clinic at Emerson was a really big help for being a confused inexperienced young mother. Having the clinic at the school was so much easier then having to go to another doctors office. We didn’t have to take off at school an miss out on learning for the day. Just being able to walk to the clinic an our parents didn’t have to take off work to take us to any appointments. I wouldn’t of known what I would of done with out a program like Emerson Outreach and there onsite clinic. I loved Emerson an still love Emerson for how caring and supporting everyone was to a teen who didn’t know how to make the right decisions.
This city NEEDS Emerson more than ever. Miracles happen every day in that century old building. I certainly hope the school board will support and see the need for the clinic. Education should be the number one priority of this city and that means ALL students. Alternative schools are NOT for the bad kids but the kids who have needs that are different. I taught there for six years before my retirement and those were the most rewarding of my over twenty years in education in four states and overseas. Thank you Steve for your soft heart and for keeping Emerson in the public eye!