When I first began my journey at ACLC in 6th grade, I was astonished by the community at the school. The school’s community is so much different than traditional school with the main focus of on peer interaction. What I like about ACLC is that it pushes you to work with the community and I feel like it has made me more comfortable to talk with my peers. The environment and atmosphere is really unique and makes you feel right at home. Without ACLC I don’t think I would be the same person as I was before I came to the school.

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I don't have much work habits but one strong work habit I have is responsibility. I rarely miss homework assignments and arrive late to classes compared to how I was when I was younger. When I was younger I didn't care if I missed an assignment and due to that I had very bad grades from middle school to early high school. I also was tardy very often in middle school, I would procrastinate on literally everything to the point where my parents grounded me to very little entertainment. When I look back on how I was younger, I am disappointed in myself on how little responsibility I had which now still punish me today but I am glad that I have learned from my mistakes.

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In terms of New Basics, A skill I developed that was also hobby that I learned from my time in ACLC was digital music production program. I started learning digital music production in 7th grade in the DVS studio at the Encinal campus. I couldn't join the class at the time, so I did it on my own time, learning the program on my own. I stuck with it until I got to 8th grade, and then I was able to take digital music as a class. I kept doing digital music on my own time and I got better and better over time and now it's my biggest  hobby. Without ACLC I would've never experienced this art form. Having this class really makes ACLC unique. Learning this form of art felt like I was doing something. ACLC has given me not just a hobby but a passion that I can build my life around. Another hobby I did Video Editing, I took a Digital Video Station class from 7th grade to 9th grade and It really helped me learned a lot about editing and flow. On top of editing I was also learning HTML and could craft my own website, and I don’t think I would learned this skill if I didn't have any free periods.

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 I feel like my decision making is a reasoning skills a skills that I have developed at my time at ACLC that I use the most, when I am confronted by an obstacle where I have to make decision, I analyze the risks and benefits to make a decision that I feel more comfortable and safe with, like picking college campuses, or choosing which college classes and the amount I can actually withstand or making big purchases. I might be interested in and seeing the drawbacks in these decisions. Another skill I use a lot but am not too good at is system thinking. I know how to make myself better at a certain subject or skill; but actually applying myself to becoming better is what I fail to do sometimes and it’s something I would  like to work on in the future .

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My main interpersonal abilities include working with others who have diversity and teaching others skills. When it comes down to group projects I don't mind working with anyone. I get the role that's best for me and give others what’s best for them. If someone is good at drawing then I won't try to take their role or if my skill was research then I would try to argue for my role because I know which I would perform best in. As well as that when I am also working with others I try to make sure we’re all on the same level, making sure everyone is on the same level leads to better efficiency. For example if my partner doesn't understand what’s going on, I will try to incorporate whats I understand into him so that we can tackle the assignment more efficiently.

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Technology is one of my grand skill sets, I use technology for almost everything. I use technology for all my school work and entertainment needs. I type nearly all of my homework, and prefer to use my computer for my homework than traditional pen and paper. When I use computer I type faster then I write and it feels more comfortable. What's so great about technology is that if you ever need help and no one is around to help you, then you can just search your problems away. Endless amount of information is just clicks away. Without technology I would have never learned any of the skills I have today. I’ve learned everything I know about music production just from the internet. When you think about it my generation has such of a advantage growing up with computers and technology.

To conclude, I have developed many skills in my time with ACLC, and although I wish I can go back and make my experience better, I am happy that I got to be the person I am today and without ACLC I don't think I would be half the person I am. The community and facilitators really makes it feel like I am home and it's sad to think I will be leaving the school soon, but I am happy ACLC participated in this chapter of my life.