Divorce, parental abuse, violence, pregnancy, drugs, racism, relationships -- the list of what kids face in their lives on and off campus goes on. At Fairfax, Impact (a program of the L.A. Unified School District) provides a network of support groups that brings kids together -- including Jean, Maria, and Karla -- to help each other through the minefield of their lives.

"Without my whole group, I wouldn't have made it to where I am today. I thank them all and I love them dearly." -- Karla

Read more about Impact
 
See what Jean thinks about Impact
 

 
According to Kinsey, 10% of the population is homosexual most of their lives" states Virgina Uribe who started Project 10 at Fairfax in 1984. Project 10 is the nation's first public school program dedicated to providing ON-SITE educational support services to gay, lesbian, bisexual, transgender andquestioning youth, including Jet.

"The most important thing is being true to yourself, you know. I don't want to be or sound to be conceited, but you know what? I think I am beautiful." -- Jet

Read an interview with Virginia Uribe, founder of Project 10
 
www.project10.org
www.project10east.org
www.humnet.ucla.edu/queerla/projects/project10.html
 

 
At Fairfax, with one of the largest Special Education programs in the city, Best Buddies teams mainstream students with developmental disabilities in a way that develops deep, lasting friendships.

"I had a really cool time. I was really happy. It made me feel really good. He's (Yevgeniy, a Special Ed student) quite a character." -- Jean

www.bestbuddies.org/programs/hs.html
 

 
Committed to countering the myths and stereotypes of youth promoted in the media and to arming kids to know what's real and what's myth, the San Francisco non-profit organization Just Think pulled together a dynamic team of teens to create a guide to understanding the media and how it tries to shape us.

"People make these big assumptions, and they don't have a clue what is really going on." -- Kendra

See who we are and what we did for Senior Year.
www.justthink.org
 

 
When was the last time you heard teens and adults really talking? And where, in the never-ending debate about how to reform education, is the voice of teenagers heard? Using the issues and stories in Senior Year, Roundtable has launched a nationwide campaign to address head-on the real issues facing high school students, teachers and parents today. Meetings, screenings, forums and discussions which highlight the involvement of youth in conversations about their education are being held in dozens of cities throughout the country.

"In a lot of ways, high school's a joke." -- Derard

Find out more about the Senior Year Public Engagement Campaign by Roundtable at www.roundtablemedia.com.
 

 
"It's the most intense activity that students do in high school," says Ed Sugden, coach of the Fairfax High Academic Decathlon team. For Boris and Liz, it means long hours of intense studying and writing to compete in ten academic events against every Los Angeles school in hopes of making it to the state finals.

"I thought about dropping out, but then I thought, it's the whole team that counts and not me as an individual. Being on a team, it pushes me. I have to study for the team." -- Liz

www.academicdecathlon.org
 

 
Close Up brings high school students from across the country to Washington DC for an intense week in of seeing the government and the city. For Liz, who is Korean-American, going to the Korean War memorial, the Smithsonian Institute exhibit about the Jim Crow South, and the Holocaust Museum created an intense, eye-opening experience.

"I'm at the Korean War Veteran's Memorial. My mom told me about the Korean War, but it seems like every time she tells me I'm listening but then I forget. In a way, I don't want to listen to it. I don't know why." -- Liz

www.closeup.org
 

 
Answering teen questions on a broad range of subjects.

www.advocatesforyouth.org
www.teenwire.com
www.teenadviceonline.org
www.youthresource.com
 
 

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