Downtown Charter School Graduates Its First Senior Class

DOWNTOWN LOS ANGELES — I've mentioned a few times that my wife Kathy teaches here in Downtown at Oscar de la Hoya Animo Charter High School. The school started four years ago and is chartered in Boyle Heights, but holds its classes in the World Trade Center at 3rd and Figueroa.

Today ODLH held its first graduation over at LMU and Oscar gave the commencement address. Kathy says he was incredibly well-spoken, giving his talk first in English and then in Spanish. He emphasized the role of education as a vehicle to success, and encouraged the kids to use their education to do good in their community.

Driving or walking by the building you'd likely never know there was a school there. It's an unlikely location, and the school is producing unlikely results. This first senior class had a graduation rate of 98%. Out of 113 graduates, 108 will attend college and 88 of those are headed to four-year schools.

Pictured is Kathy's 3rd period class (freshman Ethnic Studies students), posing for a portrait on its final day today.