At age 16, Calvere Robinson knew she needed to make a big change in her life if she was going to achieve her dream of becoming a nurse. After several moves and falling behind in school, Calvere knew she was headed toward a dead-end job.
Seeing how much good her mother and grandmother did through their jobs in the medical field she sought a career with meaning like theirs.
“My granny and mom are nurses. I remember going to work with my granny and my mom and enjoying it,” said Calvere.
Moving and falling behind threatened those dreams.
“I moved to Chicago and back and didn’t go to school for some months. It was like everyone was against me, but I wanted to prove them all wrong. I wanted to do this for me and my younger brothers,” said Calvere.
Once back in Little Rock, Calvere began to look for options outside of the traditional school. This is when she found Premier High School. Enrolling at the school, she discovered people who would work with her.
“All the teachers pushed me and kept telling me I could do it. When I was having a bad day, the director and teachers would try and make me laugh,” said Calvere.
The Premier program is designed to help students work at their own pace through the curriculum. They study independently. By working through Knowledge Units and testing to show mastery, students can quickly get caught up.
Calvere worked with her teachers to put together a graduation plan and pushed herself despite feeling at times that those who knew her expected her to fail. But instead of failing, she started moving rapidly towards her goals.
“I graduated, and I graduated a year and a half early. I did it,” said Calvere.
Following her graduation from Premier High School of Little Rock, Calvere is well on her way to achieving her dream.
She is now a freshman at Arkansas Baptist College, where she plans on earning her associate’s degree and then acquiring a Registered Nurse certification.
“Premier was great. They definitely prepared me, and now what I want is coming true,” said Calvere.
