Explore the future of education with Felix Lugo and Mark McLaughlin from High School Inc., and discover how they're revolutionizing learning through work-based experiences. Listen as Felix shares their collaboration with business partners to align classroom teachings with industry needs, empowering students with relevant skills and real-world exposure. From using industry-standard tools to engaging with professionals like CEOs and chefs, High School Inc. bridges the gap between education and the workforce, preparing students for success. This episode promises to enlighten you on how staying current with industry trends and technology shapes the educational landscape.
Witness the transformative impact of innovative programs as we discuss the impressive achievements of High School Inc. students, including those who triumphed in the Cooking Up Change competition. We delve into the exciting new pathways being introduced, such as biomedical, e-business, and e-sports, made possible through strategic partnerships. Hear about the potential for district-wide collaborations that aim to enhance educational opportunities, as exemplified by the successful farm-to-table initiative at Magnolia. Join us as we highlight High School Inc.'s commitment to improving educational infrastructure and making a lasting impact on students' lives in Orange County.
Visit us at our Buzzsprout site for more ways to listen, links to our social media sites and any referenced materials, and complete transcripts of our full-length episodes: https://bit.ly/SAUSDAmplifyingLeadership
Mark as Played
Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Voiceover (00:08):
Welcome back Amplifiers, to the second part
of our conversation with FelixLugo and Mark McLaughlin of High
School Inc.
We hope you enjoy theconclusion of this episode.
Bianca Barquin (00:19):
So, Felix, how does High School Inc.
ensure that students receivemeaningful work-based learning
experiences?
So, building off of what Markhas shared with us, what does it
look like in practice?
Describe it for our listeners.
So parents who are listening,other teachers, people who are
interested.
Felix Lugo (00:37):
Absolutely.
Thank you for that question.
One of the things that we focuson with High School Inc.
is making sure that whateverthe student is learning in the
classroom is exactly what theyneed outside of the classroom,
and one of the ways that we dothat is we have business
partners come in, meet with theteachers and say 'What are you
teaching in health care,particularly in medical
(00:59):
assisting?
' 'Well, we're teaching x, y andz.
' 'That's great, but I currentlywork at the hospital and we're
using this equipment, we'reutilizing that software.
Do you have this in theclassroom?
You don't, you should.
' And then High School Inc.
steps in and goes, 'That's agreat thing that they should be
learning.
' If the district is not able toprovide that equipment or
(01:19):
software, then High School Inc.
, as a nonprofit organization,we will step in and get the
equipment through a donation andso forth, just to make sure
there's relevancy.
Whatever they're learning, tomy point, in the classroom is
exactly what they're going to bepracticing when they graduate
outside of the classroom.
Mark McLaughlin (01:35):
And that actually happened where the
front office and back officesoftware that we had was out of
date and hadn't been used in theindustry for a number of years
and we ended up talking to theteacher and saying' 'What is
this going to take to get youback on track?
' And they said, 'We need thissoftware package.
' And we got in that softwarepackage and that just took care
(01:58):
of every concern that theteacher had at that point in
time.
Every bit of that.
And it gave the kids morerelevance because they were real
time, real students.
Felix Lugo (02:07):
And then with that we have it across all the
academies.
So we have advisories, meetingsthat occur, some monthly, some
quarterly, just to make surethat teachers are current and
what's being utilized in theworkforce.
And it's great for students tosee themselves, you know, their
future-- be able to see a nurse,be able to see a doctor, be
able to see an engineer, a chef,a restaurant owner, an
(02:29):
entrepreneur, and say, 'Hey,you're almost there, let me help
you make sure you have thetools, but also teach you how to
use those tools.
' And that's how we make surethat their work- based learning
experiences is relevant onwhat's being utilized in the
world that we know today.
But it keeps them motivated andinspired, and not just with the
(02:50):
classroom visits, but we bringthem out.
We bring them out to those jobsites so they can explore, touch
, feel.
We have students visit CHOC, wehave students visit Glidewell
Laboratory, dental laboratories,entrepreneurs' offices.
You mentioned about the Westin.
I spoke to the CEO of thatparticular company that owns a
chain of hotels and he said,'Absolutely absolutely, students
(03:12):
can come ask us questions sothey know the life of a CEO, the
life of an entrepreneur'.
So that's how we make sure andthen you know we, we again,.
wherever Wherever there'sopportunities, we let students
know.
But the core of what HighSchool .
Inc does, we create thoseopportunities.
And I remember being on thephone with him, the person who's
behind Westin Weston.
I said,'Hey hey, it's greatwhat you did for us at the Palm
(03:33):
Desert.
Let's do that again.
However, would you mind havinga couple of kids shadow you in
your office so they can see whatyou do as an entrepreneur or
CEO'?
He said, said'Absolutelyabsolutely, because my global
business students will love tosee what it takes to reach that
level.
Bianca Barquin (03:49):
What an incredible opportunity for a
student, and I love the factthat you're having conversations
with people who are in theindustry and you're actually
really defining what currentstate, what it looks like today,
so really meaningful andrelevant.
But the fact that you leveragethese relationships and you're
able to ask, you know, just asimple question, and people are
(04:10):
very open to it and it providesanother opportunity for our
kiddos.
That's amazing.
The question that I have is, Iknow you're looking at current
state and you're constantlytalking to the teachers.
After talking with folks whoare actually in the industry, to
provide these opportunities,are there conversations
happening about what the futurelooks like in those industries
(04:32):
too?
I'm just curious, becausethings evolve and change over
time.
Just wondering.
Felix Lugo (04:36):
Absolutely.
So we had a tour go by and itwas an executive chef from the
Pacific Club out in NewportBeach and he was touring the new
culinary facilities at ValleyHigh School.
And as he was looking aroundand commenting, like, 'This
equipment is better than myequipment in the restaurant.
,' He noticed one equipment andhe said, 'Oh, we have one of
(04:57):
those, that's the one with theWi-Fi, and you sort of like, set
it and forget it.
' And I asked him, you knowthat's the future, a lot of
these you know equipment isgoing to be augmented, right,
it's going to be automatic.
Set it, forget it.
And I asked him, 'Does thatmean you reduce staff now that
you have a machine doing thiswork?
What does that mean in theculinary industry?
(05:18):
' And he said, 'No, what itmeans is staff now could stop
paying attention to that and nowthey could be more focused on
the dishes before they're sentout to the customer it provides
more quality.
'So that's what it looks like
when we have industry partnerscome in and look at what they're
teaching in the classroom,because they're able to give us
insights of what the futurelooks like when it comes to
(05:42):
technology and so forth.
Bianca Barquin (05:43):
Thank you for sharing that.
It's similar to a conversationwe were having right before we
got into this one.
This is awesome.
Okay, Mark, I wanted to ask youif you could share a success
story that you believe reallyexemplifies the impact that High
School Inc.
has had on students.
Mark McLaughlin (06:02):
I think that's an easy question.
It's Cooking Up Change and thefact that we had five years in a
row, we had three students thatwent out to Washington DC and
they won the Cooking U p Changecompetition and we went against
school districts like HoustonSchool District, Chicago School
(06:22):
District, large, large groups,and we had three kids and in
fact the last kids that went outthere had never flown, they had
never left the state ofCalifornia and actually they had
certain issues relative tospecial needs, and what was
great about the whole thing wasthat they learned how to do
(06:45):
their job, which was cooking andmaking sure that the food was
exactly what they had to have asfar as requirements which, by
the way, you have to make alunch for $1.50, and you have to
make sure that certainingredients are included and
certain ingredients are notincluded, things like salt and
(07:05):
things of that nature.
They just don't want that kindof condiment in there.
But the fact is, not just wasit the cooking aspect of it, but
50 to 60% of it was thepresentation and how the
presentation was done, andthat's where the kids shined.
I mean, in fact, a couple ofgroups came up and said your
food wasn't as good, but whenyou told the story it was very
(07:26):
good.
And you know what we did is werewarded the kids and High
School Inc.
turned around and said, 'Youstay in Washington for an extra
couple of days and just go about.
We made arrangements to have aLou Correa take them around the
Senate and they actually wentdown to the Congress cafeteria
and had lunch and everythingelse and it was just a great
(07:46):
thing for these kids and to thisday there's at least one or two
of the students that continueto have that in the back of her
head.
'I'm going to do what I learnedhow to do when I went to
Washington,' and she wants tohave her own restaurant and
bakery.
But that was to me, the onething that showed that if you
just have the right people tohelp, to support, you're in
(08:08):
great shape, and these kids dida fantastic job.
Bianca Barquin (08:13):
I love this.
It really shows what a profoundimpact High School Inc.
can have on shaping thetrajectory and quality of our
students' education, careers,and lives.
I have another question for you, Mark.
Where do you see High SchoolInc.
in the next 5 to 10 years?
What new initiatives ordirections are you most excited
(08:33):
about?
Mark McLaughlin (08:34):
I'm going to let Felix start this, and the
implementation aspect of thewhole thing is really in his
hand.
Felix Lugo (08:41):
That's a great question.
You know, for the past 16 years, High School Inc.
has done amazing things, fromchanging the way we look at
education to really transformingstudents' lives and giving them
a roadmap for them to besuccessful in their college and
career paths.
For the next five or 10 years,we mentioned it earlier, Monday
(09:03):
is a milestone for High SchoolInc.
We're entering another highschool, Century High School,
November 4th at 3:30, our ribboncutting ceremony, starting with
their biomedical pathwayprogram.
The year after that we're goingto work with their e-business
academy.
The year after that we're goingto work with their e-sports.
And that's in the next threeyears and we're going to build
(09:24):
on that.
Currently, right now, HighSchool Inc.
is always getting questions andemails, 'What can we do?
Or how can we do what you didat Valley?
You changed the reputation ofthat high school.
You increased their graduationrate.
You changed countless lives.
We hear your stories,' thestory like the young lady who
(09:45):
started in medical assisting,got motivated in dental
assisting, moved on, graduated,went to Mexico to be a dentist,
reached out to High School Inc.
recently and said, 'Hey, I'mone exam away from being a
licensed dentist.
' It's stories like that that wewant the next 5 or 10 years
(10:07):
from now, High School Inc.
continuing to do the greatwork, the partnership with Santa
Ana Unified School District,the partnership with the Santa
Ana Chamber of Commerce, isbeing able to amplify the
student experience by providingthem the resources they need in
order to be successful in theircollege and career path.
5 to 10 years from now, we wantevery household to remember
(10:31):
High School Inc.
is there to stay.
We're not going anywhere andwe're going to continue to help
Orange County.
Mark McLaughlin (10:37):
All right, just a couple of things I'd like to
add to that, and we'll go backto one comment about the
Magnolia campus.
It's part of Anaheim Union andthey have a farm-to-table and
they're funded by the Samuelifamily and the Samueli family
has funded our employee for twoyears and then also funded the
(10:57):
district itself for a couple,two, three hundred thousand
dollars, I believe.
But really what that is, isthat we're program managing a
program that's in another schooldistrict and I really think,
when we start to look at thefuture, I think we're going to
start to see those boundaries,those lines, to drop a little
bit and there's going to be somemerging and subgrouping of
(11:20):
education between the differentschool districts, not just
within the school district,because I think at some point in
time, as an educational process, we can't afford the costs
associated with theinfrastructure we've built over
the last 50, 60 years and wehave to be different in what we
do with our infrastructure inthe future.
(11:40):
I think that's one of thechallenges that we've got.
Why did we go after Magnolia?
It was an experiment and itturned out to be a good
experiment.
I think we can turn around andbring that same concept to
Valley High School.
We had a farm-to-table programconnected with the Heritage
Museum across the street and wehad that with Chef Tiffany and
(12:03):
it was a great farm-to-tablething.
And we actually had Moses, whois now at Food Services.
Moses is an adjunct professorat Santa Ana College and he was
in there helping the kidstalking about what grew in lines
of food and how that foodchanged over centuries.
(12:23):
And it was something 10,000years ago.
Now, at this day and age, it'sthis new product, new type of
growth.
So those are the kinds ofthings that Moses brought to the
table.
But we have to bring that backand that's why I think MAC is
our pathway there.
I think the other thing is toadd to your question on
growth--w hat we're seeing is weare seeing different
(12:45):
organizations calling us up.
We in fact have a discussionpending next month with a group
coming in from LA.
We've had the city manager, thesuperintendent for Lancaster,
and we've talked to severalother organizations over the
past couple of years to justtalk about how can we do what
you're doing and be successfulin our schools versus what you
(13:09):
guys are doing, and just that initself-- I mean, we see that as
a growth path too.
We see that as a key growthpath, but it's not the only one.
I think some of the things wegot to go back, and go back to
my original statement, we got tostart merging some of these
areas because if we don't, we'regoing to be duplicating and in
some cases, triplicating,because some of it's tied to the
(13:29):
community college baseline too,and that's what I foresee for a
challenge for the future.
Bianca Barquin (13:37):
Actually, thank you both for sharing that.
It's super insightful.
Not only are we preparingstudents to be future ready, but
we are actually preparingourselves in our partnership and
High School Inc.
to be future forward, right,really thinking about this in a
different, progressive andinnovative way.
I think that you're absolutelyright, Mark, especially with
(14:00):
what you shared.
Okay, it has been illuminatingto hear your story and insights.
Your leadership and expertisecontinues to support our
students and our community ininnovative and exciting ways.
Before we sign off, it's timefor our Amplifier
Acknowledgement segment.
This question is for both ofyou, but I'll start with you,
(14:24):
Felix.
If you could amplify themessage or lesson of one
educator or leader who's made asignificant impact in your
journey, who would it be andwhat is that resonating message?
Felix Lugo (14:38):
I think of my grandmother, one who didn't have
formal education but was thesmartest person I know, raised
me, educated me, taught me rightfrom wrong and left me, before
she left this beautiful world,with this message: 'Si uno
quiere, uno puede.
' 'If you want it, you can haveit,' and that's the one thing
(15:02):
that I will leave with everyone.
Whatever you want in life,you're able to get it.
Just go for it.
Thank you.
Bianca Barquin (15:09):
Felix, that is just such a powerful
acknowledgement, and it'sactually what you're doing with
students every single day, sothe fact that you're living up
to that beautiful message thatyour grandmother gave you
touches my heart, so thank youfor sharing.
Mark, your turn.
Mark McLaughlin (15:26):
My turn.
That's tough to follow, Felix.
That's why he did what he didthere.
He says, 'I'll nail him,' butin my particular case I had a
number of people that helped mealong the way.
Just stepping back, when I was16 years old my father died and
so it was my mother who was astay-at-home housewife, and my
(15:46):
sister who just graduated fromBoston College with a degree in
education, and at the end of theday came back to teach in
Northern New Jersey.
So everything was kind of inturmoil.
But as I look back at my highschool days, my college days and
even when I get into industry,I have always had great, great
(16:07):
mentors and they've reallybasically given me the go-ahead
to do things that I would not doon my own and encouraged me to
do those things.
And I think because of thatencouragement I've been
successful a lot more successfulthan a lot of people, and I'm
comfortable with what I've donein the past and I still believe
(16:29):
that there's a lot more up herethat can help me help the
children and the students atSanta Anita Unified School
District in the same way I washelped back when I was young.
Bianca Barquin (16:40):
Absolutely.
Thank you for that powerfulacknowledgement.
It makes me deeply think aboutjust how reflective you are as a
person, Mark, and the fact thatyou have found, in every step
of your journey, somebody whohas supported you all along the
way.
And this is exactly what you'redoing, right, you're giving
(17:00):
back and you are both paying itforward.
I think it's a beautiful thing,thank you.
Mark McLaughlin (17:07):
Well, I'll give you one more.
When I was in high school, Iwas trying to figure out, a)
where I wanted to go to schooland, b) what I was going to do
when I went to school.
So I took what was known as theKuder occupational tests.
Are you familiar with that?
Bianca Barquin (17:19):
No.
Mark McLaughlin (17:20):
It's a test that basically asks you a number
of questions.
At the end of the day, you gettop three items and occupations
that you should follow based onyour responses to the questions.
And so my number one wasindustrial engineering.
I went to Syracuse University,got my engineering degree from
there.
And number two was an Air Forcepilot, and I was looking at
(17:42):
that one because I had nevereven been in a plane at that
point in time and I don't knowhow that one happened.
But number three was achallenge and it was a priest,
and when I say that most peoplesit there and go, yeah, right.
The diversity of where I wasand what was available to me
from the standpoint of answeringquestions.
I stuck with the engineeringside of it and I felt a lot more
(18:05):
comfortable with that.
Bianca Barquin (18:06):
I love it.
That is a great story.
Felix Lugo (18:10):
Can I leave a message for our young listeners
out there our students?
Bianca Barquin (18:13):
Of course, please.
Felix Lugo (18:14):
This message is for you.
High School Inc.
is there for you.
We believe in you.
We're here to support you inevery way possible.
Please reach out to us, butalso remember, when you do go
and graduate and becomesuccessful, remember to look
behind you.
There's someone following you.
Help them reach up.
Bianca Barquin (18:33):
Beautiful, compelling message, thank you.
So thank you, Mark and Felix,for sharing your vision and
passion with us today.
To our listeners, thank you fortuning in to SAUSD's Amplifying
Leadership.
Remember, your local schoolcommunity isn't limited to just
the students, families andeducators found in our schools
(18:53):
and homes.
It also includes the businessesand organizations that often
support our daily lives beyondthe classroom.
Partnerships that offermeaningful work-based learning
experiences are a powerful tooland another key to student
success.
Until next time, stay inspired,stay motivated and continue to
(19:13):
amplify the positive impact youhave on those around you.
Welcome back Amplifiers, to the second part
of our conversation with FelixLugo and Mark McLaughlin of High
School Inc.
We hope you enjoy theconclusion of this episode.
Bianca Barquin (00:19):
So, Felix, how does High School Inc.
ensure that students receivemeaningful work-based learning
experiences?
So, building off of what Markhas shared with us, what does it
look like in practice?
Describe it for our listeners.
So parents who are listening,other teachers, people who are
interested.
Felix Lugo (00:37):
Absolutely.
Thank you for that question.
One of the things that we focuson with High School Inc.
is making sure that whateverthe student is learning in the
classroom is exactly what theyneed outside of the classroom,
and one of the ways that we dothat is we have business
partners come in, meet with theteachers and say 'What are you
teaching in health care,particularly in medical
(00:59):
assisting?
' 'Well, we're teaching x, y andz.
' 'That's great, but I currentlywork at the hospital and we're
using this equipment, we'reutilizing that software.
Do you have this in theclassroom?
You don't, you should.
' And then High School Inc.
steps in and goes, 'That's agreat thing that they should be
learning.
' If the district is not able toprovide that equipment or
(01:19):
software, then High School Inc.
, as a nonprofit organization,we will step in and get the
equipment through a donation andso forth, just to make sure
there's relevancy.
Whatever they're learning, tomy point, in the classroom is
exactly what they're going to bepracticing when they graduate
outside of the classroom.
Mark McLaughlin (01:35):
And that actually happened where the
front office and back officesoftware that we had was out of
date and hadn't been used in theindustry for a number of years
and we ended up talking to theteacher and saying' 'What is
this going to take to get youback on track?
' And they said, 'We need thissoftware package.
' And we got in that softwarepackage and that just took care
(01:58):
of every concern that theteacher had at that point in
time.
Every bit of that.
And it gave the kids morerelevance because they were real
time, real students.
Felix Lugo (02:07):
And then with that we have it across all the
academies.
So we have advisories, meetingsthat occur, some monthly, some
quarterly, just to make surethat teachers are current and
what's being utilized in theworkforce.
And it's great for students tosee themselves, you know, their
future-- be able to see a nurse,be able to see a doctor, be
able to see an engineer, a chef,a restaurant owner, an
(02:29):
entrepreneur, and say, 'Hey,you're almost there, let me help
you make sure you have thetools, but also teach you how to
use those tools.
' And that's how we make surethat their work- based learning
experiences is relevant onwhat's being utilized in the
world that we know today.
But it keeps them motivated andinspired, and not just with the
(02:50):
classroom visits, but we bringthem out.
We bring them out to those jobsites so they can explore, touch
, feel.
We have students visit CHOC, wehave students visit Glidewell
Laboratory, dental laboratories,entrepreneurs' offices.
You mentioned about the Westin.
I spoke to the CEO of thatparticular company that owns a
chain of hotels and he said,'Absolutely absolutely, students
(03:12):
can come ask us questions sothey know the life of a CEO, the
life of an entrepreneur'.
So that's how we make sure andthen you know we, we again,.
wherever Wherever there'sopportunities, we let students
know.
But the core of what HighSchool .
Inc does, we create thoseopportunities.
And I remember being on thephone with him, the person who's
behind Westin Weston.
I said,'Hey hey, it's greatwhat you did for us at the Palm
(03:33):
Desert.
Let's do that again.
However, would you mind havinga couple of kids shadow you in
your office so they can see whatyou do as an entrepreneur or
CEO'?
He said, said'Absolutelyabsolutely, because my global
business students will love tosee what it takes to reach that
level.
Bianca Barquin (03:49):
What an incredible opportunity for a
student, and I love the factthat you're having conversations
with people who are in theindustry and you're actually
really defining what currentstate, what it looks like today,
so really meaningful andrelevant.
But the fact that you leveragethese relationships and you're
able to ask, you know, just asimple question, and people are
(04:10):
very open to it and it providesanother opportunity for our
kiddos.
That's amazing.
The question that I have is, Iknow you're looking at current
state and you're constantlytalking to the teachers.
After talking with folks whoare actually in the industry, to
provide these opportunities,are there conversations
happening about what the futurelooks like in those industries
(04:32):
too?
I'm just curious, becausethings evolve and change over
time.
Just wondering.
Felix Lugo (04:36):
Absolutely.
So we had a tour go by and itwas an executive chef from the
Pacific Club out in NewportBeach and he was touring the new
culinary facilities at ValleyHigh School.
And as he was looking aroundand commenting, like, 'This
equipment is better than myequipment in the restaurant.
,' He noticed one equipment andhe said, 'Oh, we have one of
(04:57):
those, that's the one with theWi-Fi, and you sort of like, set
it and forget it.
' And I asked him, you knowthat's the future, a lot of
these you know equipment isgoing to be augmented, right,
it's going to be automatic.
Set it, forget it.
And I asked him, 'Does thatmean you reduce staff now that
you have a machine doing thiswork?
What does that mean in theculinary industry?
(05:18):
' And he said, 'No, what itmeans is staff now could stop
paying attention to that and nowthey could be more focused on
the dishes before they're sentout to the customer it provides
more quality.
'So that's what it looks like
when we have industry partnerscome in and look at what they're
teaching in the classroom,because they're able to give us
insights of what the futurelooks like when it comes to
(05:42):
technology and so forth.
Bianca Barquin (05:43):
Thank you for sharing that.
It's similar to a conversationwe were having right before we
got into this one.
This is awesome.
Okay, Mark, I wanted to ask youif you could share a success
story that you believe reallyexemplifies the impact that High
School Inc.
has had on students.
Mark McLaughlin (06:02):
I think that's an easy question.
It's Cooking Up Change and thefact that we had five years in a
row, we had three students thatwent out to Washington DC and
they won the Cooking U p Changecompetition and we went against
school districts like HoustonSchool District, Chicago School
(06:22):
District, large, large groups,and we had three kids and in
fact the last kids that went outthere had never flown, they had
never left the state ofCalifornia and actually they had
certain issues relative tospecial needs, and what was
great about the whole thing wasthat they learned how to do
(06:45):
their job, which was cooking andmaking sure that the food was
exactly what they had to have asfar as requirements which, by
the way, you have to make alunch for $1.50, and you have to
make sure that certainingredients are included and
certain ingredients are notincluded, things like salt and
(07:05):
things of that nature.
They just don't want that kindof condiment in there.
But the fact is, not just wasit the cooking aspect of it, but
50 to 60% of it was thepresentation and how the
presentation was done, andthat's where the kids shined.
I mean, in fact, a couple ofgroups came up and said your
food wasn't as good, but whenyou told the story it was very
(07:26):
good.
And you know what we did is werewarded the kids and High
School Inc.
turned around and said, 'Youstay in Washington for an extra
couple of days and just go about.
We made arrangements to have aLou Correa take them around the
Senate and they actually wentdown to the Congress cafeteria
and had lunch and everythingelse and it was just a great
(07:46):
thing for these kids and to thisday there's at least one or two
of the students that continueto have that in the back of her
head.
'I'm going to do what I learnedhow to do when I went to
Washington,' and she wants tohave her own restaurant and
bakery.
But that was to me, the onething that showed that if you
just have the right people tohelp, to support, you're in
(08:08):
great shape, and these kids dida fantastic job.
Bianca Barquin (08:13):
I love this.
It really shows what a profoundimpact High School Inc.
can have on shaping thetrajectory and quality of our
students' education, careers,and lives.
I have another question for you, Mark.
Where do you see High SchoolInc.
in the next 5 to 10 years?
What new initiatives ordirections are you most excited
(08:33):
about?
Mark McLaughlin (08:34):
I'm going to let Felix start this, and the
implementation aspect of thewhole thing is really in his
hand.
Felix Lugo (08:41):
That's a great question.
You know, for the past 16 years, High School Inc.
has done amazing things, fromchanging the way we look at
education to really transformingstudents' lives and giving them
a roadmap for them to besuccessful in their college and
career paths.
For the next five or 10 years,we mentioned it earlier, Monday
(09:03):
is a milestone for High SchoolInc.
We're entering another highschool, Century High School,
November 4th at 3:30, our ribboncutting ceremony, starting with
their biomedical pathwayprogram.
The year after that we're goingto work with their e-business
academy.
The year after that we're goingto work with their e-sports.
And that's in the next threeyears and we're going to build
(09:24):
on that.
Currently, right now, HighSchool Inc.
is always getting questions andemails, 'What can we do?
Or how can we do what you didat Valley?
You changed the reputation ofthat high school.
You increased their graduationrate.
You changed countless lives.
We hear your stories,' thestory like the young lady who
(09:45):
started in medical assisting,got motivated in dental
assisting, moved on, graduated,went to Mexico to be a dentist,
reached out to High School Inc.
recently and said, 'Hey, I'mone exam away from being a
licensed dentist.
' It's stories like that that wewant the next 5 or 10 years
(10:07):
from now, High School Inc.
continuing to do the greatwork, the partnership with Santa
Ana Unified School District,the partnership with the Santa
Ana Chamber of Commerce, isbeing able to amplify the
student experience by providingthem the resources they need in
order to be successful in theircollege and career path.
5 to 10 years from now, we wantevery household to remember
(10:31):
High School Inc.
is there to stay.
We're not going anywhere andwe're going to continue to help
Orange County.
Mark McLaughlin (10:37):
All right, just a couple of things I'd like to
add to that, and we'll go backto one comment about the
Magnolia campus.
It's part of Anaheim Union andthey have a farm-to-table and
they're funded by the Samuelifamily and the Samueli family
has funded our employee for twoyears and then also funded the
(10:57):
district itself for a couple,two, three hundred thousand
dollars, I believe.
But really what that is, isthat we're program managing a
program that's in another schooldistrict and I really think,
when we start to look at thefuture, I think we're going to
start to see those boundaries,those lines, to drop a little
bit and there's going to be somemerging and subgrouping of
(11:20):
education between the differentschool districts, not just
within the school district,because I think at some point in
time, as an educational process, we can't afford the costs
associated with theinfrastructure we've built over
the last 50, 60 years and wehave to be different in what we
do with our infrastructure inthe future.
(11:40):
I think that's one of thechallenges that we've got.
Why did we go after Magnolia?
It was an experiment and itturned out to be a good
experiment.
I think we can turn around andbring that same concept to
Valley High School.
We had a farm-to-table programconnected with the Heritage
Museum across the street and wehad that with Chef Tiffany and
(12:03):
it was a great farm-to-tablething.
And we actually had Moses, whois now at Food Services.
Moses is an adjunct professorat Santa Ana College and he was
in there helping the kidstalking about what grew in lines
of food and how that foodchanged over centuries.
(12:23):
And it was something 10,000years ago.
Now, at this day and age, it'sthis new product, new type of
growth.
So those are the kinds ofthings that Moses brought to the
table.
But we have to bring that backand that's why I think MAC is
our pathway there.
I think the other thing is toadd to your question on
growth--w hat we're seeing is weare seeing different
(12:45):
organizations calling us up.
We in fact have a discussionpending next month with a group
coming in from LA.
We've had the city manager, thesuperintendent for Lancaster,
and we've talked to severalother organizations over the
past couple of years to justtalk about how can we do what
you're doing and be successfulin our schools versus what you
(13:09):
guys are doing, and just that initself-- I mean, we see that as
a growth path too.
We see that as a key growthpath, but it's not the only one.
I think some of the things wegot to go back, and go back to
my original statement, we got tostart merging some of these
areas because if we don't, we'regoing to be duplicating and in
some cases, triplicating,because some of it's tied to the
(13:29):
community college baseline too,and that's what I foresee for a
challenge for the future.
Bianca Barquin (13:37):
Actually, thank you both for sharing that.
It's super insightful.
Not only are we preparingstudents to be future ready, but
we are actually preparingourselves in our partnership and
High School Inc.
to be future forward, right,really thinking about this in a
different, progressive andinnovative way.
I think that you're absolutelyright, Mark, especially with
(14:00):
what you shared.
Okay, it has been illuminatingto hear your story and insights.
Your leadership and expertisecontinues to support our
students and our community ininnovative and exciting ways.
Before we sign off, it's timefor our Amplifier
Acknowledgement segment.
This question is for both ofyou, but I'll start with you,
(14:24):
Felix.
If you could amplify themessage or lesson of one
educator or leader who's made asignificant impact in your
journey, who would it be andwhat is that resonating message?
Felix Lugo (14:38):
I think of my grandmother, one who didn't have
formal education but was thesmartest person I know, raised
me, educated me, taught me rightfrom wrong and left me, before
she left this beautiful world,with this message: 'Si uno
quiere, uno puede.
' 'If you want it, you can haveit,' and that's the one thing
(15:02):
that I will leave with everyone.
Whatever you want in life,you're able to get it.
Just go for it.
Thank you.
Bianca Barquin (15:09):
Felix, that is just such a powerful
acknowledgement, and it'sactually what you're doing with
students every single day, sothe fact that you're living up
to that beautiful message thatyour grandmother gave you
touches my heart, so thank youfor sharing.
Mark, your turn.
Mark McLaughlin (15:26):
My turn.
That's tough to follow, Felix.
That's why he did what he didthere.
He says, 'I'll nail him,' butin my particular case I had a
number of people that helped mealong the way.
Just stepping back, when I was16 years old my father died and
so it was my mother who was astay-at-home housewife, and my
(15:46):
sister who just graduated fromBoston College with a degree in
education, and at the end of theday came back to teach in
Northern New Jersey.
So everything was kind of inturmoil.
But as I look back at my highschool days, my college days and
even when I get into industry,I have always had great, great
(16:07):
mentors and they've reallybasically given me the go-ahead
to do things that I would not doon my own and encouraged me to
do those things.
And I think because of thatencouragement I've been
successful a lot more successfulthan a lot of people, and I'm
comfortable with what I've donein the past and I still believe
(16:29):
that there's a lot more up herethat can help me help the
children and the students atSanta Anita Unified School
District in the same way I washelped back when I was young.
Bianca Barquin (16:40):
Absolutely.
Thank you for that powerfulacknowledgement.
It makes me deeply think aboutjust how reflective you are as a
person, Mark, and the fact thatyou have found, in every step
of your journey, somebody whohas supported you all along the
way.
And this is exactly what you'redoing, right, you're giving
(17:00):
back and you are both paying itforward.
I think it's a beautiful thing,thank you.
Mark McLaughlin (17:07):
Well, I'll give you one more.
When I was in high school, Iwas trying to figure out, a)
where I wanted to go to schooland, b) what I was going to do
when I went to school.
So I took what was known as theKuder occupational tests.
Are you familiar with that?
Bianca Barquin (17:19):
No.
Mark McLaughlin (17:20):
It's a test that basically asks you a number
of questions.
At the end of the day, you gettop three items and occupations
that you should follow based onyour responses to the questions.
And so my number one wasindustrial engineering.
I went to Syracuse University,got my engineering degree from
there.
And number two was an Air Forcepilot, and I was looking at
(17:42):
that one because I had nevereven been in a plane at that
point in time and I don't knowhow that one happened.
But number three was achallenge and it was a priest,
and when I say that most peoplesit there and go, yeah, right.
The diversity of where I wasand what was available to me
from the standpoint of answeringquestions.
I stuck with the engineeringside of it and I felt a lot more
(18:05):
comfortable with that.
Bianca Barquin (18:06):
I love it.
That is a great story.
Felix Lugo (18:10):
Can I leave a message for our young listeners
out there our students?
Bianca Barquin (18:13):
Of course, please.
Felix Lugo (18:14):
This message is for you.
High School Inc.
is there for you.
We believe in you.
We're here to support you inevery way possible.
Please reach out to us, butalso remember, when you do go
and graduate and becomesuccessful, remember to look
behind you.
There's someone following you.
Help them reach up.
Bianca Barquin (18:33):
Beautiful, compelling message, thank you.
So thank you, Mark and Felix,for sharing your vision and
passion with us today.
To our listeners, thank you fortuning in to SAUSD's Amplifying
Leadership.
Remember, your local schoolcommunity isn't limited to just
the students, families andeducators found in our schools
(18:53):
and homes.
It also includes the businessesand organizations that often
support our daily lives beyondthe classroom.
Partnerships that offermeaningful work-based learning
experiences are a powerful tooland another key to student
success.
Until next time, stay inspired,stay motivated and continue to
(19:13):
amplify the positive impact youhave on those around you.
Popular Podcasts
On Purpose with Jay Shetty
I’m Jay Shetty host of On Purpose the worlds #1 Mental Health podcast and I’m so grateful you found us. I started this podcast 5 years ago to invite you into conversations and workshops that are designed to help make you happier, healthier and more healed. I believe that when you (yes you) feel seen, heard and understood you’re able to deal with relationship struggles, work challenges and life’s ups and downs with more ease and grace. I interview experts, celebrities, thought leaders and athletes so that we can grow our mindset, build better habits and uncover a side of them we’ve never seen before. New episodes every Monday and Friday. Your support means the world to me and I don’t take it for granted — click the follow button and leave a review to help us spread the love with On Purpose. I can’t wait for you to listen to your first or 500th episode!
The Breakfast Club
The World's Most Dangerous Morning Show, The Breakfast Club, With DJ Envy And Charlamagne Tha God!
The Joe Rogan Experience
The official podcast of comedian Joe Rogan.