The Stories & Insights That Matter
Bethel Grad Pedro Suazo: ‘The Teachers Told Me Not to Give Up’
Pedro Suazo is 20. It wasn’t so long ago that he thought he’d never walk across the stage to receive his high school diploma. The seemingly mile-high obstacle in his way — geometry. At his former, tra...
BAA Class of 2023 Celebrates: ‘I Finally Did It!’
Austin Bernardo didn’t want to settle for his GED. So when the Washington State skies opened and poured down rain on his walk to Bethel Acceleration Academies (BAA), he would just keep on walking. “Ev...
Bethel Grad Christian Gentele: ‘I Got Two Years Done in One’
At his old school, Christian Gentele was a standout football player and popular kid. But an excess of extracurriculars and a lack of discipline in his coursework made him fall further and further behi...
Bethel Grads Realize Their Dreams and Offer Their Thanks
A mom trying to make a good life for her baby boy; a young man who needed a push to get back on track; a group of young men and women for whom traditional high school was simply not the right fit — al...
BAA Grad Trista White: ‘Acceleration Academies Has Really Changed My Life for the Better’
When her baby Esme was born with her intestines outside her body, Trista White and the child’s dad lived in the hospital room for months, supporting their child as doctors performed surgery after sur...
Jaden Bell: Coming Out — and Into Their Own at BAA
After facing hostility due to their non-binary gender identification at a traditional high school, Jaden Bell transferred to Bethel Acceleration Academies. There, educators welcomed Jaden exactly as t...
When Velliesa Castellano needed help, she found it at BAA
For Velliesa Castellano, the traditional in-person and online school opportunities just didn’t work. Only when she found her way to Bethel Acceleration Academies and its blend of the two approaches di...
Jax Randles: ‘I Never Thought I’d be Able to Go to School Again’
Jax Randles began dropping out of school in 6th grade. And while officials would bring him to truancy court time and again, he never fully went back — until he found his way to Bethel Acceleration Aca...
BAA Grad Rachel Tudela: ‘It’s Never Too Late’
Rachel Tudela had her first child in January. She loves being a mom and looks forward to sharing her love of sports with her daughter, to helping her grow into her best possible self. She’ll be able t...
Acceleration Academies Grad: ‘I’m Just Really Grateful’
These days, Hannah Merritt is a 25-year-old mother of three, a nurse starting a new job in a methadone clinic, and a woman dedicating herself to being a great mom and helping people throw off the shac...
Bethel Rolls Out Sixth Grad Caravan
Story and photos by Matt Baide Even though the pandemic is slowly winding down and things are returning to normal(ish), there are still some things that haven’t returned, including traditional graduat...
Celebrating the Tassel Despite the Hassle: Bethel Acceleration Academy Brings Commencement to Grads
By Matt Baide Colorful balloons, bright graduation signs and lots of cheers and noisemakers followed the Bethel Acceleration Academy staff during the second graduation caravan of the summer in August....