Page 9 - AnnualReportFlip-2014
P. 9
A Chance to Accept Who I Really Am
Dyanni – age 16
Queens, NY
Dyanni was raised in a loving home by two loving parents. But his circle of Dyanni says his workforce development program is his irst real work
friends was loose, undisciplined, and running wild. To it in, Dyanni followed experience, and it has taught him to socialize with peers constructively and
suit—ighting, running away from home, and acting out. Everything suffered: interact with adults. “I like working. It’s helped me learn to become a man
his relationship with his parents, his grades, and his hope for the future. and take responsibility for my actions,” Dyanni says. He says he also likes
the satisfaction of earning a paycheck—and spending some of it on clothes
Dyanni’s parents, as well as teachers and administrators at his home school, and sneakers.
the Queens High School of Teaching, Liberal Arts and the Sciences, knew that
Dyanni was a kid with potential. But they feared they would lose him to the As for his future, Dyanni plans to join the United States Marine Corps. He says
streets or the justice system without swift intervention. So, the school referred he is attracted by its structure and discipline—words that would have repelled
Dyanni to Berkshire’s Twombly Leadership Academy, a residential program that him eight months earlier. Ultimately, Dyanni wants to attend college and become
provides specialized educational services, workforce development opportunities, an engineer like his dad.
and therapeutic recreational activities.
“I want to be a highly educated male who helps people,” Dyanni says. “I’ve
Initially, Dyanni was reluctant to leave his friends, family, and neighborhood. learned that there’s a time and a place for everything—for fun, for school,
But eight months later, Dyanni credits much of his newfound success and and for work.”
perspective to his time spent—and lessons learned—at Berkshire.
“Berkshire gives you a chance to
“I come from a close family. I love them, and they love me. My problem was
a maturity thing. I had trouble with authority, and I got upset if I didn’t get my turn yourself around.”
way,” Dyanni explains. “Now I understand that in real life, you simply don’t
always get your way.”
Through perseverance in the classroom and hard work in Berkshire’s vending
services program, Dyanni has learned how to resolve conlict and frustration
without “getting physical.” He is excelling in his classes. Best of all, he says he
now understands who he really is and who he wants to become—a person who
acts differently from the one he left behind in Queens.
“My core self is a kind, loving, good person. I never knew that before because
I wore a mask that was tough and disrespectful so I could it in. Now I’m living
life as my core self. There’s no more mask,” Dyanni says. “I’m happy.”
Dyanni – age 16
Queens, NY
Dyanni was raised in a loving home by two loving parents. But his circle of Dyanni says his workforce development program is his irst real work
friends was loose, undisciplined, and running wild. To it in, Dyanni followed experience, and it has taught him to socialize with peers constructively and
suit—ighting, running away from home, and acting out. Everything suffered: interact with adults. “I like working. It’s helped me learn to become a man
his relationship with his parents, his grades, and his hope for the future. and take responsibility for my actions,” Dyanni says. He says he also likes
the satisfaction of earning a paycheck—and spending some of it on clothes
Dyanni’s parents, as well as teachers and administrators at his home school, and sneakers.
the Queens High School of Teaching, Liberal Arts and the Sciences, knew that
Dyanni was a kid with potential. But they feared they would lose him to the As for his future, Dyanni plans to join the United States Marine Corps. He says
streets or the justice system without swift intervention. So, the school referred he is attracted by its structure and discipline—words that would have repelled
Dyanni to Berkshire’s Twombly Leadership Academy, a residential program that him eight months earlier. Ultimately, Dyanni wants to attend college and become
provides specialized educational services, workforce development opportunities, an engineer like his dad.
and therapeutic recreational activities.
“I want to be a highly educated male who helps people,” Dyanni says. “I’ve
Initially, Dyanni was reluctant to leave his friends, family, and neighborhood. learned that there’s a time and a place for everything—for fun, for school,
But eight months later, Dyanni credits much of his newfound success and and for work.”
perspective to his time spent—and lessons learned—at Berkshire.
“Berkshire gives you a chance to
“I come from a close family. I love them, and they love me. My problem was
a maturity thing. I had trouble with authority, and I got upset if I didn’t get my turn yourself around.”
way,” Dyanni explains. “Now I understand that in real life, you simply don’t
always get your way.”
Through perseverance in the classroom and hard work in Berkshire’s vending
services program, Dyanni has learned how to resolve conlict and frustration
without “getting physical.” He is excelling in his classes. Best of all, he says he
now understands who he really is and who he wants to become—a person who
acts differently from the one he left behind in Queens.
“My core self is a kind, loving, good person. I never knew that before because
I wore a mask that was tough and disrespectful so I could it in. Now I’m living
life as my core self. There’s no more mask,” Dyanni says. “I’m happy.”
