13 earn diplomas through program to help truant youths

No matter how a person stumbles, they always have the chance to catch their footing and right their path.

This is a concept embodied by the Step Program, a summertime initiative operated by Nye County Juvenile Probation that is geared toward students who have had issues with truancy in school. As Nye County Juvenile Probation Officer and Truancy Officer Robert Martinez explained, it’s intended as a method of helping youth develop self-confidence, good decision-making and other skills critical for success.

The 2023 Step Program concluded last month and a formal graduation ceremony was held to honor this year’s 13 graduates.

“These kids have been amazing,” Martinez remarked as he opened the ceremony on July 13. He then turned it over to a variety of guest speakers, all of whom offered advice for the teens.

“The only thing you have power over is the decisions that you make,” juvenile probation officer Adam McCauley told the students. “One of the most important decisions you can make is attending school and getting an education. An education is one of the most valuable things you will ever receive. It’s what shapes you into a proper human being. It allows you to gain knowledge about the world around you and become wiser. It also fosters values such as discipline, confidence, empathy and teamwork… It’s what gives meaning to your life. Always remember that a proper education is a must to succeed.”

As part of the 2023 STEP program, the youth participated in building brand new beds for Sleep in Heavenly Peace, a nonprofit organization whose mission is to ensure that no child has to sleep on the floor. To show their appreciation, leaders with the Nye County chapter of Sleep in Heavenly Peace attended the graduation and shared a few words as well.

“You don’t know how very much it means to our organization that you guys made those beds,” a visibly emotional Michelle Caird told the youth. “It’s over the top incredible and those beds will go out to kids who have sleeping conditions that are not good. And you all know that sleeping in a bed, getting a good night’s sleep, helps you do better in school and have fewer social issues. You are helping kids to have a better life, really.”

She thanked each and every one of this year’s 13 Step Program participants, noting that they had all contributed to making a difference for their fellow youth. These included Ryan Sidhu, Avery Weber, Jose Hernandez, Ashlyn Ellison, Jesse D’Obrenovic, Kahlah Kinsey, Gilbert Lopez, Aubrey Finseth and Elijah D’Obrenovic. A few of the graduates had made particularly deep impressions on Sleep in Heavenly Peace’s volunteers, however, and Caird had special certificates of recognition to present to Alyssa Ruiz, Christy Lozano, Josefina Castro, Elianna Carmona and Beau Pectol.

Fifth Judicial District Court Judge Robert Lane and Pahrump Valley High Principal Desiree Veloz spoke too, as did a professor from the University of Nevada, Las Vegas, before it was the students’ turn to take to the podium.

Martinez explained for the audience that he had posed a question to the group of teens at the start of the program, asking what adults need to know to do a better job helping youth grow up. In response, they created a speech which Ruiz took the lead on presenting.

“We are the assumed. People assume we are troublemakers, people assume we will rebel. We are your sons and daughters, and/or kids you love like your own children. People assume we are lazy and unreachable when what we want is more teacher and human interaction, and less technology,” Ruiz recited. “People assume that we have the same struggles that they did when in fact, we realize that mental health issues are on the rise and there is very little time or education spent on it.

“People assume that we just don’t want to go to school when in fact, sometimes the battles we face in our own head make it hard to even get out of bed on Sundays. People assume we are quiet and don’t want to talk when in fact, all we want is to be listened to, to be talked to, not talked at. People assume that we are disrespectful and uncaring when in fact, we see the teachers and staff suffering. We see you. We see and feel the burnout. We see and hear how defeated they are. We see the importance more than ever for mental health awareness and training, for adults as well as us,” Ruiz continued.

“People assume that this generation is lost when all we really want is for what we do to matter. We want to know we matter. It’s a whole new world and we think it’s time that education and how we are taught catches up, not forces us to slow down. We are Generation Z, we are survivors of the pandemic, our worlds cross between real life and social media, we are asked to go to schools that are battlegrounds. We are a generation of kids whose future is uncertain and we are craving the skills and support we need to survive. We are the assumed and we will fight. We just want to know you are willing to fight with us,” she concluded.

“They were amazing, these youth did so well this year,” Amanda Balog of the NyE Communities Coalition, which assists with aspects of the Step Program, told the Pahrump Valley Times. “You know, they were here because they were truant in school and for them to show up every single day for this program, for the entire six weeks, that’s a big deal. I am just glowing because I am so proud.”

Contact reporter Robin Hebrock at rhebrock@pvtimes.com