Kyle Lintao
Student / Dreamer
The ACLC Experience
Personal Qualities
Of all the influential factors in my life, ACLC has had the impact on the person that I am today. Unlike many other younger learners that have had the excellent opportunity of learning social skills at an earlier age, I started out at ACLC as a high schooler looking to make a new identity for himself. Previously, I was a relatively enthusiastic person, most of the time a bit over enthusiastic for others’ taste. As the stereotypical freshman entering high school with unreasonably high hopes, I was not ready for the burdens I was to be facing. The harsh peers, hurtful words, and lack of support led to the breaking down of my usually cheerful, enthusiastic spirit. When I came to ACLC, the community guided the rebuilding of my self-confidence. Whether it was the tight-knit community, the community’s open minded, accepting attitude, or the good vibes being shared, I was transformed from someone who feared interaction with others to someone who loves making new friends and lasting relationships.
New Basics
ACLC has taught me, as well as my other classmates, many important “new basics”. The most relevant “new basics” to the person I am and the person I want to be is mathematics. I truly believe that mathematics is the key to my future because it is a large majority of my career path. Math has been my passion since I was young. At the time, my parents would make me do pages on pages of math assignments even if they weren’t for school, but I grew to appreciate it and love it. Now I’m proud and ashamed to say that it is the only class that I don’t fall asleep in because numbers are just more interesting to me than words. I often apply math to many parts of my life. I would be shopping on amazon and calculating the tax of the products i am buying and looking for better deals, I would help my mom with her taxes, and I would keep track of my stocks.
Thinking and Reasoning Skills
A significant part of the curriculum at ACLC is teaching learners how to use critical thinking and reasoning. The subjects that most stimulated and developed these skills were English and History. In these classes, I’ve learned different ways of thinking, questioning, and analyzing. These skills have led to more everyday uses like practicality, decision making,and understanding my surroundings. These skills will follow and guide me throughout my life. It has shown me that my desicion comes with some weight to it. It impacts others around me as well as myself, and the ripple effect is really noticable when the community is as tight-knit as ACLC.
Interpersonal Abilities
Interpersonal ability is one of my more honed skills. I have been on both ends of leadership and peer criticism, and i know what it's like to have a bad leader and listener. As a leader, ACLC has taught me to set a good example for the younger learners, leave room for input, and be able to participate and voice my opinions. These skills were not taught in a formal class like Leadership, I simply observed them every day.
Technology
Technology is undoubtedly a very important aspect of ACLC. Whether it be the personal devices that learners bring to school or the computers in the center, ACLC utilizes these tools to maximize the capability to learn. The technology that ACLC provides may not be top of the line, but it is suffice. Above all else technology is a tool, and if used correctly is a grace that will make assignments and projects much easier. As Maya Angelou once said “Nothing will work unless you do.”