“It’s really cool to think of the kid that started at Rosa Parks, not knowing the language at all and leading this convocation for their peers. It’s a cool feeling.”

The night before Raul Moreno started kindergarten in 2005 at Rosa Parks Elementary, his father taught him two things: how to ask for water and how to ask to use the restroom. Immigrating to the United States from Mexico, Raul did not speak English. He was beginning kindergarten behind his peers both academically and socially. School was not an enjoyable place for him. In fact, he cried daily at the thought of having to go to that dreadful place.

Day by day though, things got better. Raul was in the English Language Learners program and began to make friends. By middle school, he was involved in extracurricular activities and keeping up academically. Raul was realizing his own potential. He continued to work hard. By the time Raul reached high school, he surpassed his peers academically and was at the top of his class. Raul was Perry Meridian High School’s class of 2018’s valedictorian!

After high school, Raul studied physics and international law at Indiana University. He is now studying at the University of Washington, where he is earning a PhD in atmospheric science. Raul is part of a research group that published a paper on their AI forecasting model that predicts weather patterns 1,000 years into the future! Raul believes his education in Perry Township Schools is one contributing factor to his success now.

Raul’s story is one of many in a series called We Grow Kids. In Perry Township Schools we often use the expression “We Grow Kids.” But what exactly does that mean? It means that no matter where our students are in life, no matter the challenges they face, Perry Township Schools is going to ensure it does whatever necessary to help them succeed. We do that by meeting academic, social and behavioral needs. Through the perspective of the students, these videos illustrate exactly what we mean when we say, ‘We Grow Kids.’