A lot of students want to drive a car. Truly, a dream of many: to have their own good looking car, drive all around LA, and not rely on their parents’ time to take them somewhere. To summarize: freedom. Well, this year, many students came a couple of steps closer to their dream by signing up for Driver’s Ed – a new free program offered to us by the YMCA. The classes started on August 25th, and the participants have entered their two week journey, getting familiar with the details.
Students are required to complete 40 hours of Driver’s Ed to obtain their permit. Katelynn Haro, an instructor and counselor with the YMCA, states that this program was started to teach the students how to drive, gain new skills, and learn something new about themselves, since this is not the only after school program they provide.
William Komas, who takes position of a Psych Coordinator for NAHS in the YMCA, added that this program is important because it is not just about learning how to drive, but rather about gaining confidence – the first step of the long process of learning how to trust yourself.
This program started only last year, so the hosts do not have a lot of reviews yet. Haro claims that it is important to learn how to drive in this age because driving is a privilege, and not everyone has the opportunity to learn how to drive in this age. Driving is an experience everyone should feel as it builds confidence in themselves. The hosts also revealed that this year an overwhelming amount of students wanted to sign up only for the Driver’s Ed program – not to mention the rest of the afters school activities. Though, they were able to only accept 40 students.
“The reason for this number to be so big might be that it’s a big thing in High School!”, suggested Komas. So far, the students are not found struggling with this activity, as well as the rest. But if they are, the coaches will handle the problems in the best way possible. The YMCA does everything they can for the program to be as accessible and easy to grasp as possible.
The Driver’s Ed program is free, as well as many others: Drumline, Guitar Lessons, and some of the upcoming ones that the YMCA is hoping to get, Dance, Filmmaking, Cooking, and many more, so students can come and experience the programs, gain more confidence, and explore themselves in many more ways.
Northridge Academy High School is one of the lucky schools to be chosen to be a part of the Driver’s Ed program. Katelynn acknowledged that the reason we were chosen was LAUSD has given them the opportunity to host the programs in two Northridge locations: VAAS and NAHS. Our school is one of the lucky ones. They added that this program gives enough resources and materials for students to be ready for the actual exam, that some of us are pretty nervous about.
Both Komas and Haro admit that they would have loved for a program like this to have been in their high school. “Some schools, including the one I went to, just can’t afford the resources to teach these kinds of skills that the YMCA offers. If the YMCA were in my high school? I’d love to have taken a photography class or a filmmaking class. It’s truly an experience that everyone should do while they can!”, states Haro.
During an interview, Komas jokingly said “The permit class that I had was next to a different high school, in a different neighborhood, and I had to beg my mom to drop me off here.”
Komas was also not joking when he claimed that “There was a parrot in the corner, and a large tortoise in a small kitty pool. And the parrot would go ‘Trrrr’, making weird phone call sounds, because its a parrot! And there were different birds and stuff… I- I could barely concentrate.” Truly, an example a lot of us can relate to.
Many schools – in the past and today – cannot afford to have school programs such as the ones the YMCA is offering us this year. Easy to grasp material and friendly staff are willing to help you explore your creative self. Room 103 welcomes newcomers, and offers an “After School Program Application”, so it is never late to start something new.
