During the first week of second semester last year, then-junior Hannah King was called down to the office. She already knew what Dean Jen Hein was going to say. After failing four classes first semester, King knew that she had to leave Community High.

“I started to cry before I went into the office and before they even said anything,” she said.

King had two options: she could transfer to Skyline for the rest of high school, or she could transfer to Ann Arbor Technical High School (A2 Tech) in the hope of returning to Community before graduation. After much debate, King chose to enroll at A2 Tech.

“I can’t see myself graduating anywhere else besides Community,” she said. Since King wants to be a photographer, she felt that it was very important to be able to come back to CHS for its unique art program.

For King, starting high school at CHS was hard in the beginning, but got better as the year went on. She made new friends and got good grades. It wasn’t until sophomore year that her grades began to slip.

A combination of things caused this slip. King has depression and ADHD. Sophomore year, she stopped taking her medication for a few months.

“I felt like I didn’t need them, so I stopped taking them and it ruined everything,” she said.

King was also dealing with emotional stress from her friends and family at the time. She finished sophomore year with a 2.5 GPA.

Junior year started off fine, but then King began to stop doing her homework and paying attention in class. Instead, she was on her phone texting friends during class.

“I put social life ahead of schoolwork,” she said.

As the year went on, King reached a point where she never turned any work in.

“If I did the homework, which I rarely did, I didn’t turn it in because I was so worried that I would get it wrong and I wouldn’t get the points for it,” she said.

She was left with no other choice but to leave Community.

However, King felt like she did not belong at A2 Tech.

“A lot of kids there had done something wrong, and I felt like I had done something wrong for failing four classes, which I had, and it was just hard,” said King.

However, King found school to at A2 Tech to be less pressure than at Community. She felt like she understood the work and the material since she had taken the classes before. This gave her more confidence, and she was able to turn all of her work in. King was motivated to return to CHS.

One of the hardest things for King was leaving her friends at Community, because she knew that the change it would cause in her relationships was inevitable.

“I still hung out with them, but we kind of grew apart,” she said.

When she returned to CHS this fall, it was also a somewhat difficult adjustment.

“I was afraid since all my friends last year were seniors that I wouldn’t have any friends and that I would just fail my classes again,” she said.

This was not the case. For King, this year has been easier than she thought it would be, and after taking a few summer school classes, she is currently on track to graduate.

This year, King has overcome her fear of turning work in. She now seeks out help when she needs it.

“Now that I’m a senior, and I need to graduate and I want to graduate, I will turn it in even though I’m scared,” she said. “Or, I will go to the teacher and ask for help, something that I never did before I came back… I’m more motivated to succeed.”

Even though high school has been hard for King, she never considered dropping out.

“I knew that [my mom] would be really upset with me and I would be upset with myself if I didn’t finish high school,” said King. “I didn’t want to be like someone who didn’t finish high school and didn’t go to college. I really want to go to college and become a photographer and get my dream job.”

King feels lucky that she was allowed back into Community and that she was able to refocus her academics. Even though she felt like she did not belong, for King, transferring to A2 Tech was a great decision.

“I just needed to get back on track and to motivate myself to do better, and being at A2 Tech helped me do that and now I am so thankful that I’m back and I’m so thankful that Dean Jen let me back into Community.”