James Ingebretson stands at attention with other cadets at the Washington Youth Academy. He, along with Steven Tanninen, both from the Battle Ground area, recently graduated from the Washington Youth Academy.
Steven Tanninen
James Ingebretson
The Washington Youth Academy recently graduated two cadets from the Battle Ground area — James Ingebretson and Steven Tanninen.
Along with completing the program, each cadet received honors in academic achievement and will now return to Summit View High School. In all, 143 cadets graduated.
The school in Bremerton helps at-risk teens from each corner of the state, bringing students to live on campus for 22 weeks to help them recover missing credits so they can go back to high school and earn a diploma. The school also teaches job skills and life-coping mechanisms.
“Cadets have performed 9,221 hours of service to the community and that is worth over $277,000 in value to the community,” Director Larry Pierce said during commencement. “Cadets learn the intrinsic value of giving back to others without the expectation of anything.”
The mission of the Washington Youth Academy is to provide a highly disciplined, safe and professional learning environment that empowers at-risk youth to improve their educational levels and employment potential and become responsible and productive citizens of the state of Washington.
Established under authority of both federal and state law, the Washington Youth Academy is a state-run residential and post-residential intervention program for youth who have dropped out of high school or are at risk of dropping out. After living on campus for nearly half a year, they return to their home community with the support of counselors and case managers and a mentor over the course of at least another year.
— Source: Washington Youth Academy
