Introducing KIPP to My Hometown of Compton
By Kalia Lopez, KIPP LA Schools student
My name is Kalia Lopez and I have been a proud resident of Compton for my whole life. My father’s entire family was raised in Compton and attended Dominguez High School. Five days a week, my little sister and I run with Compton’s Imani Speed City with the same coach who trained my mom when she was a little girl. During the holidays, my family and I love to give back to our Compton neighbors by providing meals to our brothers and sisters in need. I am very proud to call Compton my home and fellow Compton residents my family.
In addition to Compton, I am a member of another community and tight-knit family — at KIPP Academy of Innovation, a public charter school in East LA where I am an eighth grader. At my school, I see the same values that Compton cherishes reflected back at me: being kind to your neighbors, working hard, and always being proud of who you are and where you come from. That’s why I was excited to hear that a KIPP school will be opening in Compton next year.
Walking down the hallway of my KIPP school feels like hanging out in the Compton Town Center, where everyone knows me by name and says hello. My teachers, and even the school leader, know my mom and will always let her know how I’m doing in school. Both KIPP and Compton give me a sense of belonging — which is why I know KIPP will be a great fit in the Compton community and be an excellent public school for local families.
The sense of love and community are not the only things I’m excited for my family, friends, and neighbors to experience. KIPP prides itself on preparing all students for success in college and life. Once I started at KIPP, higher education was no longer a question but a certainty. Each and every one of our classrooms is named after a college, from Cal State Los Angeles to Stanford. In my home room, we have Syracuse University pennants hanging on the walls to remind us every day of what we are striving for. The focus on college starts early at KIPP LA — my younger sister is a first-grader, at KIPP Promesa Prep, where she learns every day in the Stanford University classroom.
KIPP taught me that no matter my background, I can achieve anything I put my mind to by working hard, being nice and staying humble. I know that even when I graduate from KIPP, they will help me navigate applying to colleges and for financial aid. Thanks to the strong support net of teachers, classmates and KIPP staff, my dream of attending Harvard, studying medicine at UCLA and becoming a neurosurgeon is within my reach. I plan to travel the world and help people, but I know that in the end, I will come back to my hometown, and thanks to KIPP’s support, serve the people of the great City of Compton.
I know that KIPP will be able to support my fellow Compton residents, just like it did me, in following their dreams.
Hear from KIPP Compton Community School founding school leader, LeAnna Majors, and learn more here.
