About Us

From the Portland Metro Area.
Joined as a 9th grader in the Fall of 2016.  

I always liked that I could work from home at my own pace and that I could also come attend Live classes and enrichment options on campus. It’s been 4 years, I’m a senior planning to graduate with Summit this June.

I have had many wonderful experiences with Summit, it will be hard to leave.  The subjects that I’ve take have challenged me to strive to be my very best.  The teachers and staff at Summit are always available in person, email online or even text; whenever I had had a question on needed support with a subject.

I stutter and struggle sometimes to articulate what I need to say.  This has never been an issue with Summit staff.  They are always patient and let me have the time I need to speak.  Enrichment courses such as Orchestra and Leadership have taught me to put myself out there despite my speech disability and become a leader among my peers and community.

This in turn gave me the confidence to pursue courses at the community college through Summit’s Early College program.  In am now attending my third term at community college while still finishing up my Summit courses, and I am going strong.

My goals are to graduate from Summit this June, 2020 and continue working hard at community college for the next one to two years, working on a degree in Computer Science. I then plan to transfer to a four-year college and obtain a bachelors degree in computer science. I would like to be a game programmer and work for Nintendo of America.

“No matter how hard something gets, Don’t quit”- Josh Davis

It’s 2020 and I’m a freshman at Berkeley majoring in Computer Science. I am a very proud graduate from Summit’s Early College program for two year. I chose Summit’s Early College because it gave me incredible freedom: I could pick my courses, pick my teachers, pick the days I wanted to go to school and pick what months I could go to Europe for rock climbing and travel.

Before each term, my Advisor Heather Stouder encouraged me to explain my interests and hopes. She reviewed the Oregon guidelines to make sure I was on track to graduate and was always able to answer questions from me and my parents. I also had PCC advisors to draw on. And, since some of my community college classes had as few as 10-15 students, I got to know teachers really well. They advised me, supported me and wrote me great recommendations. Thanks to Summit and PCC, I am now very comfortable at Berkeley meeting professors and advisors about my education. I’ve done it already for two years.

After two years supported by Summit, I graduated with a high school degree, an Associate of Arts degree and an Associate of Science degree. And, while I am now enrolled as a freshman at Berkeley, many of my community college credits were accepted so my official status is as a Junior. Additionally, when I apply for jobs and internships, my resume shows I finished an Associates degree during high school proving I am a dedicated learner.

I’m always proud to say I graduated from SLC and talk about the flexibility and opportunities their program gave me in high school. I think most importantly, SLC provided me a bigger world than a just a regular high school campus.

Sonja’s parents statement: When we encouraged Sonja to think about early college some friends thought we were pushing our daughter to finish high school faster. No. Instead, we were encouraging her to choose a program with the biggest life menu and opportunities. Summit’s Faculty know their students and families are looking for an enriching experience – not a conventional high school degree. Thank you Summit Learning Charter for your extraordinary support, flexibility and kindness.