An iCan Dream Center High School Alumni Reflects Life Six Months After Graduation

My name is Martina. I graduated from my public high school in May after spending three semesters completing my high school credits at iCan Dream Center.

Everyone keeps asking me what I’m doing — college, job, program — but honestly, I still don’t know. I feel like I don’t belong anywhere.

All my life, I’ve been in special classes. Not because I couldn’t learn, but because school was just hard — the noise, the chaos, the way teachers talked fast and expected you to just keep up. In those classes, a lot of the kids had more obvious disabilities. Some were in wheelchairs. Some didn’t talk. Some drooled or couldn’t read. I always felt bad for them, but I didn’t feel like I was one of them either.

But when I tried regular classes, I didn’t feel safe there either. The work moved too fast, and the teachers didn’t really understand me. I’d get anxious, zone out, or get in trouble for not trying when really, my brain was just overloaded.

It’s like I was always in between — I felt like I was too “high” for special ed, but I knew the school knew I was too “different and low-functioning” for the regular crowd.

I can read fine — not War and Peace — but I love graphic novels. I get the storylines and plots, especially when they’re complicated.

Math was okay until algebra. Consumer math and economics made more sense because they were about real life. I can easily figure out a percentage for a 20 percent discount and I have a decent understanding of how a checking and savings account works.

In high school, I tried to do what I had to do to get by and finish.

Socially, I never knew where to land. My ADHD and autism make me feel awkward and anxious.

I didn’t like clubs or sports.

I tried bowling once. I actually like bowling, but when I missed my cue, the coach raised her voice at me for not listening. It wasn’t that I didn’t care — it’s just that all the sounds and lights made my brain scramble. After that, I didn’t go back.

I like stuff like Dungeons & Dragons and Warhammer, but the kids in those clubs were in AP classes. They played smart — like, math-smart, strategy-smart. I always felt out of place there.

People say I should go to college, maybe become a medical terminology transcriptionist because I love health and I am good at computers. But I can’t. I mean, I could physically go, and community college would let me in, but mentally — I don’t think I’d make it.

School gave me trauma. The idea of sitting in another classroom, trying to “fit in,” makes my stomach twist. I’d be anxious all the time. Fight or flight, every day. I’d inevitably fail out from frozen brain syndrome.

Daily life is already hard enough. Keeping my clothes clean, remembering appointments, setting alarms — it’s all a mess.

My brain doesn’t keep track of things like it should. I missed a job fair last week. I wanted to go. I just forgot. No, not even forgot — I saw it on my calendar, and then my brain went blank, like someone pulled the plug.

I think what I need isn’t more school. I need someone to coach me — to help me figure out how to do life, one step at a time. Not a teacher, not a therapist, just someone who gets me. Because I’m not lazy. I’m not dumb. I just get lost.

And I’m tired of feeling like I don’t belong anywhere.

Waiting to be Found

At iCan Dream Center, we know this student all too well.

She is bright, capable, and deeply self-aware.

Martina graduated high school last May — a proud milestone for her family and for us. But since then, she has been drifting.

This young person is the classic profile of our high school credit recovery student.

She spent her school years navigating special education — always somewhere in between. Too “high-functioning” for some settings, but too anxious, misunderstood, and academically behind for others.

Academically, she somehow managed to “get through” four years of high school.

Socially, she struggled to find belonging.

The big, traditional high school system didn’t fit. When she was too credit deficient to be on track to graduate, Martina’s high school sent her to iCan Dream Center.

Here, Martina met educators who helped her discover that she has a purpose.

For the first time in her education, Martina told Mr. Matt that something she had felt in her heart forever was true all along: She does have abilities.

When students like Martina graduate but do not enroll in our Transition Program, we worry. We know how quickly isolation, executive functioning challenges, and limited support can cause young adults with disabilities to lose momentum.

Without ongoing academic coaching, behavioral health support, and vocational mentorship, daily life can become overwhelming.

Small setbacks — missing an interview, forgetting an appointment, losing motivation — can snowball into long-term disconnection from education and employment.

And Martina is right. Special education transition programs do not “look like her.”

Many students perceive post-high school special education as being for peers with more visible and profound disabilities. They don’t see themselves reflected there — and that gap really matters.

A Call to the Entire Community

What happens to capable young adults with learning differences after they cross the graduation stage?

Where do they go when they’re too “high-functioning” for one setting but not supported enough for another?

How do we ensure that their potential isn’t lost in the space between special education and real opportunity?

And how do we prevent disaffected young people from becoming involved with the criminal justice system?

These are the questions we face every day at iCan Dream Center.

And here’s what we know:

These young people can succeed. They can work. They can live independently, contribute, and thrive — when the right programming, mentorship, wraparound support, and belonging are in place.

We know the answer. We’ve seen it work. What we need now, and more than ever, is a groundswell of  partnership to make it possible for more young people.

So, we invite the community — educators, elected officials, employers, colleges, families — to stand with us in reimagining what’s next.

Because when we invest in young people who have never quite fit anywhere, we discover something powerful: they belong everywhere.

Next Steps

We’re calling on families and community members to get involved with us at iCan Dream Center.

• Join the conversation. When we announce opportunities in 2026, join a focus group, serve on an advisory board, participate in an upcoming community listening session.
• Share your story. Help elevate the voices of young adults navigating life after high school special education. Tell us their story. We will amplify it.
• Support. End of the year giving season is here. Donate. Volunteer. Spread awareness about iCan Dream Center’s mission.

We know what works — we see it every day. But we can’t do it alone. We need employers ready to mentor, families and civic leaders who believe that every young adult deserves a bridge, not a cliff, to get involved. We need every voice to join us.