Beaumont, CA – At just over six feet tall, Dwayne Wallace is nearly impossible to miss in the small Beaumont High School library. When Wallace told the group of students gathered inside how he attended the prestigious University of California, Berkeley; played in the NFL; and published a book, nobody could overlook him. Many of the students listening to Wallace’s story are either in the foster care system, dealing with a lack of housing, or struggling with chronic absenteeism. They were in attendance as part of the Beaumont High School’s effort to support marginalized students.
Assistant Principal Dawn Brandon focuses a portion of her work on supporting foster youth and unhoused students at the high school. It is not only a local issue. Nearly 4% of enrolled students in Riverside County reported experiencing a lack of housing at some point during their academic year in 2022-23 according to the Public Policy Institute of California. The economic reasons behind the percentage is varied, but rising housing costs and low wages is one contributing factor according to a study released by the University of California, San Francisco.
Beaumont High School Counselor Renisha Warren, alongside Brandon, has partnered with the Riverside County Office of Education’s Foster Youth Initiative to provide needed support to this vulnerable population. Warren, with a modest caseload of over 300 students, has one student enrolled in the program. Students who are invited to participate in the program receive a modest stipend of $500 and meet each week with professionals who guide them in life-building skills, such as how to apply to college and access resources. “The students say the benefit of the program far outweighs the money. One of my students said she is ‘really sad because eventually the program is going to end,’” explained Warren. “These kids are afraid to leave the people they built relationships with.”
Brandon and Warren, along with the generous support of Riverside County Office of Education Chief Academic Officer Amanda Corridan, were able to secure the professional athlete to share his personal story of success––having overcome his own challenges as a foster child.
“I’m supposed to be a statistic,” Wallace told the group. “I never thought that the NFL would be a place that I would ever be in my life, just because of my background––getting in fights at school; getting kicked out.” He added, “It doesn’t matter where you are right now in your life, you always have the ability to turn it around.” With confidence, a mentor, and a plan, Wallace explained, you can do anything.
Brandon reflected on the presentation and hopes students realize that “Even if things get difficult, don't go around the issue. Go over it. If you keep trying to get around issues, you're never going to get up and over it,” said Brandon.
Thanks to the purchase of dozens of Wallace’s books by Principal Drew Scherrer, students were invited to receive a signed copy. As evidence of student’s interest in Wallace’s message, a line quickly formed to get an autograph, with many students asking Wallace for career advice. One young man approached Wallace with an outstretched hand. Unsettled, the student extended his hand again, telling Wallace that he would like to try that again––this time, with more confidence.