Top row (from left to right): Ms. Meghan Arnold, Dr. Miracle Green, Mr. Jesse Desmuke. Bottom row (from left to right): Ms. Elizabeth Cottrell, Mr. Eddie Provident, Ms. Katie Campbell.

Much can be said about City High's educational pursuits, but one thing most people can consistently agree on is the importance of the unique bonds formed between staff and students in the school community. In fact, some former students were so inspired by their time at City High that they returned after continuing their education to positively impact future generations of students.

Mr. Eddie Provident (Class of 2007), Dr. Miracle Green (Class of 2013), Ms. Katie Campbell (Class of 2015), Ms. Elizabeth Cottrell (Class of 2016), Mr. Jesse Desmuke (Class of 2018) and Ms. Meghan Arnold (Class of 2018) are not only teaching the City High model, but they thrived in it as students. When asked, each highlighted different hallmarks of the City High experience that make it stand out in comparison to other schools in the Pittsburgh region. 

"Because of the looping system, I was able to build long-lasting connections with the staff here," said Dr. Green.

From her role in the Internship office, Dr. Green is now able to give current students the opportunity to build lasting relationships with community organizations; connections that can often lead to future career opportunities.

"I got to go on the Costa Rice trip which was a very formative and cool experience for me," Ms. Cottrell shared when asked about her favorite memory as a student.

The Costa Rica trip is one of the most memorable trips that students get to experience during their time at City High. Focused on service-based learning, up to twenty select students spend the school year leading up to the trip doing community service work and hiking to prepare for the experience and the sometimes challenging terrain. Students get the chance to experience a different culture and travel, but they also leave with lasting memories and stronger bonds with their classmates, and an understanding of how much positive impact they can make in the world.

"The fact that we have classes in technology, career, and information literacy really prepared me for the real world and helped me to figure out what I wanted to do in the future," Mr. Desmuke shared about his time as a student. He is now one of the technology teachers at City High; something he would not be doing had he not learned the Adobe Suite and other important technological skills during his time as a City High student.

Mr. Provident's City High journey is most unique. His mother has worked in the cafeteria at City High since the school opened in 2002, and his siblings and cousins are also proud City High alumni. His educational experience left such a lasting impact that it inspired Provident to return as a technology teacher.

Provident spent years working in sports media, but was feeling burnt out and unfulfilled in his "dream job". When presented with the chance to return to CIty High—this time as a technology educator—he leapt at the opportunity.

"I'm not in teaching to be an educator...I'm here because I believe in what City High does. That family atmosphere for me is a way to give back what I received at City High to younger generations."

Ms. Arnold, who now manages one of the Senior Learning Hubs, says that the senior model helped her to be most successful in pursuing a college education. She likes being able to see how this positively impacts her students as they prepare to transition into the next chapter of their lives.

"I like how prepared I felt for college. I feel like I went into college super ready to have smaller classes, have a lecture with many people in it, how to take notes...and mentally be okay with something new."

"When it comes to financial literacy, we [aren't required] to teach that in the state of PA as of right now. Being able to know what to do when looking for a loan or looking for a credit card, or even a bank...being able to actually understand that I think is pretty amazing," Ms. Campbell shared about her experience.

Campbell, who teaches math for 9th and 10th grade students, is glad that students are not only being taught curriculum-required math skills, but also being taught math skills through financial literacy that will be used in their adult lives.

You can hear more about these alumni and how their experiences as City High students shaped their professional paths by watching the full interview on Youtube.