> ## Content Index > Fetch the complete content index at: https://www.smdp.com/llms.txt > Use this file to discover other available public pages before exploring further. # Continuation school allows students to work at own pace - URL: https://www.smdp.com/continuation-school-allows-students-to-work-at-own-pace/ - Published: 2003-06-16T15:00:00.000Z - Updated: 2026-10-23T02:20:07.000Z - Author: Carolyn Sackariason - Tags: Education, Santa Monica, #archive-import *School is continuous education for teachers and students* When Flavio Garcia graduated from Olympic High School last week, he didn’t walk the line, he rang the bell. It was far from a typical graduation ceremony, but nothing at Olympic is typical. Students study at their own pace at the school and the size of the student body depends on what day it is, said Olympic’s principal Suzanne Toyryla. Last week, 126 students attended Olympic. There was one graduation and two new students. Garcia, a 20-year-old Mexican immigrant, showed up to the school — located at Lincoln and Ocean Park boulevards — last Thursday afternoon so he could climb the step ladder and ring the graduation bell while his classmates congratulated him in the hallway. When Garcia came to Olympic in October 2001, he was barely able to speak English and worked two jobs to help support his family. At the time, Garcia had finished two years worth of high school. But after completing another year last summer, Garcia had to go back to Mexico to be with his family. He returned two weeks ago to finish the two classes he needed to get his 220 credits required to graduate. Thursday morning, Toyryla was in her office planning the second annual senior celebration to be held on Wednesday. “They won’t be on stage at Samohi on June 19,” she said. “But here, every one is included who has 180 credits or more so they can be recognized.” Olympic administrators believe giving special attention to students is crucial to their success. As a continuation school, Olympic students —who range in age from 15 to 20 years old — have had a rough go of it in their short lives. “Some of our students have had an interesting journey to get to graduation,” Toyryla said. “The circumstances in their lives have been chaotic... they learn coping skills to get them through life.” Just an hour before Garcia’s graduation, between five and 10 cops showed up on campus after a student stole some items from a nearby store and ran back to school. “There isn’t enough time to celebrate before it’s time to deal with the next situation,” Toyryla said. About 30 percent of the students are on probation. More than 20 percent of the population are special education students. Half of the students work to support families. Some are pregnant, some of their parents have died, some come from abusive and broken homes and others are in trouble with the law. “I tell my teachers to take their vitamins,” Toyryla joked. While it’s treated by some as the step-child of Santa Monica’s other public schools, many in the community don’t even know a second high school exists. Olympic, part of the Santa Monica-Malibu Unified School District, is rarely discussed by administrators or the community at-large. As a result, the school doesn’t get the attention it needs. Physical education classes are held in the school’s parking lot. The biology classroom has no labs. The campus lacks enough fences. The classrooms barely have enough books. The school hasn’t had a custodian for two weeks, which means teachers and administrators have been taking out their own trash. “It’s not the usual whine and moan thing here,” Toyryla said. It doesn’t seem to bother Toyryla that Olympic isn’t recognized in the community as much as other schools are. She understands that continuation schools are a breed of their own. “Some districts celebrate their continuation schools more than our district,” she said. “It’s not good or bad.” But despite all of its needs and lack of acceptance, Olympic’s faculty and students are proud of what happens on campus every day. Toyryla, who came to Olympic in 1997 after a stint as assistant principal at North Hollywood High, is especially proud of her staff. “They have gone from a deficit position and have really worked hard together to get it where it is,” she said. When Toyryla first showed up at the school, she realized quickly that it needed attention. The school lacked enough teachers and resources, among other things. “Ever since Ms. Toyryla has gotten here there’s been an upward cycle,” said Jack Casey, a 24-year Olympic teacher who is one of two faculty members who has remained at the school since Toyryla became principal. > “We just do it.” As Toyryla walks through the hallways, it’s evident she knows every student and their circumstances. At 10:30 a.m., walking to the biology classroom, Toyryla approaches a student who was just arriving at school. “What are you doing in the morning that you can’t get here at 9 a.m.?” she asked. The student said he didn’t get out of bed in time but that he hadn’t learned the bus schedule. Toyryla suggested he call the bus company that night and figure it out. “We know our kids,” she said. “We try to get to know them and give them a safe place to be.” Because most students lack positive relationships with adults, the methods Olympic’s seven faculty members use to relate to them is key. “They come here with so much personal baggage and this is their first chance to succeed and many of them do,” Casey said. “A lot of people succeed here that wouldn’t otherwise.” If a student is late or cuts class, their guardians are called that day. “Some kids at Samohi get lost for an entire semester,” Casey said. “That doesn’t happen here.” The benefit of education at Olympic versus Santa Monica High School is that teachers can offer personalized instruction with a student body of only a couple hundred instead of the 3,400 students at Samohi. Classroom sizes at Olympic range from 15 to 20 students. “It’s individual learning instead of crowd control,” he said. “I love the kids here... they remind me of myself when I was younger.” Kids sign a contract at the beginning of the year and their progress is measured against themselves, not other students. “It’s an opportunity to reinvent or change yourself,” Toyryla said. “You have to do what works for them and some students do better in a small environment.” Toyryla recently toured other continuation schools throughout Los Angeles. Her experiences affirmed what she already knew about the needs of students there. “You have to have teachers that can reach out to them and build a relationship,” she said. Olympic science teacher Anthony Fuller, who was laid off because of budget cuts but hopes to be reinstated by the school board, said he’s doing his job when he makes a connection with his students. At the beginning of his third period biology class, students open their textbooks and begin studying on their own. Fuller points to the back of the classroom where chairs are stacked up on counters and explains that next year he hopes to make the area a biology laboratory for students. School board members, who say they are aware of Olympic’s challenges, think more has to be done to improve the school. The first step is acknowledging its existence. “I know it’s a priority and I think there will be big changes in the next year,” said school board member Shane McLoud. “There is a collective agreement that we know all of the students’ needs aren’t being met. We are throwing around ideas on what do with that school and some of its students.” Oscar de la Torre, a school board member and founder of the Pico Youth and Family Center, said many of the kids that come to his community-based organization in the poorest part of town also are Olympic students. The fact that Olympic is barely known by the community is a result of institutional racism in the community, he said. “Within the culture of the school district historically, it has-n’t been given the attention it deserves,” de la Torre said. “I think Olympic High School has improved but my goal is to have a real alternative school with good resources.” While Olympic falls under the umbrella of the school district, it is funded differently. Some of its resources and staff are provided through grants and community-based organizations. An alcohol and drug panel is convened every Monday by a local Alcoholics Anonymous group and counselors are brought in regularly as part of city-funded programs that are administered by Saint John’s Health Center and Didi Hirsch, a community mental health center. A new criminal justice class was created this past semester, which was taught by Santa Monica Police officers. Officers came to Olympic for an hour Monday through Friday to teach the class about civil rights, the law and the police department. The officers and students celebrated the final day of the class last Thursday with the SMPD buying tacos for them and Sgt. Dave Thomas providing entertainment by playing the piano. By all accounts, the students appreciated what they learned, said Olympic student Liz Kelso. “I thought it was going to be a bunch of cops talking about bull-shit,” she said. “But now I understand my rights more and interacting with the officers to build relationships and learning to ![](https://storage.ghost.io/c/55/9f/559f9abc-8372-4a2e-8c2d-27386da4e363/content/images/2026/10/061603-01_01.jpg) From left to right: Amelia Tomlin, Samantha Pinatel and Michelle Melendez work on a class project last week in their English class at Olympic High School. (Photo: Carolyn Sackariason/Daily Press) *Originally published in the Santa Monica Daily Press print edition on June 16, 2003.* [Read the original PDF.](https://s3.us-east-1.amazonaws.com/smdp%5Fbackissues/061603.pdf?ref=smdp.com)