Zachary Kittleson grew up in a home where money was tight, but so were family bonds. Having a small household budget didn’t mean there was a shortage of strong work ethics or a lack of ambitious goals to improve their situation. Quite the opposite. It actually made Zachary more determined and focused on reaching meaningful personal goals.

As the oldest child in a single-parent household, it was expected that Zachary would dig into the work world before he was a teenager. He picked up a hammer, some wrenches and learned from his grandfather how to work with metal at his machine shop. At the age of 12, Zachary was making top and bottom plates for support beams used in business and residential construction. His work was critical to the ongoing operations of the machine shop and Zachary’s grandfather depended on him to be a steady worker and to have high standards for his finished product.

Zachary developed a strong sense of personal responsibility and integrity — traits employers say are more important today than ever before. He caught the eye of Walmart’s hiring team which was eager to bring Zachary on board even as he was still in high school at Innovations and Options.

Zachary thrived in his high school because he was able to get a school schedule and courses that were customized to his needs and routines. He also enjoyed having smaller class sizes which suited his learning style. In fact, flexibility and customization were the hallmarks of Innovations and Options making it a great fit for Zachary.

In school, Zachary discovered his affinity for math. Numbers were easy for him to understand and he routinely earned high scores on tests. Soon he was tutoring students who struggled in math. He was a good teacher and he loved it. His decision to become a career math teacher was a logical goal for Zachary.

One day he was approached by Jen Alexander, the school principal.

“She talked to me about my math scores and asked me what I wanted to do after graduation. I told her I wanted to be a math teacher and she smiled so brightly and said, ‘That’s great!’

“I’d never had someone show that sort of confidence in my goals, and I was astounded by it.”

Now Zachary had a sense of purpose which put his work and schooling into perspective. Zachary worked long hours to save money, getting him closer to his goal of paying his way through college. But during his senior year, his mother became ill when doctors told her they found cancer. The news was devastating. Zachary quickly saw the need to step up even more to financially support the family and help his mother pay for any future medical bills.

Needing to work more hours and still get through school, Zachary found a job with a security company that gave him shifts of up to 16 hours. To balance his work responsibilities and his school work, Zachary switched to a fully online schedule at school.

As if maintaining his work and school schedules wasn’t grueling enough, Zachary ran into internet problems which brought his online education to a halt. Uncomfortable with asking for help, Zachary was unable to fix the problem. He floundered in school. He stopped attending his online classes simply because he couldn’t make his home computer and internet connection work together.

As if on cue, Assistant Principal Nicholas Walker connected with Zachary to find out what was troubling him and why he stopped attending school. That conversation was a lifeline.

“Mr. Walker shared with me a part of his own childhood and how he grew up. I felt a very personal and real connection with him,” Zachary said. “After talking, he told me to come back to school to get a portable Wi-Fi router at no charge.”

“He simply said to ‘…just make sure I did good.’”

Zachary felt the heaviness lift off his shoulders because someone actually approached him because they cared. Mr. Walker’s intervention relieved him of so much pressure to be perfect; pressure to know all the answers all the time; and the pressure to be the person fully responsible for so much.

Reflecting on that moment, Zachary recalled thinking that this was how every school should be. Students should feel connected and safe.

Innovations and Options supported Zachary personally and academically. The compassion his teachers and administration showed gave Zachary the personal boost he needed to persevere. He was able to get his grade point average up to 3.33 — good enough to be a college prospect.

Zachary graduated in 2021 with good grades and solid work experience under his belt. But he was still shy of his savings goal. So he continued working, putting more money in the bank.

Today, Zachary has made big strides in reaching his goal of having $10,000 in savings before deciding on a college and getting applications submitted. He plans to continue working as he goes to college so he can be independent and not have to rely on student loans to get through school.

He also plans to get his substitute teaching license, so he can work part-time and do what he loves most — teaching others and making a positive impact on their lives.

“I want everyone to experience what it is like to have a good teacher. I want to inspire my future students’ passions and dreams and help them become better people. I want to mentor them throughout their growth process.”

His own experiences in high school influenced Zachary’s goals. He wants to emulate the compassion he received from teachers and administrators by teaching and empowering the next generation of students.

“I believe in 27J Schools because they inspire hope.”