After full-time job, senior graduates Metro to seek dreams

CEDAR RAPIDS — Alyssa Baugh didn’t know if she would graduate high school.

When schools closed in March 2020 to mitigate the spread COVID-19 and school returned virtually that fall, Baugh was overwhelmed. She was trying to learn online at Kennedy High School while working two jobs to help her mother pay bills, she said. She decided to quit high school and go to work full-time instead.

Today, Baugh, 18, said she is grateful she took time off from school. “At the time it was the best decision for me, but after awhile, I realized I wanted to graduate and go to college.”

Baugh re-enrolled at Metro High School in Cedar Rapids in March 2022, where she will graduate with about 85 other students at 7 p.m. May 24 at the DoubleTree by Hilton in Cedar Rapids.

In the Cedar Rapids Community School District, which includes Metro High, students must earn at least 40 credit hours to graduate high school and earn a diploma. At Metro, an alternative school, students can earn credits more quickly than in a traditional school with its variable credit system.

This allowed Baugh to graduate at the same time she would have had she not taken time off from school, she said.

Although Baugh was at Metro only for a little over a year, she is leaving her mark. She held a Toys 4 Tots drive, a program that distributes toys to children whose families cannot afford to buy them gifts for Christmas, and raised money for and planned the school’s prom.

To get students excited about the Toys 4 Tots drive, Baugh persuaded Metro High Principal Mark Groteluschen to let them duct tape him to the wall if they met their goal — which they did by raising $100 and collecting 150 toys.

“I thought it was really great for his first year here,” Baugh said with a laugh.

Tara McLaughlin, a counselor at Metro High, said Baugh “wants to make a difference and give back to her community.”

“She’s a voice for people who can’t advocate for themselves,” McLaughlin said. “If someone’s getting picked on in the hall, she’ll help and advocate for adults to get involved.”

Baugh also sells artwork inspired by the female anatomy and women’s equality at the NewBo City Market. Last year, she received a $100 seed-money grant to participate in the NewBo Young Entrepreneurs Market.

“We’re often seen as more of an object you can own than a person. A lot of my paintings speak on that,” Baugh said.

Baugh’s mother, Rachel Baugh, said her daughter is a “natural born leader.”

“I think she’s going to do big things. … I’ve cheerleaded her the whole way,” she said.

Baugh wants to return to Cedar Rapids schools some day as an elementary teacher. She is attending Mount Mercy University this fall. To other people considering their future Baugh said, “It’s not too late, but take your time. Don’t rush in to it if you don’t feel like you’re ready.”

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