PWHS AVID students honor their journey at 2024 Gratitude Breakfast

Plymouth Whitemarsh High School students in the Advancement Via Individual Determination, or AVID, elective celebrated the end of the year with their annual AVID Gratitude Breakfast.

At the event, the students in grades 9-12 shared what they’re grateful for, such as teachers and faculty, and honored the seniors who are graduating.

“It’s been quite a ride being in AVID for my high school career,” said PWHS senior Kaiden Gonzalez. “I’ve made a lot of memories here. So while I’m excited to graduate, it’s also a little bittersweet.”

A student at a podium talking about another student while their college and scholarships are on a slideshow behind them — AVID juniors took the opportunity to highlight the seniors' future plans with a slide show that featured where they were going to college, how much scholarship money they received, and what their major was going to be.

In the Colonial School District, the AVID elective begins in the eighth grade and gives students in the academic middle the tools to be more successful in the classroom and prepare for college. Teachers help students learn the “hidden curriculum,” like how to study and take better notes, how to benefit from being more involved and attentive in class, and how to manage their time. They also go on college tours and, as they get closer to graduation, work on the college application process in class.

“AVID let me know what path I wanted to go down in terms of post secondary,” said PWHS senior Lucius Yoblick. “The field I’m going into, electrical engineering, is going to lead me to a job I’m really interested in and that provides.”

Students sign a commitment to the AVID program, and most take it as an elective for all four years of high school. As a result, the graduating AVID students, like PWHS senior Taylor Matthews, feel strong ties to their AVID classmates.

“It was just nice seeing how everyone has grown up from freshman year in AVID,” said Taylor. “It’s nice spending my last year here with my family, which is my AVID class.”

While AVID is a nation-wide initiative, Colonial School District was the first district in Pennsylvania to adopt the program in 2007.