Summer Learning Institute 2026

Over the past two years, Sem Yeto High School (SY) has experienced a remarkable increase in its graduation rate, rising from 63% to 82%. As of February 2026, projections indicate that this rate will exceed 90% for the current school year. Significantly, SY has also been removed from Comprehensive School Support and Improvement (CSI) status for the first time in recent memory. Additionally, the school has been recommended as a model for California continuation schools and will be recognized at the upcoming California Continuation School Conference in May. During the accreditation visit by the Western Association of Schools and Colleges (WASC) in January 2026, the WASC chair remarked, “In my 20 years of conducting WASC visits across over 100 schools, I have never witnessed a school achieve such significant progress in improving student learning in just two years.” What’s the secret behind this success? Join us to connect with the Principal and leadership team from Sem Yeto High School in Fairfield, CA, as we explore the critical mindset shifts necessary for implementing a Personalized Competency-Based Education (PCBE) model in an alternative school setting.  In this presentation, we will take a deep dive into the steps taken, the challenges faced, and the mindset changes that facilitated this transformation. Attendees will learn how an alternative program can serve as a laboratory of innovation, providing valuable insights for other schools in the district as they embark on their own journeys toward adopting the PCBE model.

The current education system wasn’t built to hold our full humanity—so it keeps misreading trauma as trouble, survival as defiance, and brilliance as disobedience. In this transformational session, Dr. Felipe Mercado—professor, consultant, author, social worker and former principal—shares how the Wise Compassionate Framework is helping schools reimagine what it means to truly serve.
Blending clinical depth, real-life stories, and systems strategy, this session goes beyond theory to reveal what happens when schools continue business-as-usual—and what becomes possible when we lead with wisdom and compassion. Participants will:

• Reflect on a real-life story that reveals the life-or-death stakes of how we respond to student behavior
• Unpack why misbehavior is often misunderstood trauma—and how that misunderstanding drives disconnection and burnout
• Learn the core pillars of the Wise Compassionate Framework and how it transforms culture, climate, and adult capacity
• Leave with practical tools that restore safety, connection, and meaning in classrooms, schools, and systems

This isn’t just another training or traditional PD—it’s a revolution of care. For adults. For students. For the systems we’ve inherited and the futures we’re building. It’s time to stop repainting the walls—and rebuild the whole damn house, foundation first.