UME Prep opened its doors in 2012, and while everyone was excited to see what was to come of this new method of learning, no one really knew what was going to happen. Day One was a hit. Students woke up, put on their crisp, clean uniforms (some for the very first time), and headed out the door. In the coming weeks we would find out just how challenging it would be to run a school. We had been preparing for years, but we quickly found out just how challenging it might be to get the school off the ground.

The building that only weeks before was filled with the occasional peaceful hum of an air conditioner was now filled with hundreds of children stampeding down stairs, bantering in hallways, and skipping across campus. The classrooms were crowded, and occasionally we would get frustrated at the lack of space, but despite the problems that arose, as a school, we bonded more than ever. The connection found between both students and administration was truly something out of a movie. Between evacuating multiple times for aluminum foil in the microwave to having a gas leak and power outage during the STARR test, we bonded in ways that made us an unbreakable establishment. Parent Tanya Archer stated, “In everything we went through the first year we learned, laughed, and grew to become even better!”

Looking back at all the memories of our first year as a school, I’m reminded of just how special this place truly is. We are not just a school but rather a family. We have grown so much, and I can’t wait to see in another five years just how far we will have come.