Justin Pottenger

Name:  Justin Pottenger

Age:  17
Home Town:  Phoenix
Graduation:  2008, Pinnacle Online High School

You were a Pinnacle student before you graduated; tell me why you chose to go to Pinnacle.

I was looking for something that could fit my needs for advanced courses.  I needed to move faster.  I needed something that regular schools couldn’t offer me. When I started Pinnacle, I had just come out of being home schooled for my entire life.  I had absolutely no high school credits. I was sixteen at the time and I needed something that I could do at my own speed.  I could go faster and get high school done and out of the way.

What has Pinnacle done for you?

Pinnacle moved with me.  Instead of me having to move my schedule to fit my school, my school moved its schedule to fit with me.  I went through just about all the programs with Pinnacle.  I started in the lab, going 20 hours a week. I was there everyday, and then I got a job. Eventually I went to the Pivot program where I was coming in some days and I was working virtual other days. And I finally moved to the full-time virtual program. Through every single stage of it Pinnacle was there with something else designed entirely to fit my needs.

Where are you now?

I am currently a college student at Mesa Community College. I’m working towards my degree.  I’m thinking about either being a surgeon, going towards some sort of medical degree or something along the lines of mechanical engineering.

What key message would you pass on to current Pinnacle Students?

Life gets better after high school, but its something you’ve got to do.  If you’ve got the tools in front of you, then you can use them, and you can excel.  I’ve grown past the point of just surviving in my environment, and I’ve begun to thrive. Pinnacle helped me to do that.  They didn’t do it for me. But they gave me the tools.