We’re excited to share this special series, featuring real students who appeared in our television commercial! Each month, we will be giving you a closer look into the lives of these students to see how they chose success through Primavera.

Antonio Folcarelli, grade 10

Antonio is an avid reader and creative writer who has been with Primavera for two years now. If we had to pick a word that best describes Antonio, proactive would be the tip of the iceberg. Whether it’s in school, in his community or even politically, Antonio is involved! He is an excelling student who adds great value to the Primavera community.

Last year, Antonio served as both the president of the Book Club and vice president of the Student Government Association here at Primavera. Antonio told us that he prefers Primavera’s student clubs to his old school’s because of the inviting, chill atmosphere within the online environment.

“At Primavera, you can chat with people like a normal club,” said Antonio. “Since it’s an online session, it’s more focused because you don’t have as many people talking over each other. You can show up when you want and however you want; you can show up in your bedroom and have notes ready. It’s a luxury you can’t always have when you go to a physical meeting, so it’s a really neat way of interacting with other people online with your interests.”

While Antonio enjoys being a part of  many student clubs at Primavera, he told us he particularly enjoys the Book Club because it he helps him set aside time to read and write. Through the Book Club, Antonio wrote a fiction piece we featured on the Panther Post called “Desperation.”

Antonio’s talents extend beyond the pen and paper, or more aptly, the computer and keyboard. In addition to writing and reading, Antonio loves just about all things tech.

“I’ve been interested in (Information and Technology Systems) IT probably since I was a toddler,” said Antonio. “I always wanted to know how things worked, I liked to dismantle simple electronics and I’ve always loved video games. I quickly took an interest in computers and the Internet, eventually culminating to building my first mid-tower PC at age 13. Ever since then I’ve maintained it, upgraded it, researched computer parts and become one of the ‘resident tech support’ figures in my household.”

After high school, Antonio plans to go on and work in the IT industry. Being the go-getter that he is, Antonio signed up for the Cisco Academy program at the Primavera Learning Centers and is ready to take the exam and become IT certified before he’s even graduated!

We are proud of Antonio’s accomplishments, and are excited to see him as Book Club president once again this year!

“With Primavera, I will get the grades I want to get into college, I’ll be able to use the experiences I’ve had with clubs to put on a resume and get a job and graduate…mostly just get ahead in my life and get opportunities that I normally wouldn’t with public school.”

At Primavera, our students have a choice in their education, and you can too! Enroll today at ChoosePrimavera.com/Enroll.

  • What do you think of Antonio’s story? Share with us in the comments below!