From Our Director of Transitions Programming

Over a decade ago, Winston Prep recognized a need to support 10% of our population that still needed to demonstrate readiness for life beyond high school. As educators, we must ask ourselves what skills are needed to succeed in college, employment, and leading an independent life as an adult. That recognition and understanding led to the development of Winston Transitions in New York City and the expansion of this much-needed programming to San Francisco. 

 

Located in the Richmond District of San Francisco, Winston Transitions is a unique program for a community of diverse learners ages 17-21+ who need additional time to prepare for the next step. To determine whether this program is appropriate for any student, we individually assess their strengths, needs and goals. The Winston Transitions Team is committed to developing a comprehensive understanding of each individual by challenging our students’ abilities and raising the bar for excellence. We want our students to leave this gap year(s) program with a greater sense of who they are and what next steps make the most sense for their futures. Not only does the Winston Transitions SF Team focus on each student’s well-being, but a strong emphasis is also placed on the well-being of each student’s family. We strive to help students and families feel confident that they will have the tools to continue to move toward independence.

 

Winston Transitions SF has been described as "the Swiss Army knife of gap year programs." Each student’s program can be whatever they need it to be. The essence of Winston Transitions is the flexibility, individualization, and understanding around designing a program and experience that supports each student's unique needs. We have many programmatic tools at our disposal that allow us to design individualized experiences for students who need to focus on developing independence to succeed after high school. This experience includes components that deepen academic, workplace, social, and/or life skills. 

 

Our​ Transitions SF Team works closely with students through our small groupings based on learning profile, comprehensive academic coursework, internship experiences, employability skill building, social-emotional development, and Winston Prep’s unique one-to-one Focus program. Emphasis is placed on a practical application approach and project-based learning within the core course opportunities of Language Arts, Math, Health and Wellness, Professional Studies, Contemporary Issues, and Creative Projects. Each student’s individualized curriculum is reflective of the essential skills needed for success as an emerging young adult.