By Mariyah Ramirez & Angelina Herrera
Class of 2016 alumni Kenny Brittain was heavily involved in the school from playing boy’s volleyball, being a board member of DECA, and being a part of the Honors Choir.
Despite the challenge of balancing his personal and academic life, Brittain used the lessons he learned to become a successful person.
“I just had to take one day at a time, be very organized, and set priorities based on what would help me be the most successful,“ Brittain said.
After he graduated from Granada Hills Charter (GHC), Brittain went on to further his education at California State University Long Beach. He originally majored in aerospace engineering but switched routes to study applied mathematics in finance.
Changing majors, allowed Brittain to find happiness in working for the university’s accounting department and later at a private company.
Brittain visited GHC this semester, nearly a decade after graduating.
“ It was very nostalgic to do a lap around the school and having memories come back to me left and right, since the school looks very similar to when it did in 2016,” Brittain said.
Returning to visit the school reminded him of one of his favorite high school memories. Brittain reminisced about the time when the whole choir went to the English teacher Shayna Arhanian’s room and surprised her by singing Happy Birthday in 4-part harmony.
Arhanian is and always has been an emotional support system for her students. She was very empathetic when helping Brittain balance out his academic and personal life.
“She was a huge emotional support system for me and very empathetic when I was doing everything as a student,” Brittain said.
Although Brittain is an accountant now with adult responsibilities, he still helps out with the boy’s volleyball varsity team along with fellow alumni volleyball players.
Brittain is appreciative for how impactful his high school career has been.
“Being in high school has helped me learn at a very young age to balance many different areas in my life at once, such as school, work, friends, family, hobbies, and myself,” Brittan said.
I was involved in many things during college and still am today post-college, so I thank my GHC journey for preparing me for all of that and becoming successful.”
The Plaid Press 