‘NOW IT GETS REAL’
DeShawn Lee’s journey from kindergarten to graduation
Nearly 13 years ago, DeShawn Lee slung his Spider-Man backpack over his shoulders and headed into Apache Elementary for his first day of kindergarten.
On Thursday, he donned a green cap and gown and strode confidently across the stage at Calvary Albuquerque Church to collect his diploma from Hope Christian High School.
The Journal was there to celebrate both milestones with DeShawn, an amiable kid who is quick to smile.
In August 2004, the then-5-year-old was featured in a front-page story about Albuquerque Public Schools’ new all-day kindergarten — a program designed to help close the achievement gap.
At the time, DeShawn laid out some concrete goals for his first year in the classroom: make new friends, learn to read and “even get to draw a little.”
“The boy got ready for school by putting on clothes he picked out: a Jake Plummer Denver Bronco jersey, Unionbay blue jeans and black Shaq high tops,” the article states. “The clothes matched, but his left shoe was on his right foot.”
DeShawn laughed when asked about kindergarten Thursday afternoon, shortly after getting home from graduation practice. It’s been years since he’s read the Journal story, but a copy is still hanging in his grandparents’ garage.
“That’s funny with the shoes,” DeShawn said.
His mom might have the Spider-Man backpack and a matching lunch box packed away somewhere, he added.
Looking back, DeShawn has many fond memories of that long-ago first year of school, particularly his “phenomenal teacher,” Joetta Teupell, and reading time in “the treehouse,” a small loft space filled with bean bags.
After finishing at Apache Elementary, he attended Grant Middle School, then Hope Christian beginning in his freshman year.
A talented athlete, DeShawn balanced academics with sports, excelling in baseball and football while maintaining good grades.
Hope Christian was rigorous, DeShawn said, but he feels well prepared for Grand Canyon University, a Christian school in Phoenix, where he will study biology this fall.
At 18, he knows what he wants to do and is plotting out how to get there.
Recently, DeShawn completed an internship with a local dentist, earning a summer job helping out in the office and observing procedures.
“I think it will help me if I learn things like the instruments,” said DeShawn, who is already researching dental schools in Arizona.
Teupell — still a kindergarten teacher at Apache Elementary — is rooting for him.
The two have kept in touch, and over spring break, DeShawn came to visit her class, spending the whole afternoon with the young children.
“He set an example with my students about how important it is to stay in school,” Teupell said. “He was really good with my kindergartners, telling them, ‘I am getting ready to go on to college and I am excited about it, but I had to get good grades and I had to make good choices.’”
Teupell said she knew DeShawn would excel from the moment she met him on his first day in 2004.
The “happy, highly engaged” 5-year-old was “full of life,” Teupell recalled.
“There are certain students you always remember, and he is certainly one of them,” she said. “I will always want to know how he is doing.”
Shannon Lee, Deshawn’s mother, agreed that her son is a kind, responsible person with strong values.
She and dad David Lee expressed a mix of pride and excitement tinged with sadness at seeing their only child leave the nest.
“From kindergarten, he has just been a pure joy to raise and nurture,” Shannon Lee said. “He’s got a good head on his shoulders and plans for his life.”
David Lee marveled that his son already has a job with a dentist when most kids his age are working at fast food restaurants.
For his part, DeShawn has his eyes firmly on the future.
Though he’ll miss playing competitive sports and hanging out with high school friends, it’s time for the next stage of his life to begin.
“Now it gets real,” he said.