Esperanza took the paperwork home and met with her mother, who obtained the appropriate records for her and went through the class schedule with her, as Esperanza translated the information. Esperanza chose a class schedule that was inclusive of her mother's desire for her to take a part time job, and included all the basic education classes that she would need to move forward as a Junior the following year. Esperanza also signed up for a Spanish class and an ESL program, at the urging of the Latino Club advisor. The Latino Club activities included a small grant to pay ESL students to tutor students of Spanish that were in need of extra help. Though the tutoring paid only minimum wage, it allowed Esperanza to fulfill her mother's desire for her to take a part time job and it would not interfere with school work and did not require her to work more than 10 hours a week or late hours. Esperanza completed enrollment and began classes one week into the first quarter of school. Her schedule included, Pre-Algebra/Geometry, ESL/English, Literature, Home Economics, Study Skills, Biology, Spanish and Government. The councilor applauded Esperanza, when she spoke with her over the phone and then sent her a reminder letter for their next session, at which time they would go over her class schedule and develop a study schedule for her first term of school. Esperanza met with the councilor, bringing with her the class schedule as well as the materials from her Study Skills class, which the councilor and her went over together and created a study plan for all her classes. Esperanza expressed concerns about her ability to maintain good grades in her English and Pre-Algebra/Geometry classes so the study schedule focused most heavily on allowing appropriate time for these classes. These activities support Esperanza's Maintenance stage of change. Six weeks into the school year Esperanza came to the councilor with concerns about her grades, and stated that she felt like this had been a bad decision, as her relationship had ended because she was...

The councilor supported her fears and they reevaluated the schedule they had developed at the beginning of the term. Esperanza, then missed a week of school, to help care for he mother who was ill and felt as if she had gotten to far behind, the councilor discussed with her on the phone the need to call her teachers and get homework and extra credit assignments for the week she had missed. Esperanza agreed to go back to school the next Monday and try to add the work from the last week into her schedule. In so doing the councilor, who over the last few months has developed a clear sense of Esperanza, her cultural needs as well as empathy for the family and social stresses she faces, has helped Esperanza avoid a relapse.
Esperanza has now completed her Sophomore and Freshman years of school and cannot really remember a time when education was not her main goal, hence the development of a second order change and is continuing at the maintenance level as her educational goals require. She contacts the councilor occasionally to help her redirect her energies back to schoolwork and when very difficult roadblocks appear but for the most part Esperanza has developed a whole new set of friends, and is even dating a boy her own age from her Latino Club. She has also begun to look at community colleges and universities in the area and has sought help, through the councilor to contact the TRIO organization at local colleges to help facilitate scholarship opportunities as well as figure out what her long-term goals are. Esperanza has developed an interest in social services through her experience.