"It is a voluntary program, the students must want to come to the program.  Parents can't put them in..the courts can't put them in. They cannot be put in, in any other way...they must choose to come here," Campbell said.
         
They came to the academy after giving conventional high school a try but regular school wasn't the right fit.

"I didn't have too much help in the classrooms. It was hard to understand some of the work, and there's a lot of distractions," said Jessica Tangalin, 18, cadet from Kauai.

"From the beginning I knew I needed this...I didn't want to go to night school and get my GED and go get my diploma that way," said Kamuela Foster, 18, cadet from Maui.
         
The program is strict. It's based on a military model, which teaches responsibility, discipline, physical fitness and leadership in addition to preparing cadets academically. 

"I guess the schoolwork is kind of hard for me, but I'm hopefully getting it," Tangalin said.

Service to the community is a very important component. On Sunday, they're sprucing up the academy campus.

They'll take different paths when they finish the academy but they all share one thing pride in their accomplishment.

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