Just four years ago, Rivera spent his days using illegal drugs, oftentimes winding up in juvenile hall or evading his parole officer by living homeless in San Francisco.

At 18, Rivera has come full circle and now joins other Willow Glen High School senior academic recognition award honorees like Daisy Vergara, Nathan Tom and Chris Hobbs on the next journey—college.

For Rivera, who graduated with a 3.8 GPA and was given a full scholarship to UC­Santa Cruz, getting to graduation day meant leaving his drug abuse and parole days behind. His academic focus has been the antithesis of his formerly turbulent life, which began with a drug-addicted mother and absent father.

At 14, he ran away from his Los Angeles home to the Bay Area. After living homeless in San Francisco, he was eventually placed in a group home for foster children, a living situation with which he was already familiar after residing in group homes in Los Angeles and Sacramento. He then made his final move to a transitional home—a low-rent, temporary residence where Rivera shares a home with other teenagers from similar circumstances—near Willow Glen High School and began attending the high school during October of his junior year.

Rivera had a lot of catching up to do during his first year in high school, after being taught through the juvenile hall community schools system. Yet to Rivera's surprise, he immediately excelled at Willow Glen High School, earning straight A's in every class. He says the support he received from many of his teachers was instrumental in his academic success, particularly with their guidance during the college-application process.

He applied to UC­Santa Cruz, San José State University, Arizona State University, California State University at Long Beach and the Cornish College of The Arts. He received acceptance letters from every college except Cornish.

"One of the reasons I didn't want to be stupid anymore was because I wanted to attend junior and senior prom," Rivera says. "But when I got my first college acceptance letter, I started to cry. It was a lot to take."

Rivera plans to major in dance while at UC­Santa Cruz. Rivera says being accepted into a UC has been rewarding, but he's most proud of his acceptance as a person among the student body and teachers at the high school.

"The most important thing I've learned here is to be true to myself," Rivera says. "And people respect me for that."

Like Rivera, senior Daisy Vergara is no stranger to overcoming adversity. In fact, the 18-year-old will be the first in her family to attend college. She will enter UC Davis in the fall. Her goal is to become a nurse or doctor.

And although she has earned a 3.7 GPA, keeping her grades up throughout high school wasn't easy. Vergara's mother had a baby shortly after remarrying, which Vergara was left to take care of every day after school because her mother works long hours as a nursing assistant. Because of that daily commitment, Vergara had little time to study and didn't have time to take advanced placement courses or become involved in many extracurricular activities, because they would have conflicted with her babysitting responsibilities.

"I hope people remember me as someone who always had a lot going on in her life, but never let any obstacles affect her education," Vergara says. "My parents and grandparents have always told me that they don't have much to give me except an education, and no one can take that away from me."

Since she didn't have much alone time between school and her family, she looks forward to the independence and freedom that will come with college and living in a dorm.

"I'm excited and nervous to be away from home," she says. "But I'm very happy."

Nathan Tom, 18, also has reason to be happy, because he is valedictorian of his graduating class.

"I've tried to do as much as I could for my school," Tom says.

Tom says one of the reasons he's achieved a perfect 4.0 GPA is through the combination of attending all his classes and being focused on his course work. He also says his high grade point is the result of years of trying to meet the high expectations of his parents.

"My parents expect a lot out of me," Tom says. "My dad has been very successful in life and expects that from me, too."

Tom says Willow Glen High School has been like a second home. He sometimes spent up to 14 hours there with his leadership class to prepare for events like homecoming. He is also ASB president and played volleyball and soccer and ran cross country for one season.

"I've put forth a lot of effort," he says.

Tom is headed to UC-Berkeley in the fall, along with seven of his friends. He also applied to other UC schools, including UC Davis, UCLA and UCSB. He had strong encouragement from home to attend Berkeley, since both his parents went to UC-Berkeley.

While Rivera, Vergara and Tom have chosen in-state schools, senior Chris Hobbs is looking forward to moving to New Jersey in the fall to attend Princeton University. Hobbs, 18, will also play strong safety on the university's football team.

Not one to shy away from a new experience, Hobbs sees going to the Ivy League school as an opportunity to grow socially and academically.

"I'm looking forward to the academic challenge," he says. "Athletics are a steppingstone to associate with like-minded people."

He's still undecided on his major but is interested in biology. This 3.97 GPA student says he got into Princeton by "maintaining a certain work ethic and not taking shortcuts."

But before leaving for college, he doesn't want to forget the four years that helped get him there. Hobbs is a diligent student who made the most of his opportunities in the classroom. After graduation, he says he'll miss the camaraderie from playing for the Willow Glen High School football team and the friends he's made.

And, echoing the sentiments of his three fellow students, Hobbs added, "I hope I'm remembered as always leading in a positive way."