One challenge after another, but ITE student still finds ways to shine
More than Grades One challenge after another, but ITE student still finds ways to shine Behind every academic result is a young person quietly chasing their dreams, beating the odds, and hoping to make something of themselves. In More than Grades, a monthly series by The Straits Times, we tell the stories of youth who are making waves in school and beyond.
SINGAPORE – When she was 15, Ms Azaleagrace Teo made the brave decision to confide in a counsellor at her secondary school after suffering almost seven years of abuse from her father.
Within two weeks, she was uprooted from her home, and was subsequently, over the years, moved at least eight times across different care facilities.
These included stays at foster homes, an interim placement and assessment centre, the Institute of Mental Health and the HCSA Dayspring Residential Treatment Centre, a therapeutic group home.
Grappling with ending ties with her family and being relocated so many times took a toll on the young girl's studies. She repeated her Secondary 4 year at Deyi Secondary School, delaying her graduation.
She eventually enrolled at ITE College East in 2021, and found out she had to support herself financially when she was moved to a student hostel in Evans Road. Though only 18 at the time, she had to start paying rent and being self-sufficient.
While still studying, Ms Teo joined a web solutions start-up, where she learnt about web development to create web and mobile apps from scratch, using a no-code platform called Bubble.
'In my first year, I was earning only $500 a month and heavily dependent on short-term sources of financial support to scrape by for rent and food,' she said.
Adjusting to her new reality of having to fend for herself, Ms Teo did not take part in any school activities, and spent her free time working and honing her skills in web development.
Ms Azaleagrace Teo at the HCSA Dayspring centre in 2018, a residential treatment centre for girls.
PHOTO: COURTESY OF AZALEAGRACE TEO
Choosing the harder path for her future
After completing her Nitec course in urban greenery and landscape, she was faced with a tough decision.
She had to choose between a work-study diploma, where she could earn a decent salary while studying, or sign up for a Higher Nitec course in interactive design at ITE College Central, where her passion lay. But this would mean juggling work and studies for another two years.
She chose the latter.
Calling it a decision made in turmoil, Ms Teo said she had to choose what would be better for her 30 or 40 years down the road. While there are those who may be able to make mid-career switches, she doubted if she would have the financial resources to do so.
'That's why I ultimately decided to go down the much harder path, doing what I love, instead of choosing something that was a much easier fix at the time,' she said.
Ms Teo went on to ace her studies, graduating from the Institute of Technical Education in 2025 with a perfect grade point average of 4.
On May 22, she was also one of 10 recipients of the Lee Kuan Yew Model Student Award, given to students who have performed consistently well, and displayed 'outstanding conduct and attitude worthy of emulation by their peers'.
Ms Azaleagrace Teo was one of 10 recipients of the Lee Kuan Yew Model Student Award on May 22.
ST PHOTO: KEVIN LIM
Ms Teo said that because of the support and care she received from her peers and teachers at ITE College Central, she was encouraged to do more than get through the daily grind of school, despite her challenging circumstances.
Ms Teo, who has an older sister, has not been in touch with her mother since she was 12.
'I realised that I actually do have something that I want to work towards, and I had the capacity and the ability to do more than just the day to day,' she said.
Using her leadership skills, Ms Teo, as vice-president of ITE College Central's yoga club, managed yoga sessions, team-building events and co-curricular activity roadshows.
She represented the ITE at the M1 Asia Pacific Golf 2024 fund-raising event, where she and a schoolmate shared their personal stories of financial hardship and helped to raise $308,000 for the ITE Education Fund.
She also co-organised a roadshow which brought together more than 200 students to promote racial harmony and led publicity efforts for the 2024 ITE Student Leaders Forum.
Today, she still volunteers with Owena, the alumni association of her former therapeutic group home at HCSA Dayspring, where she serves as secretary and helps organise events to support trauma survivors.
Ms Teo speaking at an event in July 2024 to thank donors who supported the ITE Education Fund.
PHOTO: ITE
Mr Kevin Chin, manager of the interactive design course at ITE College Central, said that despite coming from a challenging background, Ms Teo never allowed that to define her potential.
'In moments where she could have just given up or played her pity card, she didn't. She showed grit,' he said, adding that Ms Teo's academic performance was consistent across various subjects and disciplines.
'She was a student in the School of Design and Media.
'But she also took business modules, and she excelled in those as well,' he added.
Now a first-year student pursuing a diploma in media, arts and design at Singapore Polytechnic, Ms Teo is keen to continue her work supporting fellow trauma survivors, while working and studying.
Reflecting on her own experience and struggles, she said that her wounds will never completely heal, but she has learnt to cope by taking things one day at a time. She hopes to pass on this lesson to others.
'Where you've come from does not determine where you will go,' she said.
'There is light at the end of the tunnel, but when it's so dark, it's very difficult to know when you will reach there... but ultimately we'll reach where we are meant to be.'
Elisha Tushara is a correspondent at The Straits Times, specialising in Singapore's education landscape.
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