Finding out what happened to the kids from the 2014 Vice documentary Last Chance High is a rabbit hole. Most people remember Montreal "Spanky" Almond or the intense struggles of Cortez Shields. But if you’re looking for Crystal Sanchez, things get a little complicated.
Honestly, there’s a lot of confusion online. If you search for her name, you might find stories about a heroic police officer who passed away or a domestic violence survivor with a similar name. It’s frustrating.
You’ve probably seen the clips of Moses Montefiore Academy. It was the "school of last resort" on Chicago's West Side. Crystal was one of the few girls featured in a sea of young men struggling with severe emotional disorders and the weight of their environment.
Why Crystal Sanchez Stood Out
In a school like Montefiore, the air was always thick with tension. You could feel it through the screen. Most of the students were boys, often aggressive or completely shut down. Then there was Crystal.
She wasn't just another student; she represented the quiet, often overlooked struggle of young women in the Chicago Public Schools (CPS) "therapeutic" system. While the boys were often explosive, the girls at Montefiore frequently dealt with deep-seated trauma that manifested in different ways.
Crystal’s presence in Last Chance High highlighted a specific failure. The school was designed for the "toughest" kids, but for a young girl in that environment, the "toughness" often looked like a survival mechanism against a world that had already decided she was a lost cause.
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The Harsh Reality of Montefiore Academy
Let’s talk about the school itself. It wasn't a normal high school. Not even close.
It was a place for kids who had been kicked out of everywhere else. The documentary showed us the incredible patience of staffers like Coach Reed and Principal Vaughn. They weren't just teachers; they were social workers, bodyguards, and surrogate parents.
- The Closure: In 2016, CPS officially closed Montefiore.
- The Dispersal: The students, including those in Crystal's cohort, were sent back into "traditional" schools or other alternative programs.
- The Outcome: For many, this was a disaster.
When a "last chance" school closes, where do the kids go? They don't just disappear. They usually end up in the justice system or the street. This is the context of Crystal’s story. She was part of a system that was literally being dismantled while she was trying to survive it.
Where Is Crystal Sanchez Now?
Tracking down specific updates on Crystal is difficult for a reason. Unlike Spanky, who has been relatively active on social media and in follow-up interviews, or Cortez, whose legal battles are public record, Crystal has largely stayed out of the spotlight.
There are a few "Crystal Sanchez" profiles out there, but you have to be careful with the facts. One prominent Crystal Sanchez is a domestic violence survivor and healing coach based in New Mexico. While her story is powerful, she is not the same person from the Chicago documentary. Another Crystal Sanchez was a dedicated police officer who tragically died of cancer. Again, not our Crystal.
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The Crystal from Last Chance High would be in her mid-to-late 20s now. Sources close to the production and various Chicago-based community updates suggest that many of the female students from Montefiore faced an uphill battle once the specialized support of the academy was gone.
The "Hidden" Students of Last Chance High
We often focus on the "stars" of documentaries. We want to know if they "made it." But for someone like Crystal Sanchez, "making it" might just mean living a quiet, private life away from the cameras and the trauma of the West Side.
The reality of these "therapeutic" schools is that they often didn't provide a path to college. They provided a path to stability. If Crystal managed to find a job, stay safe, and navigate the complexities of adulthood in Chicago, that’s a massive win.
The Legacy of the Documentary
Last Chance High wasn't just entertainment. It was a brutal critique of how we treat "troubled" youth.
When you watch Crystal's segments, you see the intersection of gender and the school-to-prison pipeline. Girls in these systems are often victims of abuse or neglect that gets labeled as "behavioral issues."
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The documentary forced us to look at the lack of resources for mental health. It showed that when you take away the one place that understands a kid—like Montefiore—you aren't "saving" money. You're just shifting the cost to the jail system or the morgue.
Lessons We Can Take Away
If you’re looking for a "happy ending" for Crystal Sanchez, it’s best to look at the broader impact. Her participation in the film gave a voice to girls who are usually invisible in the conversation about urban education.
- Trauma-Informed Care Matters: You can’t punish the trauma out of a child.
- Consistency is King: The kids at Montefiore thrived because they had the same adults showing up for them every day. When the school closed, that consistency vanished.
- Community Support: Success for kids like Crystal depends on what happens outside the school walls just as much as what happens inside.
What You Can Do Next
The story of the Montefiore kids didn't end when the credits rolled. If you want to support youth who are currently in the position Crystal was in, there are several Chicago-based organizations doing the real work on the ground.
Look into groups like Build Chicago or the Precious Blood Center. They provide the kind of mentorship and "last chance" support that Montefiore once offered.
Supporting local mental health initiatives is also huge. The biggest takeaway from Crystal’s story isn't just curiosity about her current life—it's the realization that there are thousands of "Crystals" in every major city, and most of them never get a camera crew to tell their story.
Educating yourself on the School-to-Prison Pipeline is the best way to honor the honesty these kids showed in the documentary. Understanding that "behavior" is usually a language for "pain" changes how you see every student you encounter.