COLUMBIA --- Gregory Scott has a simple explanation for dropping out of South Aiken High School.

"Me and school didn't really get along," the 16-year-old said.

"Nothing was really wrong with it, but I didn't like it," he said. "I never wanted to get up and do the work. When I did go to school, I just slept anyway."

So the teen stopped going, choosing to sleep until 1 p.m. and spend the rest of the day hanging out with friends. For about six months, he said, he worked on his friend's grandfather's rabbit farm in Warrenville.

In April, Gregory enrolled in the state National Guard's Youth Challenge Academy, a program aimed at teaching leadership and discipline to at-risk teens.

It was tough at first but worth it, said Gregory, who will graduate at the end of September.

Many times he wanted to quit the program, which forced him to get up at 4 a.m. and exercise.

The hardest thing, though, was being away from home. He missed his mother and remembered seeing her cry when he moved to the academy on Camp Long Road in Aiken.

"Oh my gosh, that was the worst part, being homesick" he said. "That's all I've ever had is my mom."

Jackie Fogle, the director of Youth Challenge Academy, says many cadets are raised by their mothers alone. In fact, he said, some youths have such strong bonds with their sole parent that about 5 percent are pulled out of the academy by their mothers, who miss having them at home.

"It's amazing what these kids can do when you give them a chance," Mr. Fogle said.

Gregory hopes to earn his GED diploma this fall and enroll at Augusta Technical College.