Erika was a failing student at a large urban public middle school. She was poor, Hispanic, bilingual, and had repeated fourth grade. She scored low on her standardized tests and was failing several subject areas. In class, Erika was a student who sat silently with her head on her desk, and rarely turned in any of her assignments. She was a disengaged learner. However, in this research, Erika found her voice and revealed that she had significant literacy skills that slipped under the radar of traditional assessments. Furthermore, it became clear that Erika was silent in school because most of her significant life experiences, such as gang wars, poverty, domestic violence, and teen sexuality, were not sanctioned and even stigmatized in formal school settings. From this research, middle school teachers can gain insight into ways to better develop literacy and conquer disengagement of urban students like Erika.