the root of opportunity
the slogan 'stay in school' is not just grossly overplayed, it really doesn't explain anything. it is more like a command, 'here is what you must do. why you ask? don't ask just stay'. this revelation hit me as i walked the halls of my mothers K-6 school in Haines City, Florida (probably because it was plastered on a few walls). I was there for a 'release party' my mother called it, not a record. butterflies. we gathered the children around, songs were sung, lessons were given, and i had the duty of releasing them into the 'wild'. These kids were asked to stay but i wondered if they truly had any idea why.
that night i spoke at the community college i attended. afterwards i was asked to give a brief interview for the schools newspaper and one of the questions was 'do you think your education has had an impact on your career'. that's when my thoughts started flowing and i realized that it had not only everything to do with my career but with life.
education is the root of opportunity. the more education we receive the more doors that will be opened. its not about 'stay in school' or 'be cool stay in school'; i honestly think were selling it to ourselves all wrong! if you really want to see eyes opened and imaginations soaring then try explaining the numerous benefits of what higher education can do! try asking them to imagine the limitless empowerment that the future could hold. try explaining that they do not have to live out their parents lives, if only they would absorb and continue. its a daunting task, but its reality.
its not just about opportunity either, it has other lifetime implications as well. its about the ultimate defeat of racism. we as humanity 'fear the unknown,' and if we do not know or understand other races, cultures, religions, ideas, etc. then by NATURE we fear it. if we fear it then we mentally make an enemy of it, we avoid it, we label it so we feel in control or superior to it. want to end racism in your community? fight for better education. i would love to see statistics of non-high school graduates and then master degree students in percentage of those with racist tendencies. i think we would be floored by the fact that opening your mind and gaining an understanding of the world around us allows us to accept and even embrace others.
its not just about racism either... just yesterday i read an article in 'the week' stating the fact that people with higher education are less likely to get a divorce. relationally effects us.
its not just about opportunity, divorce, racism, etc. its about the development of you. its about reaching your potential as a human being. its about not having the questions of who could have i become if only i...
and i know what some of you are thinking, i don't think i am smart enough!: you are reading an online journal from the patron saint of middle school dropouts. honestly my grade point average hovers on a good day right around the number two. i worked so hard to get so little it felt. i was so jealous of my two younger brothers who never had to study and still made A's, meanwhile my ADHD brain was to busy thinking about some random etching in my desk about who loves who to even attempt to concentrate on what PIE equaled. in high school the guidance counselor took me in her office and asked me what vocational school i would like to sign up for (side note: there is NOTHING wrong with trade school!) and i even questioned myself if i could do that!
so after high school i did what most people who don't believe in themselves do, i got a job at the bottom rung of the ladder picking weeds at an amusement park. and i did this for awhile! day after day i would wake up at 5AM and run lawn mowers, or plant bulbs, or blow off sidewalks. but after a few months i realized that this couldn't be it, i looked at the men who had been working at this job for years and years and i knew i didn't want to be like them. this couldn't be it. this is not what i was meant to be.
i didn't gamble on the lottery, i didn't hope for someone to see my raw leadership talent and move me up to corporate amusement park management, i didn't even put in my resume in the food service part of the park... i applied for community college.
so i have a new slogans i would like to pitch and implement in the global educational community.
EDUCATION.
it is the only thing that separates you from where you want to be in 10 years.
EDUCATION.
do you really want to end up exactly like them? i mean really? exactly?
EDUCATION.
because people on the other side of the world don't all hate you.
EDUCATION.
because picking weeds really sucks at 5AM.
-esteban
post script: my sister and i have always struggled with good grades, but she fought and fought. now she is enrolled in Florida State getting her Masters in Psychology, and i couldn't be more proud.
that night i spoke at the community college i attended. afterwards i was asked to give a brief interview for the schools newspaper and one of the questions was 'do you think your education has had an impact on your career'. that's when my thoughts started flowing and i realized that it had not only everything to do with my career but with life.
education is the root of opportunity. the more education we receive the more doors that will be opened. its not about 'stay in school' or 'be cool stay in school'; i honestly think were selling it to ourselves all wrong! if you really want to see eyes opened and imaginations soaring then try explaining the numerous benefits of what higher education can do! try asking them to imagine the limitless empowerment that the future could hold. try explaining that they do not have to live out their parents lives, if only they would absorb and continue. its a daunting task, but its reality.
its not just about opportunity either, it has other lifetime implications as well. its about the ultimate defeat of racism. we as humanity 'fear the unknown,' and if we do not know or understand other races, cultures, religions, ideas, etc. then by NATURE we fear it. if we fear it then we mentally make an enemy of it, we avoid it, we label it so we feel in control or superior to it. want to end racism in your community? fight for better education. i would love to see statistics of non-high school graduates and then master degree students in percentage of those with racist tendencies. i think we would be floored by the fact that opening your mind and gaining an understanding of the world around us allows us to accept and even embrace others.
its not just about racism either... just yesterday i read an article in 'the week' stating the fact that people with higher education are less likely to get a divorce. relationally effects us.
its not just about opportunity, divorce, racism, etc. its about the development of you. its about reaching your potential as a human being. its about not having the questions of who could have i become if only i...
and i know what some of you are thinking, i don't think i am smart enough!: you are reading an online journal from the patron saint of middle school dropouts. honestly my grade point average hovers on a good day right around the number two. i worked so hard to get so little it felt. i was so jealous of my two younger brothers who never had to study and still made A's, meanwhile my ADHD brain was to busy thinking about some random etching in my desk about who loves who to even attempt to concentrate on what PIE equaled. in high school the guidance counselor took me in her office and asked me what vocational school i would like to sign up for (side note: there is NOTHING wrong with trade school!) and i even questioned myself if i could do that!
so after high school i did what most people who don't believe in themselves do, i got a job at the bottom rung of the ladder picking weeds at an amusement park. and i did this for awhile! day after day i would wake up at 5AM and run lawn mowers, or plant bulbs, or blow off sidewalks. but after a few months i realized that this couldn't be it, i looked at the men who had been working at this job for years and years and i knew i didn't want to be like them. this couldn't be it. this is not what i was meant to be.
i didn't gamble on the lottery, i didn't hope for someone to see my raw leadership talent and move me up to corporate amusement park management, i didn't even put in my resume in the food service part of the park... i applied for community college.
so i have a new slogans i would like to pitch and implement in the global educational community.
EDUCATION.
it is the only thing that separates you from where you want to be in 10 years.
EDUCATION.
do you really want to end up exactly like them? i mean really? exactly?
EDUCATION.
because people on the other side of the world don't all hate you.
EDUCATION.
because picking weeds really sucks at 5AM.
-esteban
post script: my sister and i have always struggled with good grades, but she fought and fought. now she is enrolled in Florida State getting her Masters in Psychology, and i couldn't be more proud.
Comments
Thank you for this post,I graduated high school in 07 had a job right out of high school, after going to a trade school myself,and I feel I didn't learn enough from the school, but I was happy I graduated.The job was going okay for a while, but things changed for the worst quickly.I was fired from the job about a year after I got it,(bad management really,it's a long story)I haven't had another job since, and haven't started college.I was going to, but my grampa wamts to try and get to know me more(I haven't seen him since I was two,he's in Arizona,I'm in Ohio)
I am doing some volunteer work that I absoulty love.I was volunteering at the Humane Society, but stopped that volunteer job,(it got depressing at times, if a kitten was sick, and they had to put it down, my dog was sick, and almost thought we had to put him down, but he's fine now!)
I'm still volunteering at the bird sanctuary near my house though I love it, without a car(or my license for that matter) I don't get there as much as I would like to, but it's baby bird season and I can take care of them at my house( which is a lot more helpful than if I were to go there).
When I was in high school I was basically told that I wasn't going to make it into art classes though, thats why I was sent to the trade school, I would of been left with all study halls, and art classes. Well that's what I wanted, no one listened to me. I want to try and persue a career in art in some way. I love photography, but I also love writing. Since school really isnt' the road I can go down right now, between my brother, and having to help my mom as well it's tough. I've been working on it myself slowly,and I want to see what I am able to accomplish without school, and stil keep my hopes and dreams out there.
There aren't any jobs where I live anyways, it really sucks.
I'm sorry my comment was so long, but once I get into posting something I just write, and write.
Thank you,
Alexandra
It is important that people are encouraged to develop at all ages... it is never too late to learn...
dropout and I'm Asian which is a shocker considering ppl here are sooooo education focused. But you're right. Education=opportunity. I guess it's not too late to pick up where I left off :) thanks for your encouragement!!
Also, my grandparents were big on education. My grandfather especially wanted to see not just his kids go through college but his grandchildren, too. In a way it was the classic story of him wanting for all of us what he never had.
Everything in this post is completely true.
I believe all routes of education are good, whether self-taught or formal, useful or thoughtful. A mind open to new ideas stays youthful, you don't have to accept them, just consider them.
Education is the solution to so many problems, yet it is the first thing to get cut. Then they wonder why our economy is falling apart, people are homeless, children are sold into slavery...
it all comes back to getting a good education.
Learning, it is so totally worth it.
I just finished my junior year of high school, and this post inspired me to push myself even harder to go college. It's not going to be easy but it will be rewarding in the long run.
Anyway. I like your "EDUCATION: because picking weeds really sucks at 5AM." That one's awesome! :D
And i thank God every day that I get to go to college, because each day, my mind is opened just a bit more, and i see what good it does to everyone around me.
It's refreshing to see a person who became successful from a career that is not attained from school, value education.
I like your picture in the suit by the way. ;-)
I was home-schooled and my mom was too busy to actually teach me (not her fault at all) and I'm not good at self-motivation... but I'm almost freakin 19 years old and this reminded me I really need to hit the books. I have way too much to offer the world to be stuck washing dishes.
This blog is a great tool to pass along!
Cheers,
JG
Today I will remember reading this because today is the day I graduate high school. It's a reflective day with a whole lot of sentimentality going on. And I do agree with you that education has to be done in order to pursue something you want. For all accounts no matter how much I love them I never want to end up like my parents who have been working miserably and have been married to each other for 19 years. An education of some sort no matter who you are- a fashion designer, engineer, a writer. It is all necessary
This means a lot to me. I know I've got potential, but the idea of college and getting out in the world terrifies me. I don't want to be in a mediocre job in ten years. And as usual, you give me more hope and inspiration. Someday when you're touring Australia, stop by the Sydney Aquarium, and maybe you can see me, the marine biologist, feeding the sting rays.
But the way you delved into the positive side of school is way more inspiring than a simple "stay in school" and for that i thank you.You should go into marketing after you tire of the band!
EDUCATION.
it is the only thing that separates you from where you want to be in 10 years.
EDUCATION.
do you really want to end up exactly like them? i mean really? exactly?
you inspire me (: i also did not get good to perfect grades in high school. im in my senior year in high school now and my GPA is exactly 3.0. maybe 3.1... but im ashamed of it because a lot of the kids in my school are smart. i guess there are a lot of kids who don't do so well too considering there's about 600-700 kids in my grade alone.
a lot of kids got into Ivy's and top schools this year, since the economy is so bad. they are so lucky! but i guess i can say im proud of my accomplishments too. im going to one of my state universities and planning to major in Education (to become a principal or a guidance counselor :])
-Sarah K
http://mrfiction.wordpress.com/
it would mean a lot and i think you may enjoy some of my posts. peace, love, god bless
More thinking like this, and we're on the right path. Thank you.
its extremely motivating to talk to people from other countries who have grown up studying 12 hours a day. its also motivating to hear that you and your sister have pushed through your struggles. it makes me wanna work hard. :)
My work is focused on creating environments where children can grow up healthy, resilient and with the best possible chance. You're on to something, CDC data shows that academic achievement is the number one indicator for adult health. Not just the absence of disease, but academic achievement plays into things like mental health, likelihood of incarceration, healthy relationships etc etc. The biggest challenge is convincing teenagers who could care less about tomorrow to think about the rest of their lives and stay in school. You're on to something with those slogans though.
I lOVE THIS! I posted the link to this on to of my favorite teacher facebook walls.
I also have learning disabilities and I have to say "While alot of my friends with learning disabilities have gave up I keep going." , But that's mainly because god has blessed me with a mother, serval teachers, and a whole lot of friends who would kill if I didn't.
Sincerely, Kenneth E. Frantz
mah jongg 2