Graduation Day a Major Accomplishment for Some Students

by Linda Harrill

President of CISNC

 

Blue ribbons, certificates of perfect attendance, soccer trophies, cheerleading awards, honor roles and big scholarships are among the things many graduating seniors and their parents celebrate on graduation day.  These are the students who get recognized for their outstanding achievement and accomplishments throughout their twelve years of schooling – their future is bright and promising.

 

Then there are those students who have been neglected, abused, disregarded, bullied and/or humiliated because they are different or come from different surroundings.  They are unable to participate in after-school activities because they may work to help put food on the table or they may have to go home in order to care for younger siblings.  For some, after-school activities are out of the question because they have no way to get home when the activity has concluded.  What’s more, a number of students in our communities are homeless – they work just to have a place to live.  Others are teen parents who are already supporting a family, and trying to balance work, school and some semblance of a home life. 

 

Many of these students have made poor choices, no doubt.  Fortunately, they recognized that they were heading down the wrong path before it was too late.  As a result of their own determination and hard work, and perhaps because of the support of a caring adult – a teacher, a volunteer, a relative, neighbor or religious leader – they are also graduating.  For these graduates the road has been long and challenging.  They may not win any of the awards or get much recognition when their names are called.  It is also unlikely that they will have or attend a graduation party or leave for a trip to the beach.  In all likelihood, they will simply return to their jobs and their day-to-day lives.

 

While this may not seem like much of a life-changing achievement, nothing could be further from the truth.  The fact that they stayed in school and graduated is good news.  In spite of the many obstacles they had to overcome – a dysfunctional home life, an after-school job, the lure of a gang life, or the responsibility of a child – they persevered.  They have prevailed over every problem thrown at them, many of which might have derailed some of us adults.  As a result, these are graduates we should all want to hire because they have revealed an astonishing resolve to achieve something that did not come easy. They have accomplished something that 30 percent of their freshman class did not achieve.  They graduated from high school and, consequently, they have a ticket to a future, unlike those who chose to drop out. 

 

Reach out to them.  Let them know how proud you are that they stayed the course.  They still need your help.  Most of them cannot afford to go to college or on to post-secondary training without some financial support.   They not only need scholarships for tuition, they need a way to actually get to their college of choice and pay for food, clothing and shelter.  If they are going to college in your hometown, give them a job or a paying internship.  Be a mentor to one or more of these graduates and teach them what someone taught you many years ago. Give them opportunities to continue to learn and gain new skills.  They have shown the motivation and desire to carry on.  Honor them for their recent accomplishment by helping them get where they want to go.  You will be proud that you did.