Why Try Anyway?

Imagine,
You are 28 years old. You have a new baby, and are living in an apartment. You’re flipping burgers and just trying to make ends meet. As you think back to how you ended up this way, you remember when you were 16 years old- you dropped out of school.

On average a high school graduate makes about $30,400 while a student that hasn’t graduated can expect to make about $23,400 a year.

Some students that never graduated or are slacking off in high school may argue that they are enjoying life now and will get education later. That’s not always the case: the students that do not
peruse their diploma now have many challenges facing them in the future…

Raising a family can be very costly. One can expect to spend about $11,000 a year per child. If a parent never graduated from high school, then that’s almost half their income gone. After factoring in a house and a car payment, there isn’t much left. Without a diploma there are not many jobs available; most are in the fast food industry, or retail work. Eventually the things that people thought were worth skipping school for won’t be equivalent to the success education would have brought.

Sometimes reality slaps you in the face when you are making minimum wage, working in a fast food franchise, and trying to support your family. It is hard to dig yourself out of a hole that you’ve dug starting at the age of 16.

Sitting in class I see students all around me who just don’t care or have given up. Trying to decide what to do with the rest of your life at 16 years is hard enough, and when these students close the door for themselves it is upsetting. These students slow the entire class too. For example when you’re trying to get the grades you need to excel in the field of that job
you have been working for, and Debbie drop-out is throwing paper airplanes from the back of the class room, it somewhat ruins the learning atmosphere. I hate to see bright peers who are willingly give up opportunities that are practically handed to them.

If you have ever considered dropping out of high school, or just quit working hard at school for a year, please think about your future- what you are giving up. Eventually the hard work will pay off and you may have more options for where you can go and what you can do.